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Dell to Ship Linux Desktops in Europe
Anglophile writes "Looks like Dell has launched a new line of desktop computers. The Dell Optiplexes will be sold in Europe, come with the Linspire operating system and include a one year free membership to their download warehouse. "
Something wrong with the big distros?
So are they gonna be $150 cheaper?
When will we see the same thing for Xandros?
Disconnect and self-destruct, one bullet at a time.
This is great ! If DELL is putting their weight behind that will be a major policy shift for *many* corporations.
- People who believe other people have no right to live, got no right to live ...
Dell cant even ship their computers on time in the U.S.
SCO x DELL
Correct me if I'm wrong...but wasn't Linspire BANNED in several European countries?
Therefore, wouldn't it be stupid to sell a computer in Europe running an OS that was banned in 3 different countries?
I can see this in the US...but in Europe?
A few years ago, didn't Dell ship desktops, laptops and servers and sich with Red Hat Linux on them, nyet?
Linspire? Never heard of it...
Sounds like a scam...
does it run linux?
I'm surprised Dell hasn't done this sooner. But then again, Linspire is of recent vintage and was the first to make desktop Linux feasible on the large scale. Now people can obtain an entirely-Linux solution from Dell -- from the server to the desktop -- and all I can say is it's about time.
I never vote for anyone. I always vote against.
-- W.C. Fields
Dell Optiplexes will be sold in Europe, come with the Linspire operating system and include a one year free membership to their download warehouse. Hmmmm... well, as long as they don't institute BestBuy's new "The Customer Is No Longer Always Right" policy, then I should be able to buy an Optiplex, get the one year free membership of downloads, and return the Optiplex. Woohoo!
Why Linspire? Why not use a bigger, (dare I say it) better distro. SuSe 9.1 is Europe's biggest distro, why not that? Is there some anger between Novell and Dell?
So Dell returns home to Linux...
I bought several PC's from Dell in 2001 with RedHat preinstalled... They shipped with driver disks too...
Why worry? Each of us is wearing an unlicensed "nucular" accelerator on his back.
Sig changed for readability by G.W.
Download warehouse? is that like an apt-get repository? DAMMIT! It was so OBVIOUS! To get Linux on the market, it had to become paying, then add free offers!
Misleading titles? Inflammatory blurbs? Keep in mind that Slashdot is a tabloid.
The article I read inquirer.net didn't say if the machine was for whoreporate or home use.
"Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival."
--Dr.W.Edwards Deming
looks like this is a bit misleading - in fact, Dell is shipping them, but they are actually being sold by an Italian company called Questar. So while they are technically Dell machines and even shipped by Dell, this is not a big move by Dell onto the European linux market, it's a smaller company taking the initiative in partnership with Dell...
Except, when all of a sudden the windows only Dell becomes "You choose the OS", suddenly edging windows out of owning the desktop market. MS might not take kindly to this, and could basically shut down Dell by not selling to them.
Do they still pay the microsoft tax? I would assume Dell passes the savings of not paying for an OS right into their pocket. Consumers will not see lower prices.
Dell *supported* Linux on desktops and laptops about 5 years ago. No one knows what happened, but Dell stopped doing it. Who knows if it was the carrot or the stick of Microsoft that prompted Dell to drop support.
Dell is probably just gambling that they can get a little "carrot" from Microsoft: Microsoft drops their price for Windows and Dell drops desktop support for Linux (again). The risk is that Microsoft will retaliate with "the stick" : price increases for Windows until Dell drops Linux support.
Bill and Michael may smile and shake hands but underneath the table they are kicking each other.
Lindows was banned. That's why it changed to Linspire.
Finally there's a version of the trickle-down theory that actually works.
I'd bet that Dell made this decision because there are many large users (Munich decision, with many more considering) who will be switching over in the work-place.
Many non-techie employees of those organizations will want to have the same environment at home as at work -- two OSs is simply too "confusing" for point-and-click types.
And as more and more large institutions move to Linux whatever reason (there are many), I think we will see more and more pre-packaged systems available on a retail level.
Well on dells site the difference between home and pro is $70. But on newegg the difference between the two is $51.
"could basically shut down Dell by not selling to them"
Microsoft COULD do that, but it'd be a blantant violation of their slap-on-the-wrist agreement with the DoJ. They probably couldn't get away with it, and would be forced to start selling to Dell again.
