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Stopping Linux Desktop Adoption Sabotage

Mark Brunelli, News Editor writes "Outspoken IT consultant John H. Terpstra believes that Microsoft and electronics manufacturers are working together to hinder the adoption of Linux on the desktop. In a three part series, he tells a story about how two guys trying to buy Linux desktops found they were overpriced, and lacked certain tools. He then describes how Microsoft uses its considerable resources and the law to create such roadblocks. (Part 2, Part 3)"

77 of 616 comments (clear)

  1. Not Forever by gregbains · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Theres only so much you can push people. Windows XP did not deliver what people thought it would and Vista won't achieve what it set out to do, and updates take too long coming. Many people I know are or will switch to Linux in the near future because it makes more sense in the long run. Keep pushing people and they will try something else, look at Firefox or Opera. All it takes is a little piece of information to hit the public and people will begin to learn more about it, and adopt it.

    1. Re:Not Forever by Billly+Gates · · Score: 2, Insightful

      ... but I kid you not there will be folks waiting at midnight at the local compusa for WIndows Vista assuming it will be the os to fix their problems.

      MS won and is a monopolist and will do everything to keep people in. Until people leave software developers will only target windows. People dont care about oses and use whatever comes with their computer.

      This is how ms won.

    2. Re: Not Forever by Ice+Station+Zebra · · Score: 3, Funny

      the odd thing is I've noticed that Firefox has started to randomly crash on my Windows XP desktop at work. It worked great up until they started rolling out every freaking Microsoft patch under the sun. Makes you wonder if this isn't DRDOS all over again.

    3. Re:Not Forever by geomon · · Score: 4, Insightful

      "Web services are the future so this OS importance issue..."

      In which case, Microsoft wins by default. With the largest installed userbase, they will still benefit from a full migration to web services. You will still need an OS to get to the internet regardless of whether everything is web-based.

      The push for Linux will only come from the education market. When more children grow up in a UNIX-based world, then their preference will drive their purchase. It worked for Apple and Microsoft.

      --
      "Rocky Rococo, at your cervix!"
    4. Re:Not Forever by kubevubin · · Score: 3, Insightful

      For many, Vista will be the OS that fixes their problems. I've tried several times (without luck) to switch to Linux, but what would typically be a simple task in Windows (i.e. installing video card drivers) becomes an exercise in frustration in Linux.
      Now, before you inevitably mod me down as a troll, hear me out...
      You know what the #1 thing is that's working against Linux adoption? Its open nature. Yes, it's fantastic that everyone and their mother can potentially modify it to their liking, but how many different distros are there, and how many of those distros can you typically find easy-to-install driver/software packages for?
      Go ahead, I know you want to say how easy it is to install drivers/software in certain distros, but therein lies the problem: There's more than one freaking distro. And you know, the full-auto process of installing software can do more harm than good. For instance, installing Opera didn't result in a shortcut appearing for the application on my Desktop in Xandros, so I had to conduct a search to track down the executable for Opera in that mess of directories. At the very least, most Windows installers at least show you the path upfront.
      I don't doubt that Microsoft would like to slow the Linux adoption rate. However, claiming that they're responsible for it not taking off amongst the mainstream is complete BS. If Linux users could truly unite and create a single UI that wasn't so unwieldy, I feel that Linux's market share could very well pick up. As is, no, it's completely ridiculous having to sift through so many distros.
      And for something that's supposed to be free, I find it quite amusing how many distros' developers end up devising some under-handed method to charge for their work.

    5. Re:Not Forever by westlake · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Theres only so much you can push people. Windows XP did not deliver what people thought it would and Vista won't achieve what it set out to do, and updates take too long coming.

      How do you explain numbers like these? OS Platform Stats: XP with a 70% share, up 40% from March 2003. Linux and OSX at 3% each, no change.

    6. Re:Not Forever by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 4, Informative

      XP is up because they stopped "selling" the other Windows operating systems.
      Most "sales" of XP come from pre-installed setups.

      People go out to buy a computer that can run all the software in the local PC world or game store - at the moment, that is a Microsoft OS.

      Times are changing though, and more space is being given to the alternative OS's.
      Its kind of like the time when "PC" software was nowhere to be found and all the stores were filled with Amiga/ST stuff.

      Windows will not be dominant forever, it will be replaced just like everything else.

      --
      liqbase :: faster than paper
    7. Re:Not Forever by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      While I don't quite agree with you 100% you make some very good points, and I modded you Insightful. I'm a geek, I do Netware/Windows networks for a living, and have for many years. I love Linux, and use it for many things, but as a non-programmer I find some things about Linux insanely difficult. I can re-compile a custon kernel with the best of 'em but sometimes installing a simple app is unreal. From RPM or from source, after the make install then what? Man $newapp sometimes will tell you other times it's a find / -name $newapp and try to figure out a) where it is, and b) how the hell to start it. Then there's stuff that starts from xinetd.d and stuff that doesn't, and stuff that used to, but then "they" changed it. Arrgh. I had a PPTP Vpn , mostly working, was going to have it use AD authentication, then I did an update, changed Kernels, and it's almost impossible to figure out where MPPE support went. I threw in the towel and used a Win2k server App developers need to consider thatnot all Linux users are programmers, and we can't all peek at the source, find the issue, and fix it ourselves.

    8. Re:Not Forever by Vancorps · · Score: 3, Interesting
      I fail to see how web services in any way forced people to go with Windows. I just created a web based Auction application that works whether your are on OS X, any distro of Linux, my XBox, and yeah, most any version of Windows too.

      My point is that web apps free the user from the OS. The OS is still needed and I wasn't suggesting otherwise. The OS however becomes irrelevent when your cell phone can open a web based app just like a desktop with Windows can.

      As for you second statement I believe you are again incorrect. Colleges are where Unix was more or less born. That didn't result in a mass migration. In fact the opposite happened at the same time most probably due to hardware expenses.
    9. Re:Not Forever by Taladar · · Score: 2, Informative
      Do you get technical support for getting a free os? I think not.
      I got approx. infinity times more support from the Linux community than I got from Windows and that is mainly because Microsoft does not support Windows in any way.
    10. Re:Not Forever by rtb61 · · Score: 3, Insightful
      No, windows for workgroups will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No, windows 95 will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No, windows 98 will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No, windows NT 3.5 will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No, windows NT 4 will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No, windows 98 second edition will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No windows ME will be the OS that fixes their problems (I gagged when I typed that ;-)).

      No, windows 2000 will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No, windows XP will be the OS that fixes their problems.

      No, windows Vista etc., willie GFY.

      What I can't understand is why you would think that going back to the same manufacturer that has created the problems for years and years, spending even more money with them will some how this time work. I mean really, rewarding a dishonest obviuosly incompetant manufacturer with even more of your money makes absolutely no sence at all.

      If you have not figured it out yet "Windows what ever" has always been the problem and Linux is the solution.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    11. Re:Not Forever by Master+of+Transhuman · · Score: 4, Insightful


      I don't know where to begin - virtually everything you said is total bullshit.

      "what would typically be a simple task in Windows (i.e. installing video card drivers) becomes an exercise in frustration in Linux."

      Wrong - installation of Linux is easier than Windows PROVIDED the hardware is supported - which is the point of the article. If the manufacturers refuse to support Linux because they are being bribed by Microsoft (and incredibly charged by Microsoft for developing drivers, why they put up with that is insane), Linux has a problem, sure. The Chinese will solve that one in due time and put the US hardware manufacturers out of business in the process, as the article states. US IT hardware manufacturers (ARE there any who don't buy components from Asia?) are doomed. Resellers like Dell will go down as well.

      Meanwhile, the only REAL hardware problems with Linux relate to stuff that is extremely new or stuff that is incredibly old. People who want to use Linux shouldn't buy a video or wireless card that came out last week, it's that simple.

      Another thing that needs to be done is that the big corps who DO support Linux - like IBM - need to start leaning on the peripheral manufacturers. Here, again, I expect IBM's deep connection with the Chinese will produce results.

