Linux steady fightin the Microsoft megalopoly

Big Guns Direct Desktop Linux

InfoWorld - December 2, 2003

Originally Published:20031124. 13#vety=3;enum=0; PLATFORMS 13#vety=3;enum=0; IBM, HP, Dell, Novell try to edge in while industry waits for Longhorn NEXT YEAR JUST MAY BE the year that desktop Linux emerges as a viable alternative to Windows.

Inspired by stirrings among corporate users for desktop Linux and with Microsoft's forthcoming Longhorn operating system not expected on desktops until 2005, IBM, Sun Microsystems, Hewlett-Packard, and Dell are augmenting their corporate Linux desktop wares. Novell and Red Hat also are assembling Linux desktops.

IBM's Global Services unit, for instance, intends to put in place next year a broad-based technical support program for Linux on corporate desktops.

What figures to add even more momentum is that HP and Dell are expected to announce technical support programs early next year, according to an industry executive familiar with both companies' plans, who requested anonymity.

"You are going to see similar announcements from HP and Dell around the [late January] LinuxWorld timeframe. If IBM is going to stand behind Linux on the desktop, that is something those two will have to do as well," the source said.

Sun, too, has been pushing desktop Linux and its StarOffice suite.

"Customers now have a few strong reasons to consider alternatives to Windows desktops," said Hal Stern, CTO of Sun Services.

First, the cost of Microsoft software and licensing terms are considerably higher than that for Linux, Stern said. Second, desktop and user provisioning with Linux has improved. And third, a proliferation of stateless clients, such as Sun Ray systems, offers users non-Windows choices for desktops.

Red Hat, for its part, is taking steps toward a widespread desktop offering.

"You don't see a lot of companies making a conversion to Linux desktops across administrative staff and general employees. But you'll see a lot more of that in 2004. I think it will get enormous momentum in 2005," said John Young, Red Hat's vice president of marketing.

In the meantime, Red Hat is working to better integrate Linux with existing infrastructure products.

"There are still a lot of improvements we can make to the desktop environment, and we are focusing on things like better security and profile management," Young said.

IBM officials said some large accounts are interested in desktop Linux as part of a broader plan to change their overall architecture and lower total cost of ownership.

"No question there is an increase in the inquiries about Linux on the desktop," said Scott Handy, vice president of IBM's Linux strategy and market development. "Most users will swap out a Windows desktop for Linux as part of a three- to five-year architectural change, not a one-year decision to save money in 2004."

Perhaps the most intriguing possibility for a stronger Linux desktop environment, however, lies with Novell and its plans to tie together its stable of server-based applications and services with the newly acquired SuSE version of Linux and Ximian's Linux desktop and management software.

"There are some pretty interesting things we could do in terms of integrating [suSE Linux and Ximian Desktop 2.0] as a way to offer better solutions and better hardware interoperability. We intend to deliver on that soon," said Nat Friedman, vice president of product development at Novell's Ximian group.

Sources said that once the acquisition is finalized early next year, the company will tightly stitch the Ximian Desktop with an enhanced version of SuSE 9.0, which would enable smooth connections to Novell's Group-Wise collaboration server, ZENworks resource manager, and security and integration products. The company also claimed that it will more than double the number of engineers working on the Ximian Desktop and will focus on improving the Gnome desktop environment, the OpenOffice suite, and Mozilla browser.

"The best way to compete on the [Linux] desktop is to offer an end-to-end architecture that works across handhelds, desktops, and servers," said Dana Gardner, a senior analyst at The Yankee Group.

Furthermore, the confluence of Linux vendors' efforts may prove to be well-timed. While Microsoft's much-heralded next-generation Windows, code-named Longhorn, is not expected to hit corporate desktops until late 2005, the time is ripe for desktop Linux to blossom.

"Given Longhorn's time line and some of the traction we are seeing for Linux on desktops, the [Linux vendors] have a good shot at getting more firmly planted there," said Stephen O'Grady, senior analyst at RedMonk.