Linspire, previously known as LindowsOS (also Lin---s, pronounced as Lindash), is a Linux distribution based on Debian. It targets the consumer user - its distributors market it more intensively than all other Unix-based or Unix-like distributions except Mac OS X. As Lindows, it was the first Linux distribution to replace Windows in home consumer desktop systems at a substantially lower price than Microsoft Windows.
Michael Robertson, the founder and former CEO of MP3.com functions as the CEO of Lindows, Inc. It is still called "Lindows, Inc" even though the product is now Linspire.
Microsoft Corporation sued Lindows, Inc for its use of the term "Windows", which Microsoft claimed constituted a trademark infringement. In February 2004, a judge rejected two of Microsoft's central claims. Though Microsoft lost the core of its case, and says it will appeal the decision, for uncertain reasons it also called the decision "a victory". (See Microsoft vs Lindows for more information.) Lindows was renamed Linspire to avoid further legal action by Microsoft. Michael Robertson called the legal action "Sextuple Jeopardy", which is like "Double Jeopardy" but sextupled.
Lindows, Inc had the initial goal of developing a Linux-based operating system capable of running major Windows applications as well. It based its Windows compatibility on the development of WINE by the Linspire team. Lindows.com later abandoned its initial approach in favor of making Linux applications easy to download, install and use. They achieved this using an application called Click-N-Run, a program based on Debian's Advanced Packaging Tool, providing an easy-to-use interface and a slightly modified package system for an annual fee (apt-get costs no money, but has less user-friendliness). Click-N-Run has over 1,000 pieces of software for download.
Lindows, Inc sponsors many open-source projects and events, including the Gaim instant messaging client, the KDE-Apps.org (http://www.kde-apps.org/) and KDE-Look.org (http://www.kde-look.org/) websites, and the Nvu project, which has started to develop an open-source WYSIWYG website editor (based on the Mozilla composer code) to rival FrontPage. In the past, Linspire.com has contributed over $500,000 to the WINE project.
Editions
Several varieties of Linspire, known as editions, target different markets. Three main editions exist: Standard, Developer and Laptop.
External links
I think that most of Europe is open to different OS's, especially since the EU sanctions on M$. This could actually work there. I doubt it would work here. I don't remember Wal-Mart's Linux computers doing much. I never saw them in any of the stores around where I live. It would be great if this works, but I just don't see it happening. Wal-Mart's weight in the US didn't do much for Linux, I am not sure if Dell's would.
I applaud them on the effort.
Maybe Dell can work out a deal where anyone can sell their machines with any o/s preloaded as a ghosted image, provided you send them the CD and you're liable if the image is crap... that would be sweet! Then we could all compete with our favorite o/s's and with wal-mart (to some tiny degree)
stuff |
MS is dependent on its oem retailers probably more than the other way around.
If adoption of tire design is any clue, it will be a few more decades before we see Linux take its rightful place on the USA desktop.
Oh why oh why they have chosen the Linspire OS.
You see, if you are an average customer and you do not know about different operating systems or you are very open-minded about the two major ones you know (Linux vs Windows): are you going to choose the Windows with free updates for the next, say, five years with superior application availability or are you going to buy something that has only updates / repository etc for one year?
The distro wasn't banned, the courts just made the company change the name.
How do products like Linspire with their "pay for package warehouses" survive? There are so many distro's out there that enable you to download from their package databases for free and as often as you want. Do I even have to mention Gentoo?
Whoever dies with the most toys wins.
"All Dell computers sold by Questar will be equipped with word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation software and file compatibility with Microsoft Office."
Linspire comes with Open Office 1.1.
While there is a great deal of compatability between Open Office and MS Office, there are still issues
Sounds a little misleading to me.
They probably couldn't get away with it
Depends if Bush gets re-elected or not.
Linspire is Debian-based and one of the most windows-like distribution. Besides, it has an excellent software upgrade system that is esy to use for everyone. It makes sense.
:).
And I am a Mandrake user and apologist
> How is average joe computer buyer going to respond when he sees that half the PCs at Bestbuy are running some thing called Linux, proudly embossed with the Dell name,
I think he'll be flabbergasted to see any Dells at Best Buy, considering that Dells are not sold through retail channels.
