The US Government can own copyrights, just like they can own land or tools. The direct works for hire of government employees aren't copyrighted, but the government often issues contracts for production of works by others. The contractors then deliver the work and the copyright in the work. In this way, the U.S. Government ends up owning copyrights.

The facts needed to tell whether they sold out are simple: is the Library spending more on this project with the donation than they would have without it? Is Microsoft getting more benefit in extra Silverlight publicity and installations than it's paying in actual costs?

It's hard to count some of the costs. It's easy to be taken in by Microsoft's quote of $3M. But that's not what they're paying. That's what they'd quote as a sticker price if someone wanted to buy all this stuff. Any customer that large gets a discount. Certainly, Microsoft's costs are much lower.

It's common for universities to erect buildings based on donations. For example, Stanford built its Gates CS building at a cost of several million dollars (more than 5, less than 10, as I recall). Gates himself donated $1.6 million, the minimum to have the building named after him. Would the university have built a new CS building then if not for this? Probably not. Would they have built one eventually? Probably. It's a tough call to say they sold out or didn't. I'm not certain that the board making the decision at Stanford could tell.

The work with the Library is like that: Microsoft has a history of donating free software for a project... thus causing the project to happen at all. Microsoft ends up making more money than it would have if the project hadn't happened. Is this really a donation?

A stovetop percolator on a gas stove also works wonderfully. It may boil out all the wonderful aromatics---but that just puts them in the air for everyone to enjoy.

I find a Percolator and Chock full o'Nuts make an excellent complement to freshly roasted and ground beans and a certified CoffeeSnob french press or espresso machine. A few minutes after it's on, I can shut my eyes and step into the kitchen of my grandmother: same model percolator on a gas stove, and the same smell throughout the apartment.