en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween_documents
1 correction found
The documents are associated with Halloween because many of them were originally leaked close to October 31 in different years.
The name "Halloween" came from the first memo being annotated and published over Halloween weekend 1998, not because many later documents were leaked near October 31 in different years.
Full reasoning
Eric S. Raymond's own annotation to Halloween Document I explains the origin of the name directly: he says the first annotated version was prepared over the weekend of October 31–November 1, 1998, and that "in recognition of the date" he named it the "Halloween Document." A cached historical index of the documents says the first memo was leaked in the last week of October 1998, released over Halloween Weekend, and that Raymond then renamed it "Halloween I" after the second memo surfaced.
That means the label comes from the timing of the first 1998 release, not from a pattern in which many separate documents were leaked near October 31 in different years. In fact, later numbered items were published at other times of year as well—for example, Halloween X was published in March 2004 and Halloween XI in June 2004.
So the article's explanation of why the documents are called the "Halloween documents" is backwards.
3 sources
- Halloween Document I (Version 1.17)
The first (1.1) annotated version of the VinodV memorandum was prepared over the weekend of 31 Oct-1 Nov 1998. It is in recognition of the date ... that I named it the "Halloween Document".
- The Halloween Documents
In the last week of October 1998, a confidential Microsoft memorandum ... was leaked to me ... I annotated this memorandum ... over Halloween Weekend ... I renamed the first annotated version "Halloween I".
- SCO Denies Report Microsoft Lined Up $82+ Million Funding For Lawsuit
The report, dubbed Halloween X: Follow The Money ... published Wednesday by Open Source Initiative President Eric Raymond ... March 4, 2004.