In 1994, Microsoft agreed to change contracts with PC makers and eliminate some restrictions on other software makers, ending the U.S. and European antitrust investigations.
Microsoft will do whatever it damn well pleases and buy off anyone who complains : IBM, AOL, Sun, Justice Dept, etc. Cost of doing business.
That's true. I've heard that Bush has been real interested in the current state of the OS wars. He feels that by promoting Windows & MS, not only does he give money to his cronies, he also promotes a less secure system that is easier for his "men in black" to spy on.
Oh wait, he doesn't give a shit.
THey were stopped to use Lindows. Linspire is halal, kosher, etc.
yours,
The Penguin.
IANAL but write like a drunk one.
They're not quite illegal, but they're certainly anti-competitive. Here's a very old article from The Register:
_ killed_dell_linux_states/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2002/03/19/microsoft
Seriously, just do a Google search for "dell linux microsoft" and you'll turn up all kinds of stuff.
To play Devil's Advocate and seemingly contradict an earlier post of mine, notice that this announcement applies to Europe, where the judicial system seems to have sharper teeth when it comes to punishing Microsoft to level the playing field.
it's sorta frustrating having a degree in business sometimes.
:)
That makes sense, having been ripped of by a university like that, I'd be frustrated too.
Here... have a basic electronics book. And if you explain to the EE professors what happened to you, I'm sure they'll let you sit in the back of the class as long as you don't bother anyone with your Econ 101 comments.
You are checking your backups, aren't you?
"Would they care to explain this?"
You should review the facts of the DOJ case against MS, you fucking troll.
..coming from a company that uses Redhat on the server side of things. I mean, I know that Linspire has been geared towards former windows users who use linux for whatever reason, and the major desktop target audience from Dell is full of windows users, but now they are going to have to widen the support level won't they?
while true ; do echo this is my sig; done
http://www.questar.it/dell/
Italian only
This guy is right. People here make anti-microsoft claims just for the karma. Rarely are they backed up with any credible evidence. It's a shame to see a good discussion revolve around some jerk who should me modded down as "-1, Jumped on the Bandwagon"
If you like microsoft then use them. If not, then don't. And btw, I use gentoo, but I only say that not to get modded down as an ms fanboy because that's how some will read this.
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Please don't try to hurt what we've done here. We've brought as many brainless anti-corporate zealots together to form our own little "pretend" community, where we can spearhead a global movement against a non-existant threat. I personally would much rather consider myself a 'revolutionary' than an 'arrogant intellectial with hidden self esteem problems.'
Posts like yours only remind us of that reality that exists upstairs where our parents are working hard to make this dream possible.
Slashdot: Where people pretend to be twice as smart as they really are by behaving like children.
No they didn't, Lindows won the court cases and were allowed to keep the name, but then MS started suing them in so many countries that Lindows couldn't afford to fight them all and just decided to stop fighting and change the name to Linspire. In Holland and the UK, for instance, they've won and are allowed to keep the name Lindows.
'For we walk by faith, not by sight.' II Corinthians 5:7
Will Dell's phone support be better than Red Hat's? When will we see a "help desk shootout", showing which Linux support line best helps grandma find the "any key"?
--
make install -not war
It's is the only linux distro I know of that will literally speak to you as if you're an idiot with Audiot Assist Tutorials!
Checks Irish Site...
No Linux option...
This bugs me especially considering they make the danm things right outside my back door. And yet I will always be the last customer to get bargins.
May the Maths Be with you!
I think this is great news. Of course the hard core Linux users will bitch and moan about Lindows/Linspire because it's *gasp* easy to use. Keep using slackware if you insist, but let the masses use what's best for them. My mom and many others, for example, don't have to patience to learn cyptic CLI commands to install a piece of software.
While on Slashdot we hear endlessly about Red Hat, Debian, etc., the volume manufacturers are going with Lindows, Linspire, Thiz, and in China, Red Flag. Maybe those should get more coverage. What do the installed base figures look like?
You're so far to the right that when a capitalist consumer asks whether they'll get the marketing pitch of a lower price, or whether Dell will just keep the extra profit, you attack them. You're what's known in capitalism as a "pig", with contempt for the consumer. Having a business degree is surely frustrating for a rightwinger in the Bush economy, but that's no reason to join your fellow state capitalists in changing the tone to the high-pitched whine of the bloodsucking mosquito.