      "how many different distros are there, and how many of those distros can you typically find easy-to-install driver/software packages for?"

      Utterly irrelevant. Nine-nine percent of the existing distros are used by people (read: geeks) who happen to like installing new distros. Any NORMAL consumer will end up with Red Hat/Fedora, Mandriva, SUSE, Sun JDS, or possibly Debian (and maybe Linspire) - for all of which there are easy-to-install software package management systems and available software.

      The average consumer has never HEARD of any other Linux distro and never will. In fact, the main issue with the uptake in Linux is simply the fact that ninety-nine percent of the computer buying public has STILL never heard of Linux at all.

      "And for something that's supposed to be free, I find it quite amusing how many distros' developers end up devising some under-handed method to charge for their work."

      Clueless. Linux is supposed to be free-as-in-freedom. It does not have to be "free-as-in-beer" - but ninety percent of the time it is if you have the bandwidth to download a few CD ISOs or you can afford twenty bucks to buy CDs on eBay. Virtually all the big distros make their money on various methods of support. Why is that underhanded? Nobody said they have to work for free even if the software is free. Is it better that Microsoft charges a minimum of $100 for their OS (and we're talking the obsolete Windows 98 here) and THEN charges a couple hundred for support?

      "Insightful", my ass. There should be a mod for "clueless and arrogant" - or maybe "Windows shill."

      --
      Richard Steven Hack - This sig is TOO GODDAMN SHORT TO DO ANYTHING USEFUL WITH! MORONS!
    12. Re:Not Forever by westlake · · Score: 2, Insightful
      When more children grow up in a UNIX-based world, then their preference will drive their purchase. It worked for Apple and Microsoft.

      My niece began with XP at age four. Windows is in her home and in her hand every day. Something she can touch.

    13. Re:Not Forever by lpcustom · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You make some good points. You have to keep in mind though that you are used to using Windows. There are so many distros out there purely for the fact that Linux is about freedom of choice. The points you make are about Linux "replacing" Windows. It's an alternative, pure and simple. If you want to use it fine, learn it. I know it's not what you are used to, and that's most people's valid point. Remember though that you always have the freedom of choice in the matter. You mentioned you tried Gentoo, which is what I'm on now. Just because I'm able to use it or prefer to use it doesn't mean you have to. It doesn't mean I'm "smarter" or more l337 or whatever. It means I came to the point where I wanted to learn Linux and I took the time and did just that. If you want to mold the OS in the way that you described become a part of it. If not don't worry about it. I've seen a lot of Windows users straight our flaming Linux on sites like Slashdot and Digg lately. I truly don't understand why. Linux users can be discussing Linux and some random Windows user will shoot off how much they love Windows and hate Linux. That's fine if they feel that way. It's their freedom of choice. But if Linux and Freebsd and the like didn't exist we'd all ( every damn one of us ) be in a forum somewhere talking about how much Windows sucks. You post is one of the few I've seen that weren't just blatant flames toward Linux and it's users. Thanks for that. If you ever want to give it again sometime I'd be glad to help. Once you are used to one thing though it's hard to adjust to something else. A lot of people forget that and expect it to work their way from the beginning. It 'd be like taking an algebra class and demanding that it work my way or I'll just stick with elementary math. Some things are worth learning. I find Linux is one of those things. I see some things that could be worked on. That's the cool part about Open Source though. I have the freedom to learn, use, and fix whatever I see fit. The development of it is so fast though someone will have probably already fixed it by the time I start. If not though, I can give back to the community that has provided me with a very nice OS.

      --
      Beer! It's what's for breakfast!
    14. Re:Not Forever by geomon · · Score: 4, Informative

      My niece began with XP at age four. Windows is in her home and in her hand every day. Something she can touch.

      Get her a copy of Knoppix and by age seven she will be knocking out bash scripts.

      Linux is what my daughters started with and what they prefer to use. One is sixteen and the other is eleven.

      --
      "Rocky Rococo, at your cervix!"
    15. Re:Not Forever by Master+of+Transhuman · · Score: 4, Insightful


      In Linux, the problem with video drivers is simply lack of manufacturer support. If the manufacturers would spend a week porting their drivers (this isn't rocket science), there would be a very easy way to install them. I don't understand why IBM doesn't do what Microsoft does - offer financial incentives to make a driver by picking up part of the development cost (which, again, can't be that huge.)

      No, Linux is not "uber-1337". There is no reason UNDER THE CURRENT CONDITIONS of lack of vendor support that it should be expected to be able to run anything. Given vendor support, the issue goes away. So what's your point? The article was about WHY it is this way, and has nothing to do with the underlying quality of the OS.

      So Mandriva doesn't make it easy to find the free download page - big deal. This is hardly "under-handed", it's just lame. Compared to Microsoft's business tactics, this doesn't even show up in an electron microscope. I'm not even sure it's deliberate - it could well be simple "geek moron" behavior, as I've mentioned before. Begging you to join their Club before letting you follow the links to the download page is just that - begging.

      As for $20, that's on eBay. There are plenty of places you can get entire distros for $2.50 a CD. And testing ten different distros to see which is "best" is both a waste of time and only suitable for geeks. I occasionally download a live CD to see if something is interesting, but I have no particular desire to replace my Mandriva 2005 LE until Mandriva 2006 shows up on the public mirrors in a few weeks. Ninety percent of Linux is identical between distros - the remaining ten percent has to do with configuration utilities and package management utilities, plus whatever additional packages the distro wants to include as the default. Basically of no interest, unless you want a distro optimized for some subset of interest, such as multimedia or security. And since you can install anything on anything given ability to install from source (and that difficulty is heavily overblown), it's mostly irrelevant - especially since, as I said, the average consumer has never heard of these distros and wouldn't know what to do with them if they did.

      And again, since ninety percent of distros are unknown to anybody but professional Linux-installation geeks, it's irrelevant how they charge for it. You're basically paying for the hobby of installing Linux, not the software, anyway.

      None of this is relevant to why Linux isn't being used by the average consumer. Far and away, the main reason is a combination of ignorance of the existence of Linux and inertia by those who really don't particularly care what OS they run - as long as it's working for the present and for the minimal tasks for which they use the computer.

      The only reason corporate America hasn't switched is less ignorance of the existence of Linux than it is ignorance of the benefits of open source over the long run, versus the inertia of sticking with the crap their people already know and to which they're wedded by bad IT decisions in the past concerning infrastructure design. That, and the lack of enterprise apps, which take time and organization to produce, so Linux doesn't have that many - yet. The latter problem will go away within ten years as OSS Java infrastructures make developing enterprise apps easier. We're already seeing that to some degree in a couple of enterprise areas such as CRM.

      The only real usability problem Linux has is the same one Windows has - a lot of software is produced by what I call "geek morons": brilliant guys at writing software to do something cool, but completely incompetent at either producing a useful GUI or producing documentation or both.

      I had to learn both Linux and Windows over the last three years, and as I've said numerous times before, there isn't a penny's worth of difference in usability or learnability between them. It's only hard to learn one or the other if you've already learned one.

      I still use Windows most of the

      --
      Richard Steven Hack - This sig is TOO GODDAMN SHORT TO DO ANYTHING USEFUL WITH! MORONS!
    16. Re:Not Forever by Burz · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Sometimes I think that's what the XBox is all about: "Get them while they're young."

      Just as important is what Linux can "see and touch". So I will put this very un-subtley: HCL! HCL! HCL! HCL! Live by your distro's Hardware Compatability List and demand Linux compatability before you buy. That kind of pressure is the only way we'll get hardware mfgs to back-off from their MS "special relationships", their Vista-Gfx cards, their WinCableModem cards, etc.

      Someone recently asked me if Linux was compatible with the Internet... with a straight face. It was not a joke and I was mortified.

      Here is one HCL site for starters. It's not great, but its a start anyway. XandrOS also has a decent list. People, this is just as important for gaining acceptance as the LSB; We can't pretend that Linux is just like Windows, that we can just buy the prettiest hardware on sale and wrestle it with Linux when we get home (or worse, in the office). Check compatability first!

