It's great to know a good company like Red Hat is behind CentOS. CentOS is already great stuff now, and will hopefully be even better with the corporate backing. It should be a winning situation for all parties, including the end user.
It's no surprise that some of these environments were way too focuses on touch technologies and tablets, and left traditional desktops in the dark. Now that feedback has been received, the environments are backtracking and reviving the classic features. Which, make sense for most as the stats demonstrate. It's unfortunate this has happened, because it has added confusion for new users. But things are coming around and for example Gnome's Classic environment, which wasn't introduced until Gnome 3 was well established, will help considerably, for those that use Gnome for example
By helping CentOS, Red Hat will ensure RHEL's future even more. This will also help CentOS as well, which is an excellent choice no only on the server but on the desktop as well. In the end, both parties should benefit. This is definitely good news and also keeps open source GNU/Linux succeeding in the real world.
I'm surprised they developed their own distro. They obviously had the resources to do this, but I would think handling future updates would be more costly to do this in house rather than use an already published distro. Regardless, it's a move in the positive direction for open source and GNU/Linux, we can only hope that other companies and organizations will learn, and follow suit. If not, they will continue to try and stick with Microsoft and will end up purchasing new hardware just to run that software, not to mention overpaying in licensing fees and extra personnel to administer those licenses.
There is no reason users should stick with Windows, other than exactly what the article states... hardware support and software support. GNU/Linux is an excellent and extremely stable platform (the Linux kernel runs most datacenters -- VMware, KVM, etc... all run on the Linux kernel... and if it's good enough there you can bet it's good enough to run a gaming PC with ease). I have used GNU/Linux on all of my desktops, and Wine has picked up some of the slack for software where vendors refuse to write native GNU/Linux versions. But, migrating software to run on GNU/Linux natively is a huge win. Let's hope this stays on course.
Agreed! The desktops won't be going away anytime soon, but I think that GNU/Linux will continue to grow on desktops so that is definitely a good thing. Microsoft is getting weaker.
This is a smart move by the auto makers. I don't know why they even considered Windows at all for these systems. Windows is proprietary, crippled, and there are just a host of reasons that don't make it a good fit for this. GNU/Linux is completely open, scalable, stable (no crashing/rebooting), and far less expensive without licensing woes of Windows.
I don't know how many problems that I've come across in Windows, that in GNU/Linux is not an issue. Who cares about Windows. Let Windows rot, and let's get on with a real OS.
Finally some aid in correcting some of the issues we are seeing with patent bullying that has become very popular. Unfortunately the patent system is broken in regards to software, so until it is updated it is great to see organisations like this helping the industry.
When the code is exposed to the public, open source should always have the trust of the users. I'm not sure if Stallman predicted the fact that governments would try to insert a backdoor, but his ideals should indeed prevent it. I trust open source software, but I do NOT trust closed and proprietary software from Microsoft or Apple. Those two have already been exposed to releasing personal details to governments.
I am glad IBM is investing more in to and contributing to the Linux kernel. This is what open source is all about, and a sign that Linux is still growing at a rapid pace to replace the old, archaic, and expensive software in the field today.
We don't need to reinvent the wheel here. I don't see why there are claims that Linux can't be scaled, because it CAN. Recompile the kernel to suit your needs. If it's for virtualisation, then do so.
Ubuntu us a newbie-friendly OS for those stuck on Windows for many years. The city of Munich is brilliant for doing this. Finally, a government entity that is looking out for its own citizens, and not being lobbied by big money. Excellent to see this. If only other governments would catch on.
I understand Wayland's purpose, but I also hope they do not ditch X11 too soon as it has been around for many many years and ensures maximum compatibility. Personally, X11 does enough for me and has good enough performance. Let's just not make the same mistake that Gnome did, by ditching the old ways too soon before figuring out the new ways first. If X11 continues to be developed, I will definitely continue to use it.
It is poor on netflix to ignore users and turn away business. However this demonstrates the power of open source software and how it can adapt. This will help a lot of people that dumped Windows to at least use the proprietary netflix services. Now we just need to get around Adobe dropping the ball with developing Flash Player for Linux. Hopefully open source developers can pick up the slack there as well. I put Adobe in the same category as netflix, the LAME category.
RHEL is a conservative release anyway, but this move is a good one. I suspected they would either pick "Classic mode" or use the MATE desktop environment instead.