--
make install -not war
We do have, in the real world outside your strawman imagination, legions of rightwing corporate dupes who start spouting denials of unalleged collusion. They're necessary to "balance" the truth about collusion between M$ and the PC manufacturers beholden to their monopoly. Climb the stairs and ask your parents - they might gently clue you in. Ask about Santa, too: the truth will surprise you.
--
make install -not war
Exactly. And similarly to Microsoft ThinkTank experiment in GB, they feel that any failure will do less harm in Europe (probably couple of countries anyway). Maybe they are also testing MS reaction. If successful, you can expect substantial initiative in US in a year or two...
2003: Dell asks MS for bigger discount. MS declines.
2004: Dell starts selling PCs preloaded with Linspire.
2005: MS quietly increases discount for Dell.
2005: Dell quietly withdraws Linspire PCs, claims no market demand.
Nice leap from "obscure corner of Dell's website" to "Best Buy". You have a long wait until you see Linux pushed on retail buying shitheads.
It was a joke.
So Dell isn't selling these, another company is? I remember when Dell "used" to sell Red Hat based boxen for the desktop, but they dropped that, pretty quietly, a time back.
CB
free ipod and free gmail!
It should be mentioned that they do offer the N-Series desktop, which is pretty much a barebones 2400 (Low end model) with nothing installed (blank hd) and a disk with FreeDOS on it. And this is available to just about anyone. Its a very lowend machine, but not a bad option.
. as px/featured_nseries?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s= dhs
http://www1.us.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic
Blake
that it will be easier to support Linux than listen to all the complaints about XP SP2 breaking compatability.
when the salesman tells him it's just as good as Windows only cheaper?
If the salesman does that, he'll probably lose his job. I was at Best Buy yesterday...I was considering picking up VMWare and a copy of WinXP.
They didn't have VMWare. Looking around, I noticed they didn't even have any distribution of Linux. And no software at all that runs under Linux. (Unless you count games like RTCW where you download the binaries from the website.)
Stores aren't going to want to sell Linux machines until they can stock their shelves with software that will run on it. Which, ironically enough, is unecessary.
tasks(723) drafts(105) languages(484) examples(29106)
I was at a Best Buy yesterday in Emeryville. They had both RedHat WS and Suse 9.1. They also had Rekall (sorry, don't use it - don't like the company), as well as a couple of BSD app collections on CD. And trythfully, I've never seen VMWare in any store.
I think it really depends on the store's client base whether Linux and apps are stocked or not.
Weird...I was at the one in Grand Haven, MI, and they didn't have anything that ran on a non-MS PC.
And I have seen VMWare at BBs before. I don't remember which one, though.
tasks(723) drafts(105) languages(484) examples(29106)
How is average joe computer buyer going to respond when he sees that half the PCs at Bestbuy are running some thing called Linux, proudly embossed with the Dell name, when the salesman tells him it's just as good as Windows only cheaper?
Mad as hell when he gets home and none of his nifty new electronic gadgets work with it, he has to learn seemingly-impossible (for a mortal luser), arcane, cryptic command line stuff to run it, little to no commercial software available for it, and none of the latest games will run on it.
And, no, *Office doesn't count because it is still crap.
(Score: -5, Linux-Reality-Check)
"Microsoft COULD do that, but it'd be a blantant violation of their slap-on-the-wrist agreement with the DoJ."
And?...
They will never stop until somebody makes the
He may be a bit of a prick in a lot of Linux users' eyes, but he's got a set of brass ones and doesn't tend to back down from a fight. He's also a hell of a marketer. He's been pushing Lindows/Linspire, since its inception, as a commercial desktop distro. Other than Mandrake and SuSE, we haven't seen another "Desktop Distro" yet that isn't fairly fringe (ala Xandros and Lycoris), much less one that's been pushed to Major OEMs. Dell "tried" with Redhat not too long ago, but their effert was flaccid at best.
You may not agree with or like Robertson, but he's taking Linux on a path it may need to go down.
...Rob
The American Dream isn't an SUV and a house in the suburbs; it's Don't Tread On Me.
Say welcome to your new Master overlord ...
Hardcore Linux user like/defend freedom , they sell you property right to all the software you use from them.