    17. Re:Not Forever by sumdumass · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Sure they would still stall. It would be leverage to get better pricing form MS.

      The problem is that there are no "acurate" number on plain users using linux as a desktop. Most server applications require specific software wich have thier own dependencies and issues. Unless Dell or HP (IBM doesn't count) starts selling server solutions like a linux webserver or application server or Setupfor your apps requirments systems, it won't change much. Dell has the resources to basicaly come out with thier own distro and customize it to use Dell fee based webservices but they won't because MS would take discounts away and they would have to buy OEM software at regular OEM prices Just like they won't support AMD processors and lose thier intel dicounted prices.

      Another problem is that the (most) linux based PCs being sold are all low end low cost machine unless specificaly spec'd out for some purpose. Walmart sold cheap linux computer who for some were thier first computers and even if windows was installed, the user would have had a bad experience. Try upgrading a $300 Emachine and you get the idea. Mayeb If some manufactuer just used quality parts, any distro could install with the greatest of ease and it wouldn't be a problem. As it is now, it doesn't look like they will target decent computers with decent parts for linux, just low cost machines. Maybe it is the low end results making them not want to commit but i think it would be mor eto the discounts they get form other vendors liek MS

    18. Re:Not Forever by sumdumass · · Score: 2

      Actualy linuux can and does replace window sin alot of situations. It isn't the people who know windows that it works best for ti is the people who just don't know computers.

      When someone buy a dell or hp they don't have to install anything. They turn it on and a setup screen apears, after figuring out a few clicks, wallah a computer works. Magicaly, these users don't know much about computers. They can easily use a linux desktop just like a windows. Installing stuff doesn't matter to them because thay don't. They have other install it for them or call techsupport and have them walk thru on the phone. Most internet conectiosn are DHCP wich elim inates alot of hass in both windows and linux. Email is set up about the same in both.

      Are we seeing a trend here? Most people just want thier computrers to work and do what they ask of it. With preinstalled OSes and the normal service chanels this would allow windows to be replaced by linux. You would have the gamers who wouldn't be happy with it. The Windows tech who click enough buttons untill it eventualy works right wouldn't be happy with it. The person who insist on running spyware to get Bargains sent directly to your desktop wouldn't be happy with it. the majority of other people who are pissed about spyware and virus would be just fine on it. Going from windows to linux is about as easy as going from win98 to XP to the majority of users. They don't do all tht installing software or uopdating drivers regularly. They don't buy new hardware and if they did, they pay the store to install it. They pay for this because after the tech convinced them it was thier fault the printer didn't install corectly and screwed somethgin up to the point the restore disk was pulled out the last time they tried something, it is easier to pay someone upfront.

  2. Genius by suso · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Outspoken IT consultant John H. Terpstra believes that Microsoft and electronics manufacturers are working together to hinder the adoption of Linux on the desktop

    Wow, this guy is a genius for his insight. I really should read what he has to say now.

  3. So your company is being overcharged to fail? by gelfling · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Bottom line if this is true then your company is being price gouged and being offered inferior goods and services ON purpose so that WilliamSoft can play out his personal Passion Play against imaginary enemies.

    This would be worthy of Federal Prosecution.

    1. Re:So your company is being overcharged to fail? by Billly+Gates · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Yet you can't prove it.

      The doj tried that and no pc manufactor dared go up agaisnt MS out of fears they would be priced out of windows and office. The only thing they could go on was an email from balmer talking about cutting off netscapes air supply.

      This is just business as usual.

  4. It's just 2 guys but.. by js3 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I guess he can apply it to the rest of the world

    --
    did you forget to take your meds?
    1. Re:It's just 2 guys but.. by Overly+Critical+Guy · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Anecdotes are the fuel of Slashdot commentary.

      --
      "Sufferin' succotash."
  5. HP Website not all that linux-friendly by KiltedKnight · · Score: 5, Interesting
    When I recently went to purchase a laptop from HP Shopping, because I wanted a 64-bit laptop and they were one of the few actually offering it at lower prices, I ended up having all kinds of grief, having an old-fashioned "fuck you" fight with the customer service desk.

    It went something like this...

    I started customizing the zv6000 laptop, choosing XP Home, knowing that I probably wouldn't get reasonable tech support without having it installed (never mind that there wasn't an option to not get it). As I got to the end, I looked around for a way to request custom partitioning of the hard drive. No dice. So I cancelled the order and wrote to HP Shopping and asked if they could do a custom partitioning job because I wanted to create a dual-boot system.

    The response I got was that they couldn't do it and that they were sorry the web site didn't suit my needs.

    I responded by asking if they could sell me a blank laptop and provide the installation media on the side, since it was included, and I didn't feel like trying to reinstall the recovery partition for Windows. This is why you don't get installation media... they put it all on a partition on the hard drive that only the Windows installer can use.

    Their reply was that they were contractually obligated to sell the laptop with the latest version of Windows installed.

    So I told them that they just lost a sale because of their contractual obligations, and that I would take my money elsewhere.

    So they replied again with how they were sorry that the website didn't suit my needs and that they would notify the appropriate people.

    Now they've pushed my buttons... so I tell them that this is not about a web site, it's about a person sitting there running an FDISK command and watching the install take place instead of just using a ghosting program. I also tell them that I would've been willing to wait an extra couple of weeks, knowing I was asking for a truly customized job.

    In the end, I did get an HP laptop, but got it from CompUSA. I got the HP L2000, and for about $40, the tech desk people there were able to do the customized partitioning job for me, reinstall the version of Windows that came with it, and leave me with blank, unformatted partitions to use for Fedora Core 4 x86_64. The tech guys there knew exactly what I wanted to do, understood it, and thought it was really cool. Yes, I need ndiswrappers to get the wireless card to work, and I have to download a driver for the ATI graphics card in there (both are available via a yum archive at livna.org).

    Now if only we could get Macromedia to release a 64-bit version of the flash player and Sun to do a 64-bit verison of Java... (yes, I know about the OSS alternatives... doesn't change the fact that they need to do it).

    --
    OCO is Loco
    1. Re:HP Website not all that linux-friendly by Chanc_Gorkon · · Score: 4, Interesting

      You have to understand that for HP to hire a guy that is knowledgable enough (not that it takes much) costs HP money in both the position as well as training costs. Look, I like Linux as much as the next guy, but is it worth the extra money to HP for doing your custom partitioning?? No it isn't. Is it worth HP's money and time to do a custom job on your laptop? No, they can't do thatas they would be bombarded with many requests to do the same thing.

      Is HP right for not including REAL Windows install disks?? NO. HP should realize....hard disks fail. To a regular AOL/Joe Sixpack type of user, mailing the laptop back to HP or taking it to a service center is perfectly acceptable when replacing a hard disk. To us, we look on it as a opportunity to upgrade the feeble disk it came with. In any case, HP and many other manufacturers SHOULD ship REAL install media....not this crap that accesses a windows recovery partition. They should also stop shipping SPYWARE with there machine as well.

      HP's website itself works FINE in Firefox. The website itself is Linux friendly. Not being able to ship you a custom solution should not be a judgement of thier site. Face it....Windows DOES have the marketshare. If you don't like the website that they make you use, then you are free to go to a dealer that IS able to satisfy you. Being mad at them because they won't do your custom job is stupid. Finding a manufacturer that will do whaty you want and supporting them rather then HP is the sure fire way to get HP to change thier ways. What you did by buying from them anyway is VALIDATE thier planning! If a company can't do what I want, I tell them to pound sand.

      --

      Gorkman

    2. Re:HP Website not all that linux-friendly by NatteringNabob · · Score: 2, Informative

      [ ...Sun to do a 64-bit verison of Java]

      There is a 64 bit Linux version of Java available at the bottom of this URL.

      https://jsecom15.sun.com/ECom/EComActionServlet;js essionid=DA5B35C261DED503304CFE10857DC842

      I couldn't get the installer to run on FC4 when I tried but the package clearly does exist.