I've been using GNU/Linux on all of my desktops since 2007, after seeing it outperform Windows in datacenters since 1997. I use Fedora which is known to have some bugs, but that is what you get with cutting edge. I have wanted to try CentOS or Mint on the desktop and haven't put in the time. Needless to say, I couldn't be happier that I finally made the switch. Many years ago I could not, but now GNU/Linux has so many applications that it can easily replace Windows. Easily. Best of all I am able to replace other proprietary Windows software and get rid of Adobe and other software that was costing way too much.
I am glad this information was released. It only makes sense, with Microsoft keeping the Windows kernel closed source. Let's face it, the Linux kernel is setting the bar in business and datacenters; Microsoft is becoming more of a desktop and consumer company. VMware, appliances, and everything in the datacenter all run on the Linux kernel, and has for years. The Windows kernel is too slow and bloated, not to mention more expensive, to run these services. That's why I use GNU/Linux on all desktops as well, it's rock solid and allows me to get the most out of the hardware.
I've found that GNU/Linux can save educational institutions a LOT of money. Especially when they are able to obtain computers that businesses are throwing out because they can no longer run Windows. GNU/Linux has a huge array of education software, and a lot of schools are using the online games which makes it a very good platform for all of the above. It is amazing at the waste from corporate America where the thought process is to "upgrade the PC to support the new version of Windows", where they should instead be saying "install GNU/Linux to allow us to continue using these PCs and give us freedom".
Caving in to Microsoft is exactly the goal, by Microsoft. The entire UEFI Secure Boot issue is another attempt by Microsoft to control hardware, when they are a software company. While I can see benefits of trying to comply with Microsoft, I don't think it's the right thing especially for the end users because it sacrifices end users freedom to use their machine as they intend. Microsoft wants control over this, and we should not allow it. Unfortunately, PC vendors already have allowed it and passed this along to the users. I think the only real reason a user would need to have Secure Boot working is on a dual boot system. How about scrapping Windows, disable Secure Boot, and install your favourite flavor of GNU/Linux and call it good. If you need Windows, spin up a VM in VirtualBox and away you go.
This is a big step to ramping up GNU/Linux as a gaming platform. There are still a lot of hurdles to get many games working, but this move is a big step forward and I look forward to others jumping on board and following in these footsteps.
This is definitely a good way to go. One user mentioned the hardware cost. For a home server (a file server or similar), you can get hardware almost for free, if not for free. We run a PIII 667 with a gigabit card running CentOS 6 and it is very fast and extremely flexible since we can also do tape backups and a list of other things since it is running GNU/Linux. The older PIII or PII machines use less electricity as well, which is another benefit.
This is very surprising coming from a company (Google) that supports open platforms and encourages open source software. I don't understand what a web browser like Chrome needs to rely on so heavily of a long-term released operating system. The binaries should be written to run on any version of GNU/Linux.
Microsoft is surely trying to influence Dell, as it has in the past. This time it will have invested in Dell so this makes perfect sense. However, I don't see it as being very effective for the price tag at stake, considering Dell's dwindling market share. And, Dell customers will still do what they do now, if they choose to rip out Windows and install GNU/Linux on the hardware, they'll do it regardless. I do give some credit to Dell for attempting to provide solid GNU/Linux support in the past, and unfortunately has succumbed to Microsoft's lobbying efforts.
I don't know why PC vendors have allowed Microsoft to control their hardware. The hardware should be released as-is, and the software to fit the hardware. It's completely backwards.
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It's great to know a good company like Red Hat is behind CentOS. CentOS is already great stuff now, and will hopefully be even better with the corporate backing. It should be a winning situation for all parties, including the end user.
It's no surprise that some of these environments were way too focuses on touch technologies and tablets, and left traditional desktops in the dark. Now that feedback has been received, the environments are backtracking and reviving the classic features. Which, make sense for most as the stats demonstrate. It's unfortunate this has happened, because it has added confusion for new users. But things are coming around and for example Gnome's Classic environment, which wasn't introduced until Gnome 3 was well established, will help considerably, for those that use Gnome for example
By helping CentOS, Red Hat will ensure RHEL's future even more. This will also help CentOS as well, which is an excellent choice no only on the server but on the desktop as well. In the end, both parties should benefit. This is definitely good news and also keeps open source GNU/Linux succeeding in the real world.