The easy to use part is nice , but your selling out your right for a piece of software that is mostly stealing/piggy backing on OSS software.
Just like YAST whas a problem until Novell made it GPL.
Click and Run will also be a problem. Not technically or usabily but freedom wise.
If you actually bothered to RTFA (which almost no one on this thread has seemingly done), you might have noticed that these PCs will be shipped with the "English or Italian" versions of Linspire.
This line will not, for the short term, be targetting the French or German markets, where there's been the most high-profile noise about switching. Rather, it seems to be aimed at Britain (where the noise has been mixed and lower-level) and Italy, where I can't recall any high-profile switch stories.
If there is anything at all to this business plan, it would demonstrate a "trickle-up" story of Linux on the desktop: it's already happening, in small ways that don't make the headlines. Munich and so forth are nice PR, but the revolution will not be televised. It'll probably happen at a dozen dried-octopus dealers in Calabria and Liverpool before it gets past the policy point at the Munich and Paris bureaucracies.
While we're all focused on the high-profile intending-to-switch cases (some of which will probably go bust anyways), desktop Linux is already being deployed on a small scale, for unfashionable uses, by people who aren't interested in being poster-children for the anyone-but-Microsoft crowd, who are making the switch out of business sense, rather than anti-Americanism.
This is how Linux made it into the server market in the last decade: at the beginning, adoption was basically driven by admins surreptitiously installing it in firewalls, print servers, file shares, places where the suits wouldn't notice.
Desktop Linux is like unto a thief in the night. Be watchful for it, but do not expect to see it until it's already made itself at home.
Google confirms: Ruby is the world's most beloved programm
They didn't sell Unreal 2k3? That has the Linux binaries on the CD. What Unreal 2k4? Cause they binaries are there too. Or Quake 3 Arena...again...binaries there. Last but not least, you can pre-order Doom 3...again...Linux binaries right there! So...while they do sell other things that run on Linux with binaries you download, there are other options that are right on the cd.
Unstable Apps: Our Android Apps Don't Suck
Linux is no competition for Microsoft on the desktop market. We have just gotten to the point where "normal" people knows the "Linux" word, but of course, some people might get a shot of Linux how before they install their copied MS windows over the Linux on their Dell machine.
"apt-get doesn't work if you don't pay."
apt-get works fine if you are willing to take the time to learn what you can and can't do. I use it to install several packages.
Earlier versions of Linspire were mostly woody with an updated version of KDE. So in every version you have not been able to apt-get KDE apps if you want to maintain the ability to install apps from the warehouse, since the CnR client application is a KDE application.
Lindows Inc., has been porting software from Sarge into Linspire, but because of limitations in the warehouse client and server software they have made compromises. As a result of this they are in limbo somewhere between Woody and Sarge from the compatibility standpoint.
Because of these issues apt-get is a mine field for those not allready familiar with the ins and outs of apt-get and solving conflicts that arise.
The issues with the warehouse software are being worked out and the light at the end of the tunnel is getting close for that process. It remains to be seen what the result of that will be for those of us who install things using apt-get, but I expect it to be much better.
"They don't respect the GPL (they put a disclaimer that basically say : everything in there is copyrighted by us and us alone, don't steal !)."
If you include your artwork in an application and limit it's distrobution beause of that, but make the source code minus the artwork available, then there is nothing wrong with that as far as the GPL is concerned.
It may not be clear when you install Linspire, but there is only a limited amount of stuff that Lindows Inc. claims as it's own that is not released under an open license. The primary thing being the CnR client.
Later, Seeker
"their download whorehouse" instead of warehouse
The biggest cool thing is that they really understand average users. They worry seriously about things like how hard it is for users to change the time, and what users will think of having to do more to change the time than click on their clock.
Also they will be using reiser4 in their next big release.:)
universal "legal" mp3 and dvd playback included with the install? As in no grey market mplayer stuff? That might be a factor as well. And Lindows has been pushing it, they are honestly trying to market it,to make "linux" into something to sell, a business. Witness their deal with walmart for instance. At least they are trying to get linux to the desktop and address some of the issues raised in the "which distro for the raw noob" great debates.
And I also thought I read they changed that run as root default as well, but maybe I am thinking of another distro that was doing that.
