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CNN interview with RedHat
munchkin writes "CNN interviews Bob Young as he explains how Red Hat will revolutionize the software market. Read all about it here " Same story as usual in many ways-but at least the mainstream press has a growing fascination with the Open Source model and how it works; especially the notion of it being impossible for one company do destory the rest.
apparently they are offering such a stripped down release right now on their website under the title "Red Hat Linux Core" $40, and no support (the blurb says its for experts).
And why should the price matter? You can get it for $1.99 at cheapbyes. Or download it (if you
have a fast connection.)
As long as it is free, then why complain about the price?
If access to it becomes restricted, or it becomes unfree, then that is the time to get to get upset.
Until RedHat attempts to violate the GPL then it does not matter to me if they charge $799 or even $7999. Why does it mattter if you can get it for a few bucks plus shipping and handling, or even for free?
Charging a higher price means they can thin out who they have to support, so they only have to support those willing to pay higher prices.
What, you mean it's NOT to be taken serious?
Hmm. Judging by some of the responses I've seen to Rasterman's leaving RHAD over the last couple of days, I'd say this reporter needs to do a bit more research!
Not a true coward, just forgot my password
GLX?
Redhat's lack of quality is the prime reason I avoid them like the plague. The whole 5.X fiasco was evidence enough of that...why did Redhat abandon testing and QA? 4.2 was damn near flawless, while 5.X was just an endless stream of fixes for stuff that could have been avoided.
I won't waste my time with 6.0..as a consumer I can choose not to, at least.
I agree that Red Hat is quite expensive.
But people like the commercial feeling of having an official box, with official manual, sticker and so on.
I think Red Hat is doing a great job by promoting Linux, but they're way too overhyped.
I've always used Slackware, it does the job the way it should be and I like to fiddle with my system and fix broken things myself. I don't want someone to decide whether or not I want debugging-flags or not. I'll compile my own stuff.
Last year I bought my second and last Linux CD
from Infomagic, since then I always downloaded Slackware. Not that I didn't give Red Hat a chance. I've tested Red Hat 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 5.0 and 5.1 and they all had serious configuration problems, which had to be fixed manually.
Slackware is very UNIX, just like Debian, which I also like (I ran Debian 2.x some time ago...)
It's called a newsgroup. Duh.
Redhat support is not the only game in town.
I agree with you wholeheartedly. Linux is still Linux no matter what distribution it is. What is it with the anti-RH sentiment? Do some people really want to see RH get their asses handed to them? More distros means more choices, which is better, IMHO.
Check this out at www.fsf.org
A deluxe distribution CD of GNU software is $5000.
That's $5000!!!!! Not $50, not $500, but $5000!!!
Here's more:
The source code CD-ROM is $280!!! For an individual like me it's $70!!! Why, that's 2 Quake games!
And you think Microsoft really sticks it to ya with their upgrade scam, how about this:
Subscription to GNU Source, next 4 editions is $210!!!!!
I thought this was free software?!?!?!?!?!?!!?
/sarcasm mode off
Well of course it is revolutionary to take code you did not write, take advantage of people you do not pay, and turn a profit on it. The reason Microsoft is so scared is because this is the exact business model they have always dreamed of.
Posting to a newsgroup does not guarantee a response. Then again, that's free. What the other guy said, which you would have realized if you read that message, was that even if you pay Red Hat for support, you don't always get support. In his case, he never got support, yet he paid for it.
Duh.
It appears he paid for support repeatedly even though he didn't get it. Isn't that stupider?
DUH.
I've seen the bare bones distro you've been talking about in a CompUSA for around $30. Prolly you should see it soon in your area too.
How do you know he paid for support repeatedly? Just because he bought 5 versions of Red Hat doesn't mean he bought the $~40+ retail versions. You assume too much and read into everything too much.
test
Strange to see people upset by their own success... There will be big corporations supplying software to the masses for the forseeable future. If linux and other open source efforts are successful, the software the masses want will be open source. Ergo: success means big corporations selling open software to the masses.
So why would it be upsetting if RH really did grow into a big corporation?
True, commersial pressure might scare developers into premature releases (Bad Thing). Open source will safeguard the possibility of mending these mishaps.
Big corporations arent nice (wouldnt be profitable) but open source make them less unpleasant.
I disagree that Redhat does useful things for the community.
They have developed rpm, but that can be viewed as a way to tie
packaging to their distribution (although other distributions use
it as well).
RedHat is paying some delopers like A. Cox who are not associated
with Gnome, but I have not idea how much, or to what degree this
keeps them working on Linux. This may even have an adverse
impact by channeling their work in less productive directions.
This can also be viewd as a way to garner pr. I think that's why
they do it.
They help develop and hype Gnome. This has severely damaged
LInux by promoting something which really is for geeks as something
for people coming from Windows. People coming from Windows
who try Gnome will just go back to Windows because Windows
is more stable and less flaky. This has been proven time and
time again by non-technical journalists trying to install and use
RedHat with Gnome and then review it. To date, none have been
able to successfully install and use it without a *lot* of help
that most paying customers never get.
RedHat is not catering to the Windows converts, but mostly
to people who don't need to be converted. It is also catering
to the business community - at least trying to pull the wool
over their eyes, and succeeding to some degree.
I get the feeling that for all its hype about support, Redhat is
perhaps the worst distro of all in delivering support to people
who have paid for it, except, of course, to large commercial
customers.
I feel that other distros which really are oriented towards
the consumer and home user are being hurt by RedHat, which
is mostly oriented towards the business (and big business at
that) community in the United States. This in no way represents
most Linux users, or where its largest potential market lies, which
is among small businesses, institutions like schools and government
agencies and home users *outside* the United States.
