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Newest Mandrake Linux Delayed
Jens Lönn writes: "Linux seller MandrakeSoft has had to delay shipment of its newest version of Linux because of problems in moving manufacturing to the United States. Mandrake Linux 8.1 is available as a download, but the first CDs of the product were supposed to ship by the end of September. "Getting 8.1 production up and running in North America has been a slow and expensive process," the company said in a e-mail message to those who have ordered the CD." Since Mandrake makes certains things so easy (smooth installation), I hope they soon get their newest release again on Walmart shelves across the U.S.
There is no shortage of U.S. firms capable of packaging software and Mandrake's delay in getting their product to market could have dire consequences. The entire Linux distribution market is in a precarious position. Their business model is predicated on most potential customers not having the bandwidth to download multiple CDs, but with cable modems (and DSL connections) finding their way into more and more homes, many people are finding that downloading 1-5 CDs is no big deal. Start it up, wait a few hours or go to bed, burn them the next day.
Add a delay to the availability of a boxed distribution and suddenly people are asking their friends with high-speed connections to download and burn a set of CDs for them. Some that would have paid for a retail copy will now download it themselves rather than wait for it to appear on store shelves.
The only hope that I see for the Linux distro market in the near future is to switch over to DVDs since most people currently lack the capability of burning DVDs from images.
1) Get quotes and find the right supplier
2) Fill in the credit application form
3) Hit voicemail
4) Get the iso images burned on a CD-R and tested on a few machines to make sure the media is OK
5) Get the artwork in a format that's readable by the film-maker (sorry, gotta use QuarkXpress)
6) Get the artwork to a print bureau and check the output for any errors
7) Get the address where to send all the materials
8) Send them
9) Make sure all they received is okay
10) Hit the voice mail
11) It's weekend, so it will have to wait until monday
12) The CD plant received all the documents
13) They make the film for printing
14) They fax you a copy
15) You approve the copy and send it back
16) They call to ask it you want a white background or leave it silvery. They hit your voicemail
17) You call them back and tell them to leave it silvery
18) They start manufacturing
19) A couple of days later, your CDs are ready, they ship it to you via UPS/Fedex/Whatever
20) You receive them in your warehouse and have to ship thousands of CDs one-by-one
Just so you know, there is a pretty significant difference between versions of packages marketed by Mandrake. The "download edition" doesn't nearly include all the software, or even quite the same install, as the commercial versions, which bundle Star Office, Real Player, and a host of other useful, but non-free, applications.
I highly recommend buying an off-the-shelf version and comparing it to the version you downloaded. It's rather enlightening, and it's tough to go back to the "download edition" afterward.
Matthew P. Barnson
I learn what I think when I read what I write