    3. Re:HP Website not all that linux-friendly by Junior+J.+Junior+III · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I bought a ze4610 back in Feb '04, on the strength of it running Knoppix nice in the store (Circuit City)... and mine came with a real XP Home installation CD, not a restore disk. I also got, separately in the package, a disk with all of HP's utilities and drivers and assorted bundled software, AND a student edition of Office 2003 for some reason, even though I wasn't a student, which I never bothered to install because I don't care for the product activation.

      I promptly ditched XP Home and installed XP Pro, and then wrote to HP support asking them if it was possible to resize the partitions on the disk to dual boot with Linux, and while they told me they don't support it, they did give me instructions for how to do it, with the caveat that I would be on my own if I ran such a configuration, which was fine, and doing this didn't affect my warranty in any way.

      Given that they don't provide Linux, I don't expect them to support it, although I wish it were an option and that they would offer it along with support for whatever version of Linux they decide to provide. On the whole, it was a positive experience and I was happy with the purchase decision.

      --
      You see? You see? Your stupid minds! Stupid! Stupid!
    4. Re:HP Website not all that linux-friendly by poot_rootbeer · · Score: 5, Insightful


      By ultimately giving your money to HP anyway, you truly showed them how much it matters whether they offer custom build options for power users like yourself.

      Not at all.

    5. Re:HP Website not all that linux-friendly by jitterysquid · · Score: 2, Informative

      Off-Topic, but you might want to check out:
      http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.5.0/system-configuratio ns.html

      It lists Linux 64-bit operation on AMD64/EMT64 processors as of Java 5 update 2.

  6. Needs update by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 2, Funny

    TODO: Update Slashdot Eezi Post.

    [X] Copy/Paste "How do I get Quake 3 to run in Linux"

  7. Re:Has made it? O.o by slavemowgli · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Then it must've been some time since you last checked... check out this rather glowing Ubuntu review in the Inquirer, for example. Yeah, I know, not exactly the greatest news outlet in the world, but they're probably as non-geeky as you get, so the fact that they found Ubuntu so easy and comfortable to use says a lot, IMO. :)

    --
    quidquid latine dictum sit altum videtur.
  8. Why do we still post this garbage? by eison · · Score: 4, Interesting

    "Part 2", the "what MS is doing to stop Linux" part, points out obvious facts (can't buy Linux computers in major retailers), asks why, and then postulates no decent answers. We should all ask, why does it suggest no decent answers? Is it perhaps because the most likely answer, that retail stores would lose money selling Linux systems due to higher difficulty of making the sale, higher support costs, higher return rates, and lower volume? Or is it perhaps because there is a global conspiracy that stores take against profitable actions?

    The author says we should believe: "Obviously, there are forces at work in the IT industry that cause retailers to choose not to participate in being more profitable." Right. Global conspiracy, obvious. Try again. The only thing that is really obvious is that the course of action he is suggesting (selling Linux systems in mass market brick and mortar retailers) is deemed unprofitable for these stores.

    Sure, Walmart sells Linux. But only online, not brick and mortar.

    --
    is competition good, or is duplication of effort bad?
    1. Re:Why do we still post this garbage? by clodney · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The article was sensationalist and attributed to malice and conspiracy what is best explained by profit motive.

      The major electronic retailers function as gatekeepers. There are thousands of products out there that they don't put on their shelves, so much so that simply getting a product on the shelf at Best Buy is a huge accomplishment for a small hardware or software vendor.

      The primary issue is one of space and inventory turns. Best Buy expects that every foot of shelf space bring in some amount of revenue, and they stock products that will maximize that revenue. A product that only moves 5 copies a month will always lose out to one that moves 5 a day.

      Computers with preloaded software take up a lot of space. I suspect that most models don't even give you a choice of XP Home or XP Pro, and XP Pro is far more popular than Linux. But every different SKU to stock means additional inventory headaches, so only the most popular choices are going to be in stock.

      Now consider some of the secondary factors. People buying a PC with Linux are going to be less likely to buy additional software. They arguably don't need things like Spyware or Virus products, and much of what they want is OSS and available for free anyway. So the chances for upsell are greatly reduced, and follow on sales are going to be less.

      Retailers will offer Linux boxes if the numbers justify it. Show them a way to make a buck and they will be all over it. But at the moment they don't feel it is profitable to do so. No grand conspiracy, just economics.

    2. Re:Why do we still post this garbage? by grcumb · · Score: 2, Insightful

      "Is it perhaps because the most likely answer, that retail stores would lose money selling Linux systems due to higher difficulty of making the sale, higher support costs, higher return rates, and lower volume?"

      Not to get all empirical on you or anything, but if history is any guide, it's likely because their OEM sales and partnership agreements require that they push MS into a place of such prominence that all other alternatives remain hopelessly unattractive.

      Don't feel compelled to pay any attention to this hugely speculative hypothesis; it's only backed by legal investigators from the DoJ and signficant anecdotal evidence from commentary all over the media. Feel free to hold tight to your faith in the invisible hand as it works its wonders on the flock, sparing us from excellence at every turn.

      HTH, HAND

      --
      Crumb's Corollary: Never bring a knife to a bun fight.
  9. Short version of this story by glomph · · Score: 4, Insightful

    1. Forced sale of MS stuff still exists. Wow, what a surprise.
    2. Before buying hardware, especially laptops, spend an hour googling or otherwise studying what IS supported. The morons in the story buy stuff and then find out compatibility. Fuckin' DUH!

    1. Re:Short version of this story by kashani · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Fucking duh is the entire point of the story. Why as a Linux user do I have to Google for an hour and then hope I can do the proper chicken sacrifice to make the drivers work? The OSS world has shown it can make kickass databases, web servers, kernels, mail servers, languages, etc, but we still can't get drivers installed. I'm likely to agree with the author that there are roadblocks not of our making that is causing this.

      kashani

      --
      - Why is the ninja... so deadly?
    2. Re:Short version of this story by geekee · · Score: 2, Interesting

      "Fucking duh is the entire point of the story. Why as a Linux user do I have to Google for an hour and then hope I can do the proper chicken sacrifice to make the drivers work? The OSS world has shown it can make kickass databases, web servers, kernels, mail servers, languages, etc, but we still can't get drivers installed. I'm likely to agree with the author that there are roadblocks not of our making that is causing this.
      "

      The roadblock is money. There's no incentive to support a niche market for consumer hardware running Linux. It's not a conspiracy, just simple economics.

      --
      Vote for Pedro
    3. Re:Short version of this story by bladesjester · · Score: 4, Insightful

      He doesn't miss the point. In fact, he hits it on the head. You should not have to wonder wether all of the componants are going to play with your OS. I remember doing that with windows...back in the mid 90's.

      I'm not placing blame for it, and, indeed it's getting a lot easier to throw it on just about everything now. I'm just saying that it shouldn't be an issue to run a modern operating system on modern comodity hardware and researching "computer stuff" is something that your average pc user is not going to do, and in many cases isn't really capable of doing especially since most people only use their computers for email and the web.

      I believe Linux is ready for much more buisness use, but until my mother can deal with it easily, it won't be ready for mainstream home desktop use.

      disclaimer: I am the editor of a technical and open source magazine, a software developer, and have been a network analyst. My views are my own and not necessarily those of my employers or clients (past or present). In all fairness, I use Linux and even help others switch, but I realize that there are currently some limitations for its widespread home use.

      --
      Everything I need to know I learned by killing smart people and eating their brains.
    4. Re:Short version of this story by killjoe · · Score: 3, Informative

      "but we still can't get drivers installed. I'm likely to agree with the author that there are roadblocks not of our making that is causing this."

      In most cases it's illegal to try and write drivers for hardware you don't have specs and permission for. DMCA sees to that.

      If you have problems with drivers then you need to yell at the hardware manufacturer.

      --
      evil is as evil does
  10. Come up with some real reasons... by No+Salvation · · Score: 2, Insightful
    So Linux desktop computers cost more than Microsoft Windows PCs do, and it's hard to find devices and drivers for Linux.
    Linux works better with most hardware out of the box in my experience. Windows XP won't even recognize my SATA controller, and most of the other drivers don't work very well until I update them.