Underscoring that, IDC expects that by early 2004 Linux will take the No. 2 spot behind Microsoft in the desktop fray.

"We have projected that Linux will be a mainstream platform by 2005 on servers, but we are also thinking that desktop acceptance will only trail slightly behind [servers] in that timeframe," said Dan Kusnetzky, vice president of IDC's system software research.

But the nagging lack of applications for desktop Linux, notably Microsoft Office, still hangs in the air. Many users would like to switch, but the applications, particularly in vertical areas, are not available.

"Because of the nature of our business, which is oil and gas, we're at the mercy of what is available on the desktop, and those applications are all on Windows," said Brian Baldwin, manager of IS at Enerplus Resources Fund.

Baldwin added that as the programs Enerplus needs, such as geographic information systems-based and reservoir management software, are moved to Linux, the open source platform could be more practicable.

"We're looking for value on the desktop, so if there is a compelling reason to use something [other than Windows], we'd look at it," Baldwin said.

- Ed Scannell 13#vety=2;enum=0; INSIDE

AMD's Opteron is 'a processor architecture that actually allows us to take advantage of all that Solaris has to offer.'

- Scott McNealy, Sun 13#vety=2;enum=0; Desktop Linux

Hewlett-Packard hp.com

IBM ibm.com

Novell novell.com

Red Hat redhat.com

Sun Microsystems sun.com

BOTTOM LINE: With growing interest among larger accounts for Linux on the desktop, IBM, Sun, HP, and Dell are preparing to offer a range of products and services next year. IDC predicts that in early 2004, Linux will take the No. 2 spot in the desktop arena, behind Windows.

© 2003 InfoWorld. via ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved

As long as Apple/Macintosh gets eradicated I am happy :cool:

Next Generation of Windows ; Microsoft Gives Developers An Early Look at `Ambitious Release'

Seattle Post-Intelligencer - October 28, 2003

Microsoft Corp. lifted the curtain on the next generation of Windows yesterday, unveiling an updated look and new features to take advantage of advances in computer hardware.

The operating system, code-named Longhorn, will allow new connections among otherwise disparate programs and networks, Microsoft executives said during presentations at the company's Professional Developers Conference here. Computer users, for example, will be able to search by keyword to quickly find and collect files across a variety of programs, instead of searching programs individually. Microsoft also plans to overhaul and modernize Windows' appearance. Yesterday's early preview of Longhorn included crisp new graphics, a customizable sidebar and translucent windows that stylishly emerged on and faded from the screen rather than merely snapping open and shut.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, during his keynote speech yesterday morning, said Longhorn would be the biggest release of the operating system since Windows 95 - the point at which many believe Windows came into its own.

Gates explained during his speech yesterday that Longhorn would take advantage of existing and future hardware improvements, including larger storage capacity and faster microprocessors.

"The personal computer in less than three years will be a pretty phenomenal device, Gates said. "The graphics capability, some of which we have in today's machines and (which is) not exploited by all applications, will be even better."

On stage yesterday morning, company executives and employees spent much of their time outlining for conference attendees how Longhorn will change the way developers create programs for the Windows platform.

As part of the changes, the company announced a new programming model, called WinFX, which is designed to greatly hasten and simplify the process of creating graphics-rich programs for Windows.

Another effect of Longhorn, executives said, will be to blur the line between Windows-based and Web-based applications, resulting in traditional programs that look and feel more like programs that run through an Internet browser.

Microsoft yesterday gave developers CDs containing an early technical preview of Longhorn, in addition to other upcoming programs from the company. The company plans to release a formal beta, or preliminary, version of the operating system in the summer of 2004, said Jim Allchin, group vice president for platforms.

The company did not commit yesterday to a final release date for Longhorn, but executives have indicated in the past that it could be as many as three years out.

"This is an ambitious release," said Joe Peterson, corporate vice president in the Windows division. "We want to get it right. We want to get the quality right. We want to get the security right. We will not ship until those are done."

