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The donor for a hacking project aimed at bringing the open-source Linux operating system to Microsoft's Xbox gaming console was revealed this week to be Lindows.com founder and Chief Executive Officer Michael Robertson.

Robertson's involvement in the project brings him in even further opposition to the software behemoth. He is already butting heads with Microsoft both in the courtroom and on the desktop through his Lindows venture. Lindows provides a low-cost, Linux-based operating system that supports popular Microsoft Windows file types. Microsoft is suing the software startup for trademark infringement over the similarity of the Lindows and Windows names.

The rivalry has been taken one step further, however, with the revelation that Robertson is the previously anonymous donor pledging $200,000 to developers who successfully complete the hacking project.

No one representing Microsoft was immediately available to comment on the matter Friday.

Contest Continues

Robertson's donation, which was disclosed on the SourceForge.net Web site for open-source developer collaboration, is being allotted as two prizes.

The first prize is for the developers who successfully complete Part A of the project, which involves "running Linux on the box." The second prize will be awarded for Part B, running Linux on the Xbox with no hardware modifications.

Part A has already been completed, and "Linux Xbox "is available free for download from the SourceForge site. Part B is still incomplete, and Robertson has extended the deadline for another year.

Other Attempts

Microsoft's Xbox has become a favorite target for hackers who want to turn it into a functional PC.

In October, a group of European developers released a version of Linux for Xbox. The group, called h07.org, said the distribution is based on MandrakeSoft SA's Mandrake 9.0 Linux. It contains the graphical environments Gnome and KDE, as well as such software packages as OpenOffice.org, Gimp, Evolution, and Mozilla.

Their method requires installation of an extra chip--called a mod chip--on the main circuit board. Microsoft contends that the modification enables users to circumvent copyright protection on games. The developers say mod chips are not illegal in Europe if they are not used with pirated software. Also, last June a Massachusetts Institute of Technology student claimed to crack the Xbox's security system, potentially allowing users to run any software on the system.

Assault or PC Freedom?

Although sponsoring a hacking project aimed at one's main competitor is usually seen as a personal assault, Robertson claims he is funding the initiative in support of his belief that users should be able to run any software they want on any hardware.

In that vein, the hacking challenge aims to provide a version of GNU/Linux for the Xbox so that it can be used as an ordinary computer. The Xbox consists of PC-based hardware from IBM and runs a stripped-down version of the Windows 2000 kernel, according to the project site. For antipiracy reasons, however, the Xbox runs only games.

The developers working on the Xbox hacking challenge say Xbox running Linux would be useful as a desktop PC, Web server, or node in a Linux cluster. The hacking project is presented as a revolt against Microsoft's closed-architecture approach to the machine.

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