    Oh, and buy a system without ANY operating system, if it still is costing you more find someone with a 3 digit IQ to find a cheaper computer for you. Besides this is mostly Microsoft's fault because they won't give special discounts to dealers that sell computers with no OS/Linux.

    The guy running SuSE 9.3 sounded like he tried Linux for a grand total of 10 minutes, of course you aren't going to know how everything works in that time frame. Sheesh.
    --
    I'm agneglectic, too lazy to care if there is a God.
    1. Re:Come up with some real reasons... by FST777 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The guy running SuSE 9.3 sounded like he tried Linux for a grand total of 10 minutes, of course you aren't going to know how everything works in that time frame. Sheesh.

      Sorry, but this sound to me as the stereotippic kind of you're-not-smart-enough-to-use-Linux-so-don't-use- Linux-and-stop-bothering-me reply to a real problem for many users.

      If you expect a desktop OS, and don't get a GUI working (which is what happened here) it can take a VERY long time on Unices to find out what the heck is wrong, especially without knowing what in Linus name is X-window etcetcetc. I'm only a OSS user because I'm persistent. I had the same experience with X with my first Linux-install, and I took the time to find out what was the matter. Most users do not have the time, patience or knowledge to do this and as long as it is needed, Linux will not become a major player on the desktop outside the geek-community.

      Think from the users perspective, then reply. Sheesh.

      --
      Free beer is never free as in speech. Free speech is always free as in beer.
  11. Re:Genius? Who knows. Smart experienced guy? Yes. by UnderScan · · Score: 5, Informative

    That opening line was written by the editor of the piece. John Terpstra is a good author and more importantly, a long time contributor to FOSS, namely samba. See "Samba-3 by Example: Practical Exercises to Successful Deployment".

  12. Re:Has made it? O.o by Soko · · Score: 4, Informative

    This is not true. In fact, the distros are each trying to beat the others silly by making package management such a breeze.

    All Debian derived systems (like ubuntu) use apt/dpkg, Fedora/RedHat uses yum (or apt4rpm), Suse uses YaST and Gentoo uses portage. All of these will find dependancies for you and generally do the right thing - if the package is available, it will be installed and configured properly.

    The only place where this is not true is when there are legal roadblocks (like DVD playback) to using the software in a free OS. Most commercial distros are able to bypass this however, since they pay a fee to the IP rights holder for the use of that IP.

    In any event, you can't have checked software installation very recently. Today it's easier on linux than it's ever been on Windows.

    Soko

    --
    "Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm." - Anonymous
  13. Complaints by Tribbin · · Score: 4, Informative

    People for who I installed linux, say the following is missing:

    Good MSN with all smileys, filetransfer, videochat.
    Support for all streaming media in your webbrowser.
    All multimedia files supported (without having to add (unofficial) repositories to have support for win32codecs and such).

    Oh yeah, for the transition, full NTFS writing support.

    Apart from that, my friends, mother, sister and girlfriend really like linux.

    --
    If you mod this up, your slashdot background will turn into a beautiful sunset!
    1. Re:Complaints by bersl2 · · Score: 2, Informative

      Everything except for the second item is extremely difficult, because they rely on proprietary formats and protocols. The NTFS support we have to date only exists because people undertook the Herculean effort to reverse-engineer the way it stores information on disk. Some formats of media files are also proprietary; and so that we don't have to reverse engineer them immediately, we use modified binary libraries; however, we cannot officially package these with distros, because any distro doing so is a big fat target for a lawsuit, as the licenses of the codecs usually prohibit it. Any support for MSN messaging also exists only because someone reverse-engineered the protocol. Tying MSN into existing free file transfer and video chat facilities is something no-one may have gotten around to yet.

      In case you don't notice a pattern: the half-complete capabilities mentioned here were attained through reverse engineering, a very laborious, time-consuming process; and in the cases where a shortcut has been taken, there are usually legal disincentives and prohibitions to doing so.

    2. Re:Complaints by Elshar · · Score: 2

      1) gaim - works for yahoo/msn/aim. Has smilies. my girlfriend loves it. :P

      2) firefox - supports windows media, quicktime, realplayer

      3) mplayer - grab the all codecs version, watch whatever you want. Actually performs better than any other player out there. And its FREE.

      4) Yea, that was lacking the last time I checked (over a year ago) as well, but at least it seemed to support reading great. Just toss up a fileserver or something or use smbfs/samba and you can share all your crazy movie collections. :)

    3. Re:Complaints by Aequo · · Score: 2, Informative

      Good MSN with all smileys, filetransfer, videochat.
      I think these people must have missed Kopete.
      Using a nifty script you can download the official icons from the MSN server and use them without a problem. It has had file transfer support for ages now, and has acquired webcam support quite recently.

      Support for all streaming media in your webbrowser.
      Mplayer-plugin is a Mozilla/Firefox plugin that lets you display Windows Media, QuickTime, MPEG, Ogg Vorbis, and Real format movie clips in your web browser. Works perfectly for me.

      Oh yeah, for the transition, full NTFS writing support.
      Moving from NTFS to ext3 or Reiser shouldn't require NTFS write support, should it? With that said, Captive has been providing this for a while.. never used it myself, but I hear good things about it.

      Happy?

    4. Re:Complaints by Liam+Slider · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Yeah, but when I, as a Linux user look at a fresh Windows install/reinstall I note a lot of things missing...

      1) No decent photo editing software. Sorry, gotta pay extra for that, or download it. 2) No decent office suite. MS Office is an extra, that you have to pay for. 3) No decent web browser. Anyone who says that IE is decent deserves a punch in the mouth. 4) No video editing software. That's another extra you have to pay for with Windows. 5) IRC? Nope...gotta go download it somewhere. 6) CD/DVD burning software? Nope, gotta pay extra for that too. 7) Desktop publishing software. Yeah...gonna have to go to the store again... 8) Personal finance software. Oh great, gotta go to the store again.

      This kind of stuff is pretty common on your basic Linux install, without adding new software.

      And plug and play is more like "plug and pray" on Windows as you find yourself having to install various drivers for this and that. Sure, vendors provide a lot of support for Windows, providing drivers with hardware and such...but more stuff just plain works out of the box on Linux than with Windows. And it's less likely that you'll suddenly see hardware dropped from being supported on Linux.

      The argument of "what's missing" can be applied both ways...and I think more is missing from Windows than from Linux.

    5. Re:Complaints by Tribbin · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Moving from NTFS to ext3 or Reiser shouldn't require NTFS write support, should it?

      Most people I got so far that they want to try linux, don't want to completely rely on this OS that they have never used before. They want to be able to open/write their documents in their trusted environment anytime they feel alienated in the linux environment.

      --
      If you mod this up, your slashdot background will turn into a beautiful sunset!
  14. More a fault of the limited userbase by gilesjuk · · Score: 2

    It's probably more to do with the long term installed userbase. There really has never been a popular competitor to Windows on the x86 architecture. Even a company as vast as IBM gave in.

    Many electronics companies don't see why they should devote developer time or make technical resources available when it's such a miniscule market.

    Over time things will improve.

  15. FUD alert! BullShit! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    It's fud fud fud fud. Consperiacy bullshit, I figure.

    I LOVE Linux. Long time Debian user, I know that I simply couldn't use computers and be as happy with them if I was stuck with only choosing Windows and propriatory applications.

    I am a GNU, Free Software, ra-ra-ra type of guy. I probably seem like a nut to many people.

    But I don't beleive that it's a consperiacy against Linux. I beleive it's just complacency, laziness, apathy, and other crap like that.

    It's not that they care and conspire, it's that they don't give a shit and MS nudges here and there very rarely.

    Hardware manufacturers work their asses off making sure the everything works with Windows well. They generally dont' do jack shit about Linux because it doesn't contribute to their bottom line. (it could if they felt like it. No linux support = no Linux-related money = no reason to support linux = no linux support, etc etc etc.)

