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Novell Announces Agreement to Acquire SUSE
Mickey Hill writes "Novell today announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire SUSE LINUX, one of the world's leading enterprise Linux companies, expanding Novell's ability to provide enterprise-class services and support on the Linux platform. Novell expects the transaction to close by the end of its first fiscal quarter (January 2004). This latest move follows Novell's August purchase of Ximian."
It looks like there is a web cast at 11 AM EST. Perhaps we will learn some useful information on what Novell is planning.
http://www.novell.com/webcast
From the press release:
Novell today also announced that IBM intends to make a $50 million investment in Novell convertible preferred stock. In addition, Novell and IBM are negotiating extensions to the current commercial agreements between IBM and SUSE LINUX for the continued support of SUSE LINUX on IBM's eServer products and middleware products to provide for product and marketing support arrangements related to SUSE LINUX. Both of these agreements will be effective when the acquisition of SUSE LINUX by Novell is completed. zWhat would an EWOULDBLOCK block, if an EWOULDBLOCK could block would? -- me
That's because most people only think of Netware (the server OS) when they hear Novell's name. Take a look at eDirectory (if you use Yahoo's portal, you use eDirectory), DirXML (an amazing XML based directory synchronization tool), ZENworks (client management) and many other products.
I almost dread every time I see an article on Slashdot about Novell because inevitably people talk about Novell as a dying company.
Your question about Novell's capital is easy. They are a cash positive company and have remained so during most of their existence. Last I heard about a year ago, they had about $600 million cash in the bank.
I recommend people who aren't familiar with Novell's product line just go take a look at it. Decide for yourself. I think you will be impressed with what they offer.
The second cool thing is that all of a sudden there is a viable alternative to the Red Hat evil empire.
.ISOs, which include all the software Red Hat develops under an open source license.
.ISOs including YaST.
Suggested activities for while you wait for the alternative:
1. Go download free Red Hat
2. Go figure out why you can't download free SuSE
3. Find some more appropriate "evil empire" (I'm afraid the world sucks enough that neither Red Hat nor SuSE should be very high on your list) to redirect your indignation towards.
Novell pays for SuSE, but they don't get a bunch of cash for stock going up. The stockholders do (if they sell). You're playing a shell game.
Slashdot: Failed Car Analogies. Amateur Lawyering. Anecdote Battles.
Sorry, I also wish I had my mod points:
- Yast is not closed source, you get the source with every SUSE distro, you can change it, you can even redistribute the changes, as long as you mark 'your' yast version as a modified version. The restrictions are, that you are not allowed sell(!) your modified program, while on the other hand SUSE is allowed to incorporate your changes into their next version
(for reference, type 'yast license' into google, for me it was the 5th link)
- SUSE doesn't have a 100$ user licens (not even one you could put into quotations), because
(a) SUSE Professional is only $79.95
(b) you could also buy the update version for $49.95
(c) you can install for free (modulo your internet connection costs) over FTP
(d) you can legaly copy the CDs from somebody else
The fact that the ISOs are not publically available from the net is something which I don't considere as positive, but it still doesn't make you assertions true
No, it's not. To purchase RHEL WS basic, you must agree to the RHEL WS Basic (x86) Subscription agreement, which states, among other things, that "Customer expressly grants to Red Hat the right to audit Customer's facilities and records from time to time."