Disclaimer, never seen it or tried it yet myself
I used Lindows for 5 months on my laptop, as it came with it. It worked fine (if a bit slow) and apt-get worked perfectly until I broke it installing kmldonkey but that was my fault. When 4.5 came out I tryed it but couldn't get used to it and went back to my windows/mandrake duo.
Amen.
What about Linux on retail laptops --
That's what we want!
change the thread title
i nu x+PCs+in+Europe/2100-7344_3-5259014.html?tag=nefd. top
http://news.com.com/Dell+clarifies+reports+of+L
Dell clarifies reports of Linux PCs in Europe
Last modified: July 6, 2004, 5:35 PM PDT
By Michael Kanellos
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
A PC dealer in Europe has begun selling Dell desktops equipped with Linux, but Dell emphasized that the systems were customized by the dealer and that this isn't the first time this has happened.
Questar, an Italian-based computer seller, has begun to ship Optiplex business desktops loaded with Linspire 4.5, a version of Linux, and a copy of OpenOffice, an open-source alternative to Microsoft's Office software package. The basic Questar computer, with a 2.4GHz Celeron processor, sells for about $562.
Dell spokesman Jeremy Bolen acknowledged that Questar is selling Dell PCs with Linux, but noted Dell's dealers are allowed to customize their machines. Although Dell mostly sells its PCs directly to customers, the Texas-based PC giant has an army of integrators and resellers that sell its machines. Often, these integrators are located overseas, where the direct sales model is not as broadly accepted.
Bolen added that this isn't the first time Dell PCs have come with Linux and that Dell isn't itself selling the machines, an inaccuracy that appeared in several news reports and seems to have come from language in Questar's press release.
Dell will honor the warranties on the hardware but will not provide service and support for any issues with the software. "It is not Dell factory installed," Bolen explained.
In 1999, Dell began to offer Linux as a customizable option on its consumer desktops. "Demand was low, so we discontinued offering it," Bolen said.
Although it dropped the consumer option, Dell made Linux available to corporate customers that signed on for factory configuration services. Dell has also continuously offered Linux on servers and workstations for a number of years. Dell's Linux partner is Red Hat Software; the PC maker has no relationship with Linspire, Bolen said.
Even with Dell's consumer Linux option gone, savvy buyers can still get a Linux-ready PC from the company. Dell's n-Series of Dimension and Optiplex desktops come with no preloaded operating system. (Because licensing agreements require that Dell ship at least a single operating system with its PCs, the company includes a disk of an open-source version of DOS in the box.)
I'd hold on until we see a real Linux desktop like Xandros or SUSE on Dell before I get excited.
Since when did Dells start getting sold at Best Buy?
Dell sells from two places that I know of, their stores, and their website. They have very few, and I think no other places to buy Dells. You are thinking of Compaq, and eMachines.
Dell sells to order. They never carry stock.
If what you are reading sounds funny, or sarcastic, lame, or stupid
it is because it is supposed to be. just laugh
You should either CNR or RTFM. You can't have it both ways.
Are these machines being excluded because they are "workstations" and supposedly not desktops? Isn't the low end Precision 360n close enough to a "desktop" to qualify? It starts at $849 uses the Intel 875P chipset (Pentium 4). The only thing about this model is you're forced to choose a "workstation" graphics card (Quadro or FireGL).
TO START
PRESS ANY KEY
Where's the 'ANY' key? I see Esk, Kitarl, and Pig-Up...
THIS IS STHE TMOST IMPORATEWNT THING EVIR!!!!!!!!
(just like it was the last ten times I read about it)
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
AP reports that Dell is working with a "diversified energy company Questar Corp". That's the wrong company.. and Dell didn't actually make the press release. The Questar system builder did. Dell isn't exactly happy with this...
---------
AlmostFreeLinux.com
As the other posts make very clear, apt-get does work and support is provided for it on the forums--which is free to anyone who buys a copy of Linspire.
If you do not buy it, but use a coupon code, which was avaliable at several developer-centric sites, you can get help on the guest fourm. One of the Lindows employees is paid to be a 'community liason'.
You will find that people are extremely grateful for the ease of installing applications, and the OS itself. (though I'm a little confused on that score as it doesn't offer any partitioning of any kind.)
The Linspire installer offers a introductory screen after installation. If you click Advanced, you can setup other user accounts. 5.0 should go a long way towards encouraging users to configure a regular user account for daily use.