    This is why it's important to support hardware manufacturers that support Linux. Stuff like Ralink-using Wifi cards that use the rt2500 and related chipsets. http://rt2x00.serialmonkey.com/wiki/index.php/Main _Page

    And specificly requesting Linux support is the only way to go. Seriously. Buying random hardware and expecting it to work in Linux or expecting that your Dell laptop will work 'just because' is foolish.

    This guy is spreading fud. There are certainly hardware companies that dislike the idea of free software. They dislike having to tell end-users how to use the hardware or releasing minimal REAL documentation on the hardware. Well then, fuck them. Don't buy their shit and if you do don't cry when you can't get it to work with ndiswrapper.

    PS. Don't buy wifi cards with Conextent, Broadcom, Texas Instruments using chipsets. Avoid them like the plague. Modern 802.11g that work in Linux well are Intel Wifi setups and Ralink rt2x00 based chipsets. Intel 'Sonoma' platform with Intel Video and Intel wifi should work well in a modern Linux setup. Avoid ATI and Nvidia if you can, and if you can't and need the 3d horsepower always choose Nvidia.

    What Linux needs for the 'average' user however is pre-installed support from a major manufacturer. The most likely canidate would be HP right now, but it seems to me that it's going to take a relative unkown to realy break through and start making buckets of money from this sort of thing. Maybe a successfull company that produces hardware specialized for Linux clustering or server work can step up to the bat and do it. (not talking about IBM.)

    It is certainly possible to get a very nice computer for inexpensive that will work in Linux without having to resort to e-crappo hardware to make it cheap.

  16. Taken from Murphy's by gmuslera · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "Never attribute to malice what can be adequately explained by stupidity"

    1. Re:Taken from Murphy's by supersudssoaker · · Score: 2, Insightful
  17. Re:Has made it? O.o by Overly+Critical+Guy · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Linux's biggest problem is that it requires any "package management" at all. Because of the scattered directory structure, files are littered all over the place, so you have to run a program to install the program, and run a program to remove the program.

    If people were really serious about desktop Linux, they would have long ago standardized a bundled package format like NeXTStep's .app bundles that allows you to install a program simply by copying to your programs folder. Remove it by deleting it.

    These kinds of things, along with the lack of true standardized API foundations (see Cocoa, .NET, which cover everything from installation/uninstallation to networking to sound to graphics) with instead a reliance on QT on top of KDE on top of X11, are what hold desktop Linux back.

    The mantra of "choice" that people use to justify the incredible fragmentation in the OSS world doesn't justify the lack of a standardized, vertical solution--there should be a desktop environment with its own sound and graphics engine and APIs (built using OpenGL and OpenAL), not relying on X11 and various extensions after the fact. It should provide its own APIs that tie into its internal engines. And most importantly, it should be designed with actual aesthetics and creativity in mind--no more of this amateurish K-this and K-that crap.

    Just my opinion. I think many people gave up hope for desktop Linux and moved to OS X. Seriously, some of us have been waiting for almost ten years. Windows is more dominant than ever.

    --
    "Sufferin' succotash."
  18. Cheaper with Windows pre-installed because... by rmpotter · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It comes down to development and support. In order to ship a PC, Dell has to package and certify a boat load of drivers and asssorted software. It has to be more cost-effective to do this and cater to Windows -- the OS that 95% of the world uses. More to the point -- Dell -- and other vendors -- have to do the best they can to make drivers reliable, easy to re-install, configure and troubleshoot in order to maintain their reputations and keep support costs down.

    Now consider support. If you are a Windows user -- preferably an XP user -- and you call Dell or HP for support, theoretically all of the drivers have been tested, most issues have been noted and posted to a knowledge base and chances are good that the tech at the other end of the line will have reasonable experience in helping you solve the problem.

    Conversely, if you buy a barebones systems and run into problems, Dell will have fewer Linux techs who can help, these techs will be more expensive to retain and _your_ level of competency will have a huge impact on the length and outcome of the support call than if you were a lowly Windows user.

    Perhaps if you could purchase with an iron-clad zero-support option, then Dell could justify dropping the price. But probably not. Dell is probably just as greedy and unwilling to pass the savings on to the customer (if they don't have to) as most other companies. This is also true of many open source vendors. Whether it's Dell, RedHat or IBM, they'll work hard to extract money out of us one way or another.

    --
    Is this sig nificant?
  19. Here's another reason that the author overlooks by davmoo · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I just happen to know the manager of a big-box retailer in a near-by major city (I live in the sticks). This retailer thinks they offer the Best prices to Buy things at (hint hint). Up until a couple of years ago, this retailer stocked a selection of Linux software, mainly Suse, RedHat, and Mandrake. It wasn't a lot (5 shelves on one display section about 6 feet wide), but hey, at least it was there.

    Every time a new release of Mandrake (now Madriva...at least this week) came out, I went and bought the pro package, even though I could download it for free. I figured it was necessary to show support so they would maybe expand the selection.

    Then it slowly disappeared. It has now been replaced by racks of more Windows stuff.

    Not long after it disappeared, I asked him why. The basic answer was because aside from me and 4 or 5 other geeks, no one else was buying it. In fact, many people straight-up asked him "why should I buy this from you when I can get it legally and still for free on the internet?"

    Stores are in business for one thing, and one thing only...to make their owners (stock holders) money. Any product that doesn't turn a certain level of sales disappears. Quickly.

    To get the big box retailers to carry Linux, they are going to have to be shown there is a market there AND THEY CAN MAKE MONEY DOING IT. Thousands of people can talk the talk about wanting Linux, but in the grand scheme of actually spending money on it, its a very tiny segment of us that does so.

    The moral of this story is that if you want more retailers to carry more Linux, then people need to step up with their wallets and actually buy some of the stuff that is already out there.

    I still get every new release of Mandriva, but now I do it via the Mandriva Club since I can't find a retailer that carries it locally. And my club membership costs me almost as much yearly as a Windows XP Home license (and I don't have to have a new license every year). So Linux does cost me money, but I want to show support so that's okay. More people need to be showing their support with pictures of dead presidents (or what ever is on the currency in your country for non-US readers). Only then will Linux offerings and support increase.

    --
    I want a new quote. One that won't spill. One that don't cost too much. Or come in a pill.
  20. Hardware Makers by borgasm · · Score: 3, Insightful

    OK so 98% of my userbase uses Windows.
    2 % use Linux.

    I can write Windows drivers for my device and keep 98% of my userbase happy.

    I can write Linux drivers for my device, and keep 2% of my userbase happy.

    If the cost of writing that Linux driver is more than I would make back in profits, why would I ever do it?

    Business decisions......

    1. Re:Hardware Makers by sqlrob · · Score: 4, Insightful

      What about the cost of releasing specs so that others can write the drivers?

    2. Re:Hardware Makers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Don't be so dull.

      All the hardware manufacturer has to do is release specs about the hardware. It would be the equivelent to a 'shop manual' in automobile terms. It's just the minimal documentation that is provided so that people know how to work on the hardware.

      If they want to release Linux drivers usually it isn't that difficult and inexpensive. There are plenty of programmers that are willing to help out and such. If they get their driver introduced into the kernel proper it gets supported for automaticly by any kernel developer and it gets updated with only small amounts of effort from the manufacturer compared to trying to maintain and support binary drivers, even for windows.

      And there are plenty profits.

      Linux on the desktop maybe minority, but everywere else it isn't. High end movie editing, oracle databases, clustering, web server, high end 3d workstations, datacenters, etc etc Linux is very common and many times have much larger percentage of users then windows in places that would suprise most people.

      There are more then enough hardware manufacturers that support linux, and continue to support linux on new hardware, to prove that it is profitable and worth it to them.

      Take Intel for instance. Biggest manufacturer of cpus, biggest video card maker, etc etc. Supports Linux on it's hardware generally. Such things as wifi and video work with open source drivers... even 3d acceleration. And intel sucks! Do you think that they do this for their health? They do it because it's worth it to their business, that's why.

      Intel certainly isn't the only one. AMD has very good Linux support for their chipsets and motherboards.

