The love-hate relationship between Windows users and Linux users has existed for many years.

The love-hate relationship between Windows users and Linux users has existed for many years. Advocates for free open-source software feel the open-source industry develops and improves software an order of magnitude greater than anything Microsoft can dish out. The Redmond, Washington-based software giant feels otherwise, claiming that free software curbs innovation and progress.

Innovation and progress is precisely what Microsoft aims to protect, and it does so using patents. Patents are the life blood of the software industry, and if patents did not exist then innovation would not progress the way it has been, according to Microsoft.

In light of that, Microsoft now claims Linux and many other open source software infringe on its patents — a lot of them. Microsoft claims it has the right to demand royalties from Linux distributions and essentially users of Linux. In an interview with Fortune, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer clearly indicates he is all for supporting the protection of intellectual property.