At the same time, it's important for the company to get software developers on board early in the process to ensure that, by the time Longhorn is made final, there is a large collection of software designed to take advantage of its capabilities.

Some software developers are already interested. As part of Allchin's presentation yesterday, executives from other companies showed ways they plan to use or could conceive of using Longhorn and its new capabilities as part of their businesses.

One was Amazon.com, which recently created prototype software that displays products from its site in a slick, Longhorn-style interface, using Amazon's existing Web services, small pieces of software that let programs on separate systems interact and share information. The prototype takes advantage of the new connections Longhorn allows between different programs. For example, it lets a user easily meld a product-release schedule from Amazon with a personal calendar from Microsoft Outlook.

The prototype, entirely functional except for its lack of ability to actually complete a purchase, was created in about a month using the new Longhorn programming model -considerably less time than it would have taken otherwise, said Allan Vermeulen, Amazon's chief technology officer.

Reaction to Longhorn was mixed among software developers at the conference yesterday.

"I thought it was really cool; it's just figuring out where it fits in our world," said Bryan Clare, software architect for Ohio- based Progressive Insurance.

Software development advances aside, others wondered how useful the operating system would ultimately be for ordinary users.

"I can't see my mother understanding how everything's linked together," said Russell Jones, manager of driver development for Synaptics Inc., a California company that makes technology for laptop touch pads. He also said he was concerned about the time that will be involved in learning the new Longhorn programming model.

One facet of Longhorn that isn't set in stone is the graphical features, Microsoft executives said.

For example, the method by which the windows emerged on the screen yesterday was intended more to show the capabilities of the new system, rather than to confirm a final form.

At the same time, Microsoft isn't going out of its way to make the graphics publicly viewable. Although it showed a Longhorn desktop during the presentations yesterday, the company restricted photography except in the initial minutes of Gates' speech and declined to release screen shots afterward.

Microsoft's Allchin pointed out during his speech that the company is sharing the details of the operating system far sooner in the development process than it has in the past, with the idea that it will make changes based on developer response.

"We think it's incredibly cool, and we hope it's what you need in order to get really familiar with the system and provide us that feedback that we want," Allchin said. "We're incredibly excited about it. We think it is the next generation."

P-I reporter Todd Bishop can be reached at 206-448-8221 or toddbishop@seattlepi.com MICROSOFT PDC 2003

Follow the news from Microsoft's Professional Developers Conference in Los Angeles this week in the Seattle Post- Intelligencer and on the P-I's Microsoft Web log, http:// blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/microsoft.

© 2003 Seattle Post-Intelligencer. via ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved

nerds fighting nerds. what a boring fight. i want to see blood dammit

A couple years ago I was taking this marketing class in design school. (i can't bring myself to call FIT a college). The class was on friday mornings, and as we all know, college kids can't wait till friday night to krunk, so thursday night was party night, and me and my boy dave were always still drunk in friday morning marketing class.

anywho, the teacher is talking about monopolies, oligopolies, etc. My boy Dave whispers to me, "yo, an oligopoly sounds like an STD!" Dave is one of those kids that makes semi-funny comments like that completely hysterical just by his tone of voice and mannerisms and whatever. i'm sure you know the type.

The crazy thing was, i had just slept with some bar slut that night, and went raw dog. So I whisper back, "Dave, I fucked that girl **** last night without a condom, I hope she didn't have any oligopolies!"

From then on we always referred to **** as oligopoly. we even had other people at school callin her oligopoly but they never new the naughty secret behind the name.

coooonssssssssssssssssssspiiiiiiraaacyyyyyyyyyy

whiiiiissssssssssssssppeerrrrrrrringggggggg

and my wheezing ressssssssssssssspppppirrrrrrrrrrrrattttiooooooon, my blunted eeeeeexxhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallllaaaaaaaaaaatttioooooooon

i don't understand what people have against microsoft

got damn this is amazing what you can find on 12oz