It is only a question of time before this market is fully appreciated.
RedHat will play a small part, if any, in meeting that need. Thank
goodness. But that doesn't run up the hit counters at the mainstream
IT web sites or pay for banner ads at Slashdot.
Well, what is the point? Is is just to write bad things about
RedHat. No, just to stop apologizing for Redhat and prefacing
everything with how Redhat has done so many good things for
the community. That depends on how narrow or broad your
defindition of the "community" might be.
As for quality, refer to comments by others.
What graphics software is this? I knew they'd just announced that they'll release XFS, but I wouldn't class that as 'graphics software'.
It is true though - it is all to easy to focus our attention on the superstars and ignore the cast of thousands who submit less visible contributions (such as bugfixes and documentation).
More exposure == more eyeballs == better software.
Redhat is *free*. If you don't like the price that they charge for the nice boxed set (including support), then don't buy it.
Download it, borrow it of a friend, get a $2 copy from cheapbytes, whatever. Just don't whine about it like they are ripping you off, they aren't.
Yes, RedHat will revolutionize the software industry by snuffing out the competition. Sound familiar?
As far as my experiences with RH go, I am constantly kicking myself for ever being talked into going RH, when another (once) popular distro was more than adequate. I've had RH4.1, 4.2, 5.0, 5.1, 5.2. Shows you how much a sucker I've been, eh?
Never a flawless install. I've gotten lazy, turned into the Microsoft-type drone and accepted it as normal. As for support for the dozens of mishaps I've had (RH shipping bug-laden software/rare hardware failures/etc) I've not ONCE gotten a reply from RedHat. Seven letters out, zero letters in. And I paid the extra bucks for this thing they call support?
Again, it sounds all too familiar.
Red Hat does useful things for the community, and their distribution is OK, but I disagree with this statement. The primary reasons for Red Hat's success in my opinion are lots of advertisement, and catering to the MS-converts.
I am getting really sick and tired of people complaing about the cost of RedHat. The cost is a reflection of the Support that comes with the product. If you have already purchased a previous version you should not really need the support so don't pay for it.
;).
Remember RedHat is giving their product away for free -- they have to it is required by the GPL. Would any other "corporation" do that with their product.
If you don't have the bandwidth to dowload it then just order it from some company like CheapBytes. I believe I paid $1.98 for my copy of RedHat 6.0 (although in Canadian $ that became quite expensive
That'd be Steven Tweedie.
Why is it that many people who claim to support standards have such atrocious spelling and grammar?
I also wonder how seriously the mainstream press takes the "World Domination" thing. Probably with too much of a straight face :-)
-- This
Didn't we just have this topic covered? ;-)
Well, their heart was in the right place.
-----BEGIN ANNOYING SIG BLOCK-----
Evan
rooooar
Of the 10 key programmers working on the Linux kernel, the core part of the software, four work for Red Hat as contractors, including one in Hungary and one in Scotland.
Are they thinking of Alan Cox? And if so, I might be greatly mistaken, but doesn't he live in Wales?
--
You're paying for 30 days of TELEPHONE support, which didn't exist before.
Get RedHat 6.0 Core if you don't need the support. It's $40. (Probably can get for less in some retail stores.)
Man, I didn't expect so many people to make my post look like a Troll. All I was asking was, why is it necessary for them to charge $30 more for their newest distribution AT THE COUNTER OF A COMPUTER STORE than Redhat 5.2 cost? Don't you think that in alot of stores (such as Best Buy or CompUSA), where Redhat and Windoze 98 upgrade sit side by side, that Redhat would look more attractive if it were cheaper? I'm not saying it should be $10 because most consumers think 'if it's cheap it's gotta suck'. But why not keep their original price and cut the price on their old distro? Weird marketing if you ask me.
But then again, last time I checked, full color box graphics cost a little bit more.
I don't object to Redhat making some money, but the price for Redhat 6 is really hard to believe. It's anywhere from $65-$80 everywhere I look (in stores). I remember the first time I bought Redhat 5.2, it was a MacMillan Publications release and only cost $3o. When will we see other Redhat 6 distros appearing for less cash in local software outlets?
And whatever happened to Redhat's 'discount' package, that comes with only the bare bones Redhat6 disc and an installation guide?
I am unhappy with the way Red Hat software is received by some people in the Linux community. Prior to using RH, I was a devoted Slackware user. I switched to RH to see what all the hype was about. I'll admit, I have only been privy to 5.1, 5.2, and 6.0. But I can honestly say that I have been very happy with the switch. I have never experienced any major bug or installation errors as some claim. Of the small bugs that I have run into, they were easily fixed. This is not to say that others have not had major problems. But in general, I think RH gets an unfair rap from many people. If I were to complain about RH, I might mention the price hike in the most recent version. However, since I can download 6.0 from just about any good ftp site, or purchase a copy from cheapbytes.com for $1.99(US), I don't see why this price hike is such a big deal. I could alo complain about how some RPM packages are setup in a non-standard way. However, I am not forced to use RPM packages as I can compile and install on my own with little or no trouble. In fact, many of the problems I have run into while using RH were due to my own mistake and not theirs. Granted, the latest versions are not without their bugs, but this is easily fixed and RH usually jumps on this pretty quickly. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to start some religious debate about which distro is the best. Nor is RH the be all, end all of distros. I just think that because of its high profile and media attention, RH is getting an unfair rap for what is otherwise a decent distro for both developers and regular users.
Mark