      If it wasn't for Linux then 99% of people in the server room wouldn't have a reason to give a shit about it's 64bit-ness. Linux is one of the biggest reasons why opeterons got off of the ground. Without a OS that supports 64bit-ness there realy isn't much of a reason to support Opteron over Xeon... and Linux had support for 64bit ness BEFORE amd released the stuff to the public. AMD worked with Suse and others to make sure this happenned.

      It's just a matter of time before the 'big OEMs' (which don't produce the vast majority of the hardware they sell) get onboard. Most of them already do for the server-line.

    3. Re:Hardware Makers by harrkev · · Score: 4, Interesting
      OK so 98% of my userbase uses Windows.
      2 % use Linux.

      I can write Windows drivers for my device and keep 98% of my userbase happy.

      I can write Linux drivers for my device, and keep 2% of my userbase happy.

      If the cost of writing that Linux driver is more than I would make back in profits, why would I ever do it?

      Business decisions......
      Well, you asked...

      Let's assume that you make hardware. You have a lot of competition, and you have 10% of the market. Nobody offers Linux drivers. All of a sudden, you decide to offer the drivers, and your market share goes up to 12%. All of a sudden, Linux has added 20% to your business.

      If you are a monopoly, then you have little to gain. If you are a fringe player, then Linux support can differentiate you from the pack.

      Let's talk another benefit. If a person runs Linux, then there is a 95% probability that they are pretty good at technology. If you offer Linux drivers, all of a sudden you have made a friend .. a friend who may be in a very high position as his company. Or, at the very least, a friend who recommends to his friends/family what type of stuff to buy. This is the type of stuff which may not show up on raw statistics, but can make a real difference.
      --
      "-1 Troll" is the apparently the same as "-1 I disagree with you."
  21. All smoke, no fire by Michael+Woodhams · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "He then describes how Microsoft uses its considerable resources and the law to create such roadblocks."

    Where? I couldn't find that anywhere in the article.

    Generally, support for Linux sucks in hardware retailing. There are at least three possible reasons for this:
    1 There are good commercial reasons why it isn't profitable to support Linux.
    2 It would be profitable, but companies lack the vision to see this
    3 Big bad Microsoft is conspiring to keep it this way.

    I was hoping to see evidence for number 3, but all I saw was the article questioning whether 1 could be true (but without in-depth analysis - how much would Linux support cost, and how many sales would it gain?), and the /. summary alleging 3 without evidence.

    --
    Quattuor res in hoc mundo sanctae sunt: libri, liberi, libertas et liberalitas.
  22. Another bit of FUD here... by suitepotato · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Windows desktops are less expensive than Linux? How can that be when the Windows desktop costs not one cent extra to put a FREE copy of Linux on and you get a Windows license left over.

    Micrsoft is hindering Linux on the desktop? Excuse me while I laugh myself into an asthma fit.

    The regular slew of updates to KDE ALONE will screw up the average KDE installation bad enough and quick enough to make you want to strangle everyone who works on it. Gnome which is supposed to be so much less cool than KDE is five times more stable in my experience and two times less useful. Of course so is a hammer by comparison to a vertical knee mill but at least the hammer does what it is designed to.

    I use Fedora Core 3 as my regular desktop and only log into XP when I have an absolute need. I've made Quake run with sound in less than an hour USING the idiotically bad and largely conflicting and contradictory documentation on the net (woot! I can translate geekoid!). I got SSH working with public keys in ten minutes. I regularly customize my FC3 boxes and rework them rather than the lazier nuke and pave method. So... I am not a Windows newbie-to-Linux here.

    The ONLY thing killing Linux on the desktop is Linux. XOrg and XFree86 and their ongoing back and forth pecadillos, KDE's zealot army of moronic children screaming the leetness of their preference, Gnome's less than stellar array of boosters, and both desktops' having little to no clue towards stability and regularity are merely the tip of the iceberg. The neverending foreverwar over what goes in the kernel, the endless bs of how drivers and hardware abstraction should work, the "ooh isn't this cool" phenomenon of distros spreading like mold based on their purveyors' egotistical desire to have some note in the history of Linux... All of this and more is what is killing Linux on the desktop.

    It's like the movie Braveheart. The penguin sallies forth to do battle with the incredible menace and its own supporters backstabbing, squabbling, infighting, and inability to arrive at a common vision and stick with it do it in. Penguin meat anyone?

    --
    If my grammar and spelling are off, I am [distracted/tired/careless] (take your pick)
    1. Re:Another bit of FUD here... by WhiteWolf666 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      1. Don't use Fedora. It's not a 'working-out-of-the-box' distribution. Use SuSE. All your updates are automagic, and stuff like 'Quake run with sound in less than an hour' archaic.

      I can't believe anyone still goes through that kind of hell. There's a reason that SuSE doesn't update KDE between versions, and its to avoid that kind of inter-version breakage you experience. The full upgrade of the next SuSE revision incldues the next KDE, and it'll upgrade smoothly, too, assuming you have not tried to self-upgrade KDE in the middle.

      2. Less expensive Windows Desktops: The article author is talking about preloaded linux machines. At Dell, or HP, a preloaded Linux machine costs more than a machine with exactly the same specs preloaded with Windows. Or, they'll both cost the same, and the Windows machine will come with a free monitor.

      That's unreasonable, given that Dell doesn't have to pay anything to license Linux. On the other hand, what it does mean is that your MS-free system includes an MS-tax anyways.

      You have to understand, from Joe Q. Public, or Mike A. Purchaser, when they want a system, they want it preloaded. Period. Preloaded Windows systems from the same vendor as exactly the same configured preloaded Linux systems are cheaper, therefore, Windows=cheaper.

      Not that I agree with the viewpoint, but that's what he is refering too.

      --
      WhiteWolf666 an exBush supporter. All you new-school,compassionate,save the children Republicans can rot in hell
  23. I can understand Microsoft... by 16K+Ram+Pack · · Score: 2
    But why do the electronics manufacturers want to see Linux dead? That doesn't make sense

    If I was an electronics manufacturer, the thing I'd want is as many operating systems as possible using my hardware to reduce the possibility of control being with one who could set the standards that I'd be forced to follow.

    Hardware manufacturers, it seems to me are starting to open up to Linux. They know there's a market out there, and that if you are the only one in there, it's a good income.

  24. They could be friendlier by GMFTatsujin · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It's hard enough making a choice of laptop these days based purely on the numeric stats of the innards. The way they play merry-go-round with their suppliers can really screw up your chances -- basically they play the game of "who's selling the cheapest wireless this week."

    Even if you find stable laptop distributors, it's practically IMPOSSIBLE to determine whether you can run Linux on it because they usually won't tell you what's actually inside. Like, is that a Broadcom or a Atheros 802.11 wireless in there? It makes a *huge* difference.

    If you don't know what kind of chipsets a laptop has in it, you can't do the research. Easy as that. You have to wait for someone to buy the thing, try installing a flavor of Linux on it, and report back what their successes and failures were.

    Even if HP or whoever doesn't support the hardware directly, it'd be nice to know what kind of hardware is in there to begin with. I don't need them to hold my hand. I just want to know what I'm buying.

  25. Re:Has made it? O.o by Tim+C · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Today it's easier on linux than it's ever been on Windows.

    Sorry, but that's bullshit. I can't remember the last time I installed something on Windows that wasn't as easy as clicking "next" a few times. I'm not saying that installing stuff on Linux is hard, I'm just saying that in my experience it's not "easier than it's ever been on Windows".

  26. I want hardware, not software by bluGill · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I couldn't care less how much linux is on the shelf at best buy. I'm a BSD guy by choice, so I wouldn't have a use for it anyway. Put all the Windows software on the shelf you want, I don't care.

    I want hardware that will work. When I want a wireless adapter for my laptop I want it today, with no hassles otherwise I'd buy it mail order. So I often find myself in Best Buy looking at some box, and wondering if it will work on my system.

    My solution: research. First I find out what will work with BSD, and what will not. Then I go in, and buy something that will not. Open the box, installed it and play a little, and sure enough, it won't work with BSD - return it. Buy the part that does work. I'm doing my best to make it expensive to stock hardware that isn't BSD compatible.

