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The Failures Of Desktop Linux

Posted by timothy on from the fails-to-play-well-with-bully dept.

PDAJames writes "Maybe Linux isn't quite ready for the desktop after all. After an earlier, very positive evaluation of SuSE Linux Desktop, ZDNet UK has carried out a more in-depth review, running the system in a production environment for two weeks, and found it wanting. A key problem area was interacting with the corporate Windows network. When will this stuff finally be ironed out?"

2 of 882 comments (clear)

  1. Compatibility by mrpuffypants · · Score: 1, Troll

    Forgive me for being so terribly blunt here, but if there major problem is compatibility with Windows networks then get rid of windows networks!

  2. Internet Connectivity by reporter · · Score: 1, Troll
    The primary reason that Linux still has not penetrated the desktop market is the lack of dialup Internet connectivity. Please read "Can Google Save AOL?". AOL has 25.4 million subscribers, of whom most are dialup users. Unfortunately, there is no AOL client that runs on Linux. The AOL client runs only on Windows.

    The killer application for desktops is e-mail, and it requires Internet connectivity.

    We are talking "mainstream market", not the market for geeks and nerds. The mainstream market is mainly consumers who like the canned, confined, look-and-feel of an AOL client. It does not allow the typical geek to do much, if any, hacking. However, the AOL client is great for the clueless consumer who wants to check e-mail, get today's weather report, find a nice restaurant, etc. You know. Things for people who actually have a life.