Is
Desktop Linux Getting Ready?
In our recent issue on Linux and LinuxWorld (
starting with Linux Comes
of Age at http://www.wohl.com/wa03-8.htm)
we commented on the fact that
while there is some interest and activity in Linux on the Desktop,
especially by Sun and its partner Ximian, most Linux vendors are
still
focused on the Server market. In the few weeks since LinuxWorld,
however, a flurry of desktop Linux events has attracted our
attention.
Worth noting:
The Formation Of The Desktop Linux Consortium
One sign that there is movement toward the
market in Desktop Linux is
that a number of Linux vendors, including Ximian, Xandros,
CodeWeavers,
MandrakeSoft, SuSE, Samba.org, Debian.org, KDE, DesktopLinux.com,
Lycoris, Linux Professional Institute (LPI), The Linux Terminal
Server
Project (LTSP), NeTraverse, Questnet(Support4Linux.com), theKompany,
TransGaming Technologies, TrustCommerce, Arklinux, and
OpenOffice.org
have announced the creation of the Desktop Linux Consortium. It has
the
support of Linux founder/creator Linux Torvalds, who has said the
Linux
on the desktop is inevitable.
Interim Chairman Jeremy White threw the gauntlet down in announcing
the
Consortium's intentions. "Linux is firmly established in the
server
space, and now desktop Linux is coming of age. The ultimate
beneficiary
of the Consortium is the computing public, which will be assured a
vibrant, open, stable alternative to closed proprietary systems and
applications, interoperability, and an end to ever-escalating
licensing
fees."
The consortium will function as a nonprofit trade association had
not
yet determined its board membership or organizational charter - or
just
who can belong or at what cost. When we visited its web site we did
discover that it intends to allow even individual users to join. In
the
meantime, it's named Open Source luminary Bruce Perens as interim
executive director and said it will be up and running in 90 days.
Some prominent desktop Linux players are so far absent - notably
Lindows
(see below) and Sun. Lindows is probably busy with its somewhat
controversial Linux Desktop Summit - next week.
In fact, the Consortium may be a reaction to Lindows' proprietary
antics
- Lycoris, HP, and Perens all pulled out of the Lindows Summit
recently.
It's rumored the consortium plans to sponsor a vendor-neutral Linux
desktop conference later this spring, hoping for backing from such
major
players as HP and IBM. In any case, talking to each other is sure to
help in understanding and educating the market and that's an
important
step toward taking the Linux Desktop mainstream.
SuSE's Announcement Of A Desktop Linux Offering
SuSE is one of the Linux distributions and the leader of United
Linux
(that is, its strongest member). Less often seen in the U.S., it is
the
most important Linux distribution in Europe.
In October, SuSE announced that it would start to offer a series of
desktop Linux products in 2003 and it is now offering the SuSE Linux
Office Desktop. It attempts to answer many concerns and appeal to a
number of potential customers:
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It's based on
SuSE's Linux 8.1, based on the Linux Kernel 2.4.19.
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It can
run Microsoft Windows Office applications, using the
CodeWeaver CrossOver Office technology and a number of other
Windows
programs (but not, please note ANY Windows program). This
helps make
the transition easier. Other supported applications include
Visio 2000,
Lotus Notes R5, Intuit Quicken 2002, and others. A list of the
applications supported by CrossOver Office is provided at:
http://www.codeweavers.com/products/office/supported_applications.php
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It is bundled
with Sun's StarOffice, Microsoft Windows
Office-compatible software. This means users can choose to go
to
StarOffice directly (more suitable for new or lightweight
users), to
move to StarOffice gradually, or to permit a mixed user
community of
some Microsoft and some StarOffice users.
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A choice of KDE
3.0.4 or GNOME 2.0 as the graphical desktop
environment. It's designed for users (not programmers or
technologists,
with user-friendly menus and graphical user interfaces
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A partitioning
tool (Acronis OS Selector) lets you run it alongside a
Windows XP or Windows 2000 environment.
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It's priced at
a value-conscious $129 including Linux, KDE, GNOME,
the Acronis portioning tool, CodeWeaver CrossOver, and Sun
StarOffice.
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The initial product is intended for the SMB
market. Later this year,
SuSE Linux intends to release an Enterprise Desktop, with a focus on
centralized administration, for larger organizations.
We'd expect these SuSE products to sell in Europe to some
corporations
and to European governments, some of whom are eager to try more Open
Source solutions.
We're not sure yet whether the American market is ready. But it
seems
to be getting readier.
Consumer Desktops
No discussion of Linux desktops could be
complete without a nod in the
direction of the $99 Lindows desktop, which we left out of our prior
discussion entirely. Perhaps that's because we had business in mind,
but we suspect (and some of WalMart's suppliers concur) that not all
of
the $299 machines that are flying off the WalMart.com shelves with
Lindows are going to the home. Some of them seem to be headed toward
small offices and schools.
The Lindows proposition is somewhat similar to SuSE's in that it
includes a scheme for running a limited amount of Microsoft Windows
software, including Microsoft Office, access to a copy of Sun
StarOffice, and an easy installation scheme for Linux and software.
Any
similarity stops there. Lindows wants to sell you an annual
subscription to its enabling software and access to its grab bag of
utilities and applications. A one-year license is bundled with a
WalMart PC and you may now buy Lindows on its own (just the
license/subscription) for $99, sans hardware. We're not sure too
many
consumers would sign up for that.
You can find a great article on the consumer market at Newforge at
http://newsforge.com/article.pl?sid=03/01/31/1420212.
In another article - soon - we'd like to write about the choices now
available to "office" users, that is users who'd like to
send and
receive email, write documents, and perhaps read (or create)
spreadsheets and graphics as well as collaborate with internal and
external colleagues. We think the apt comparison should be between a
PC-based Office (Microsoft) desktop, a PC-based Linux desktop, and a
lightweight server-based offering, possibly via a portal. Feel free
to
chime in if you have suggestions for products or configurations you
feel
we should be considering in this analysis.
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