It is really
    Microsoft who determines which machine we program on and what 
    environment we work in. They now represent the force to restrict a
    programmer's freedom.

As far as I know, Microsoft has not tried to restrict the freedom of
programmers.  Microsoft has been attacked with both look and feel
lawsuits and patent lawsuits, and has fought back when attacked, but
has never started such hostilities with anyone else.

If you believe you know of a specific case where they have done so,
please send me details.  It may be true.  Or it may be a false rumor.

It may be that you are failing to distinguish between a direct attack
on your freedom, and market situations which make certain work more
or less profitable.  There are big differences between those two things.

You are also exaggerating.  Even if MS Windows becomes 95% of the
market, that does not mean you are forced to work with it if you
really don't want to.  You could join the other 5% and make it
5.0000001%.

There is a potential danger that Microsoft will start trying to
prohibit us from writing various programs.  One can never trust a
corporation not to attack.  This is one more reason why no one should
be given the power to do that.  But so far they haven't tried.

    Notice how they succeeded
    in forcing Apple to cancel Mac Basic as a product and almost
    make HyperCard an orphan.

I don't follow news about Macintosh software; I don't know what
happened.

What do you mean by "forced"?  Did Microsoft sue Apple and say they
have a monopoly on writing programs like Mac Basic?  That would be
analogous to what Apple has done.  Or did they do some other sort of
thing?

    These are the forces which brought about the cancellation of the
    DARPA project which funded Berkeley Unix.

I have never heard Microsoft mentioned together with the BSD project.
What specifically do you mean--and who are the primary sources for the
information?

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