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Linux Gaining Ground In India

Posted by simoniker on from the more-bang-for-your-buck dept.

GillBates0 writes "Yahoo/Reuters is reporting that Linux seems to be gaining over Microsoft in India. According to Red Hat, about 10 percent of India's personal computers will be sold with Linux rather than Microsoft operating systems by March, 2004, up from nothing in January. Linux already drives India's National Stock Exchange, and the Government of India has been promoting open source lately."

5 of 280 comments (clear)

  1. Open source hosting in India.... by tcopeland · · Score: 4, Informative

    ...can be found here.

    Yet another GForge installation!

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    The Army reading list
  2. Re:Bye Bye, domestic workforce by deander2 · · Score: 4, Informative

    actually, they're not in the public domain. they're covered and protected by international copyright laws. that's what prevents anyone from using it if they don't agree with the GPL.

    don't confuse freely available for public domain. linux very much relies on copyright law.

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  3. Ever been there? by jcr · · Score: 4, Informative

    They have one small disadvantage - they barely make a living there.

    India has an enormous (and growing) middle class.

    -jcr

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    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
    1. Re:Ever been there? by swillden · · Score: 5, Informative

      Middle class, USA-style, or middle class India-style? (The difference being one is a touch more third-world than the US)

      This question is completely irrelevant. If the Indians in question consider themselves to be comfortable and happy with their income, some of them will be able and willing to devote their free time to writing software for fun. Their actual standard of living doesn't matter; as long as they think it's good enough that they can afford leisure time, they'll take it. And if they're geek-inclined, that leisure will sometimes take the form of hacking code to give away.

      Besides which, I'm sure you'd find if you visited that the Indian middle class is pretty comfortable by American standards as well. Smaller homes, maybe, perhaps one car instead of two, and maybe a few less gadgets, but they're far from starving, or having to work 16 hours a day seven days a week.

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  4. Re:Bye Bye, domestic workforce by RealAlaskan · · Score: 4, Informative
    We've got to remember that OpenSource Operating Systems (and other software) such as GNU/Linux, the *BSDs, and whathaveyou.... Are in the public domain.

    No. They're copyright their various authors. It is that copyright which enables those authors to place the programs under the BSD|GPL|some other licence. CMUCL is an example of a program in the public domain: it ISN'T licenced.

    I think your point could have been that ideas are free to all, or not free at all. Good point.

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