Sun To Sell Linux PCs

Rubbersoul writes "Reuters.com is reporting that in "a bid to undermine arch-rival Microsoft Corp" Sun is going to jump into selling low cost Linux PCs. The article is a bit low on technical details, but is interesting none the less. Also if you take this new news with a story from yesterday about Sun pushing StarOffice for schools around the world, you really start to get an idea that sun wants to beat MS like a red headed step child ..." An editorial in the WorldTechTribute argues that Sun's education-market giveaway is exactly the sort of behavior that Microsoft has been attacked for in the past.

Comments

First on topic post!!!

[Anonymous Coward]

If Sun put a mainstream distro, (preferably Redhat), on the machines it'll be successful.

If Sun put CowBoyNeal's version of Wine, running on Foobar Linux, under the Bochs emulator, which is actually running on Plan-9, installed on an ESDI hard disk, with no PCI bus, but EISA instead, and 30-pin SIMMs, and everything installed via a PERTEC interface tape drive, then it won't be very successful.

I just wonder which option they will go for. Unfortunely, the second option seems to be the preferable choice for a lot of system builders who ship Linux!

StarOffice Monopoly

[SanLouBlues]

And when Sun has their Office Suite monopoly, they'll use their propriety (fully documented) xml file format to force people to use either Windows, Linux, or Solaris forever. HAHAHAHAHA!!!! It's just too dastardly!

A word from the Red-Headed League

[melquiades]

...you really start to get an idea that sun wants to beat MS like a red headed step child...

I beg your pardon!! As a redhead, I strongly object to this insensitive, derogatory, almost bigoted verbal abuse of people with red hair, who frequently bear the brunt of tasteless remarks such as this one. I will not tolerate being compared to Microsoft!

Re:Why Sun?

[Corporate Troll]

Oh, he doesn't even need to build it himself.

Re:Level playing field

[Arandir]

Well yeah, but Sun ain't a monopoly. That changes everything. I don't think anyone would object to giving material to schools if all other things were equal

Somewhere during the early to mid 1990's...

Salesman: I'm sorry Principal Cleaver, I can't donate any more copies of Windows for your school.

Principal: Why? Last week you set up Jefferson High with a new computing lab!

Salesman: That was last week. This morning some lady in Colorado purchased Windows. That took us over some arbitrary number of users, and now we're a monopoly. We can't do any good deeds anymore. You must now pay full price for Windows because our CEO's wallet is getting thin.

Re:Other Columns in WorldTechTribune

[BitwizeGHC]

It really is quite hilarious. The thing is, these people actually seem to believe the illogical spam they put on their site. Much to their credit, however, surprisingly open to opposing viewpoints (if only to try to shoot them down with Cold War analogies). When the JPEG patent news broke, I posted a parody of Scott's articles to the site... and they started asking me for guest commentaries!

Re:Level playing field

[jasonditz]

The store I worked at once gave 10 watermelons to a church. Was that an anti-competitive practice?

Here is the business plan:

[thomasj]

Three easy steps:

1. Sell Linux PCs at cost price and give away StarOffice
2. ???
3. Profit.

Sorry, couldn't resist. :-P

Re:Other Columns in WorldTechTribune

[Johnny Mnemonic]

So, as a conservative, and as an application developer, I would like nothing better then to see MS get it's ass handed to it by Linux. And yes, an acceptable alternative would be to open up the Windows codebase, but we all know it will be a cold day in hell before that happens.

So, do you think that vot[ing] for George W. Bush 3 times now (2 times for Texas Governor, and once for President.) has helped or hurt you to reach the first goal?