  27. Yeah, right. by DJCacophony · · Score: 2, Insightful

    With a Linux install (at least through my experiences with Fedora and RedHat), they ask you all the pertinent questions up front.

    Pertinent questions like "Which of these 10,000 applications do you want", "what are the specific models and specs for every single component and piece of hardware you own", and "what permissions, groups, files, folders, and applications do you want each user to have". Sorry, but the linux install process is the most intimidating part of linux in it's entirety, even for experienced users.

    --
    Slow Down, Cowboy! It's been 60 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment.
  28. Re:Why do people still think Linux is cheaper ??? by Zphbeeblbrox · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Hate to rain on your parade but your just way off base with that. It is not at all impossible to support at the desktop. If you can customize it to the point that tech support can't fix it then you don't need the kind of tech support you call in for.

    The kind of user who buys linux on the desktop at a bestbuy isn't going to be installing a custom kernel or modifying their X-Windows config file. So yes you can support it. That's like saying if Mom and Pop buy a preinstalled linux computer then they will be instantly smart enough to find all the ways to mess it up thoroughly. I don't think so.

    --
    If you see spelling or grammatical errors don't blame me. I tried to preview but IE here at work borked the CSS
  29. About Time... by Hosiah · · Score: 4, Interesting
    We're finally going to acknowledge it in public, huh? (-:

    But, I'm tired of being treated like I don't exist: Linux "made it" on my desktop years ago, has run for all of our family's needs (internet, chat, email, games, graphics design, programming, and YES office document use too!), will continue to "make it" on our desktops forever. And we're ALL sick of being discussed as if we were unicorns: "Do home Linux desktop users exist? No, that's just a fairy-tale. It's physically impossible to run Linux on a desktop, because it's just a teletype terminal you have to write the kernel from scratch every time you start it and it doesn't even use a monitor and mouse, it uses punched cards instead." This is all bandied about like it was common knowledge, taught at our universities, discussed with great seriousness in the tech publications, and carried as a confirmed opinion amongst many of my fellow Slashdotters, even.

    If you can bear to have your whole reality re-defined, click here: http://www.lynucs.org/ . Behold: Linux desktops! Running on monitors! Note the "taskbar" on the bottom, JustLikeWindows. See the applications open on the desktop, they have a bar at the top with the little "x" thingie to close them and the little box thingie to full-screen them and they use jpg images for wallpaper, JustLikeWindows. Note the scrollbars on the sides of the windows, JustLikeWindows. Note the little icons that you click with the mouse to launch a program or open a file, JustLikeWindows.

    Do you suppose, if they spend all this time making all this software...dozens of different window managers and hundreds of distros...that maybe, somewhere, just maybe, somebody could actually use them for anything, at all, at all?

    So, the real story is, "Linux struggles daily against Microsoft to survive - and even thrive! - but we'd all be better off if there was less fighting in the world.", not "Linux has been killed by Microsoft. Alas, poor Tux, I knew him...almost." Get it right! Discuss us like we're dead, and we're likely to rise up and prove how alive we are!

  30. Time for a change of name by FishandChips · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The constant use of the term "Linux" is a misnomer and the sign of an immature market.

    No one goes into a store and asks whether they stock "cola-based drinks", They ask for Coke, Pepsi, whatever. We'll know when Linux has really hit the highway when folks stop asking for "Linux", if they ever do, and start asking soley about a brand - Red Hat, Novell, Ubuntu, whatever. As yet I guess the main Linux outfits haven't really extended beyond IT industry workers and enthusiasts but their challenge is to ensure that they do.

    --
    Las qué passoun
    tournoun pas maï
  31. Tim C sorry you are wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Sorry Tim C but I call bullshit on you. I just updated my version of Ubuntu to the newest version. Although I know how to use the CLI, for the heck of it I tried it through the GUI (using Synaptic).

    Point, Click to open Synaptic. Edit the word "Hoary" to replace it with the word "Breezy" in the nice GUI edit page. Point and click a couple of more times, Wait for download and install, and poof - done! A perfect upgrade. The entire operating system, and every single application on my Linux system, all upgraded simply by pointing and clicking.

    You simply CANNOT do that on Windows. There is no way in Windows you can simultaneously upgrade the OS (say, move from Windows 2000 to Windows XP) and upgrade EVERY application you are using all at the same time.

    You need to refamiliarize yourself with Linux. For a long time now, Linux has been better than Windows on the desktop in the following areas: (a) more control afforded to the user; and (b) much easier to install Linux from scratch on a computer than it is to install Windows from scratch.

    With Ubuntu, it is time to add a THIRD area where desktop Linux has no become better - way better: program installation and upgrades. No offense, man, but you are out of touch, and you are the one spouting the bullshit, as you call it.

  32. Re:Has made it? O.o by Derek+Pomery · · Score: 2, Informative

    I couldn't disagree more. DLL hell in windows is precisely because of lack of DLL versioning as well as a variety of other reasons forcing apps to install their own DLLs.

    The advantage of shared system libraries ain't "disk space is cheap" - it is being able to rapidly and efficiently incorporate new changes.
    If an exploit is discovered in zlib, I update it once with the patch. Done.
    I don't have to update every single friggen app across my entire system and replace their hundreds of "disk space is cheap" separate files.

    Might as well statically link at that point. Hah.

    If you set aside libraries, unix apps actually are fairly consistent. All configuration files under /etc makes it easier for filesystem maintenance and indexing. Windows registry is a lousy solution to a non-problem that eliminates easy editing. You have a filesystem, use it.

    $HOME .config files also end up having their parallels even if you install a massive app bundle. You need to keep configs *somewhere* and the registry, well. Enough ranting.

    --
    -- perl -e'print pack"H*","6e656d6f406d38792e6f7267"' /. ate my old sig. Bastards.
  33. Quite a Simple Solution by Greyfox · · Score: 2
    Make it illegal to bundle software with a computer.

    That's right, you heard right. Simply force the user to buy his OS and software separately, and bar manufacturers from distruting system-specific install software too. Let the user choose his own OS and software according to his needs and install them himself. And no discounts for having just bought a PC, either.

    "But Grey, the average user isn't qualified to install his own OS," I hear you cry. Well then how can he possibly be qualified to connect his OS to the Internet, where his zombie PC is currently gumming up the works for everyone. Besides which the Windows install is a point and click thing that anyone with half a brain can do in their sleep. Isn't that what Microsoft would have us believe? And if the user, presented with a choice between Windows for $200 or Debian for the cost of the netinst CD it's burned to, happens to unwisely choose the much harder (Microsoft would have us beleive) to deal with netinst CD, well at least he isn't out that much when he has to go back and buy the Windows media. Right?

    As an added benefit, maybe then the manuals will tell us what hardware is actually in the machine we just bought again. Have you ever seen a manual from the pre-Microsoft era? You got ASCII charts and port pin-outs. Seriously. What do you get now? "Here's how to use all the bundled software that's installed on the machine," which I just formatted off in favor of Debian.

    --

    I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

  34. Well put! by iamacat · · Score: 2, Informative

    I don't see how a company can risk using Microsoft for any mission-critical task. If Linux or Apache break, that bug can be fixed at a trivial (for a business) cost of hiring a consultant. If Windows/IIS breaks, they are dead in the water unless they are the size of Dell and can actually make an impact on Microsoft's revenues. Even home users can type some stuff into bugzilla and have a reasonable chance of getting their problem fixed after a while.

  35. Re:Has made it? O.o by aaronl · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The vast majority of Windows software doesn't come with *any* printed manual, let along a thick one; the OS doesn't come with a manual at all now. If you really like having the CD, and you don't want to burn one yourself, then buy a copy of your favorite OSS on CD.

    There is an immense library of UNIX software, too. The difference is that Windows software is available in brick and mortar stores, and UNIX software largely isn't. It is a chicken-and-egg problem. Stores won't stock and developers won't develop until there is market, and there can't be market if nobody is selling.