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Acer Bets Big On Linux

Stony Stevenson writes to tell us IT News is reporting that Acer is betting big on Linux, looking to push Tux on many of their upcoming laptops and netbooks. "The company is already heavily promoting Linux for its low cost ultra-portable netbook range out later this year, but senior staff have said that Acer will also push Linux on its laptops. [...] Acer sees two killer apps with Linux on computers: operation and cost. Its flavour of Linux will boot in 15 seconds compared to minutes for Windows, and the open source operating system can extend battery life from five to seven hours."

11 of 354 comments (clear)

  1. Operation and Cost? by geoffrobinson · · Score: 5, Funny

    Operation and cost are killer apps?

    --
    Except for ending slavery, the Nazis, communism, & securing American independence, war has never solved anything.
    1. Re:Operation and Cost? by mckinnsb · · Score: 4, Funny

      Apparently the word "Application" has been broadened to mean "quality attributes" on a relative level when abbreviated, meaning that "low cost" and "ease of operation" (both being high quality) are "Killer Applications". I guess you could *see* how this word slip happened, being that "killer applications" are often considered "quality attributes" when marketing operating systems, mobile devices, or software/hardware packages.

      [/logic]

      Oh, woe is you, English Language, woe is you. Torn to shreds by marketers and businessmen. Somewhere, George Orwell is crying.

      [/poetic]

      I'm fine with some marketing terminology abstraction, but I'd like to say , "Hey Guy! Get a dictionary!". He could have just said "killer selling points".

    2. Re:Operation and Cost? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      [/retard]

    3. Re:Operation and Cost? by jfbilodeau · · Score: 3, Funny

      sudo apt-get install operation cost

      Let me know if that works!

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      Goodbye Slashdot. You've changed.
    4. Re:Operation and Cost? by r3m0t · · Score: 2, Funny

      She probably just liked the interface of The GIMP (big buttons, colourful) compared to the cramped, "compact" look of Photoshop. (Screen resolutions were smaller back then, and so were the buttons.)

      Your test proves nothing.

    5. Re:Operation and Cost? by Eil · · Score: 3, Funny

      Guess whom it is killing.

      Hmm, I keep hearing that BSD is dying...

  2. Will this be the year? by OglinTatas · · Score: 2, Funny

    Will this be the year of linux on the UMPC?
    Alternate troll:
    Is linux ready for the UMPC?

  3. It's a trick! by Thelasko · · Score: 1, Funny

    Acer is going to ruin Linux's reputation with their crappy hardware! Only one company is clever enough to think of a scheme as devious as this one.

    Microsoft!

    --
    One of our competitors trademarked the term "hypothesis". From now on, we will call them "boneheaded ideas".
  4. Tux? by samkass · · Score: 3, Funny

    looking to push Tux on many of their upcoming laptops and netbooks.

    That's GNU/Tux to you, freedom hater!

    --
    E pluribus unum
  5. Does it run OS X? Does it have the Apple logo? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    If not, why bother with yet another piece of crap? It seems companies are really struggling to find ways to compete with the juggernaut that is Apple. Windoze clearly doesn't cut the mustard, and now they are attempting to use Lin-sux to fill in the gaps. Unfortunately for them, Apple owns the laptop market and will soon dominate the desktop market as well as the handheld market and every other market where a GOOD computer is desireable. The reason for this is simple: OS X is a better OS than anything else on the market in every conceivable way. It's faster, stabler, more secure, more scalable, easier to use, easier to program, more open, more standards compliant, and is built and maintained by high quality professional American programmers. Nothing else compares, and nothing else ever will compare. Smart people use Apple products. Even Linus Torvalds uses a Mac for his "real work", he admitted as much years ago. Bill Gates has never admitted it, but he probably has a fleet of Mac's in his home office.

  6. Re:I'm not suprised by njh · · Score: 2, Funny

    yes, my $300 acer laptop switched to ubuntu after the first boot took nearly 20 minutes. It took less time to install ubuntu than to boot vista.