I'm surprised they developed their own distro. They obviously had the resources to do this, but I would think handling future updates would be more costly to do this in house rather than use an already published distro. Regardless, it's a move in the positive direction for open source and GNU/Linux, we can only hope that other companies and organizations will learn, and follow suit. If not, they will continue to try and stick with Microsoft and will end up purchasing new hardware just to run that software, not to mention overpaying in licensing fees and extra personnel to administer those licenses.
There is no reason users should stick with Windows, other than exactly what the article states... hardware support and software support. GNU/Linux is an excellent and extremely stable platform (the Linux kernel runs most datacenters -- VMware, KVM, etc... all run on the Linux kernel ... and if it's good enough there you can bet it's good enough to run a gaming PC with ease). I have used GNU/Linux on all of my desktops, and Wine has picked up some of the slack for software where vendors refuse to write native GNU/Linux versions. But, migrating software to run on GNU/Linux natively is a huge win. Let's hope this stays on course.
Agreed! The desktops won't be going away anytime soon, but I think that GNU/Linux will continue to grow on desktops so that is definitely a good thing. Microsoft is getting weaker.
This is a smart move by the auto makers. I don't know why they even considered Windows at all for these systems. Windows is proprietary, crippled, and there are just a host of reasons that don't make it a good fit for this. GNU/Linux is completely open, scalable, stable (no crashing/rebooting), and far less expensive without licensing woes of Windows.
I don't know how many problems that I've come across in Windows, that in GNU/Linux is not an issue. Who cares about Windows. Let Windows rot, and let's get on with a real OS.
Finally some aid in correcting some of the issues we are seeing with patent bullying that has become very popular. Unfortunately the patent system is broken in regards to software, so until it is updated it is great to see organisations like this helping the industry.
When the code is exposed to the public, open source should always have the trust of the users. I'm not sure if Stallman predicted the fact that governments would try to insert a backdoor, but his ideals should indeed prevent it. I trust open source software, but I do NOT trust closed and proprietary software from Microsoft or Apple. Those two have already been exposed to releasing personal details to governments.
I am glad IBM is investing more in to and contributing to the Linux kernel. This is what open source is all about, and a sign that Linux is still growing at a rapid pace to replace the old, archaic, and expensive software in the field today.
We don't need to reinvent the wheel here. I don't see why there are claims that Linux can't be scaled, because it CAN. Recompile the kernel to suit your needs. If it's for virtualisation, then do so.
Ubuntu us a newbie-friendly OS for those stuck on Windows for many years. The city of Munich is brilliant for doing this. Finally, a government entity that is looking out for its own citizens, and not being lobbied by big money. Excellent to see this. If only other governments would catch on.
I understand Wayland's purpose, but I also hope they do not ditch X11 too soon as it has been around for many many years and ensures maximum compatibility. Personally, X11 does enough for me and has good enough performance. Let's just not make the same mistake that Gnome did, by ditching the old ways too soon before figuring out the new ways first. If X11 continues to be developed, I will definitely continue to use it.
It is poor on netflix to ignore users and turn away business. However this demonstrates the power of open source software and how it can adapt. This will help a lot of people that dumped Windows to at least use the proprietary netflix services. Now we just need to get around Adobe dropping the ball with developing Flash Player for Linux. Hopefully open source developers can pick up the slack there as well. I put Adobe in the same category as netflix, the LAME category.
RHEL is a conservative release anyway, but this move is a good one. I suspected they would either pick "Classic mode" or use the MATE desktop environment instead.
I've been using GNU/Linux on all of my desktops since 2007, after seeing it outperform Windows in datacenters since 1997. I use Fedora which is known to have some bugs, but that is what you get with cutting edge. I have wanted to try CentOS or Mint on the desktop and haven't put in the time. Needless to say, I couldn't be happier that I finally made the switch. Many years ago I could not, but now GNU/Linux has so many applications that it can easily replace Windows. Easily. Best of all I am able to replace other proprietary Windows software and get rid of Adobe and other software that was costing way too much.
I am glad this information was released. It only makes sense, with Microsoft keeping the Windows kernel closed source. Let's face it, the Linux kernel is setting the bar in business and datacenters; Microsoft is becoming more of a desktop and consumer company. VMware, appliances, and everything in the datacenter all run on the Linux kernel, and has for years. The Windows kernel is too slow and bloated, not to mention more expensive, to run these services. That's why I use GNU/Linux on all desktops as well, it's rock solid and allows me to get the most out of the hardware.
I've found that GNU/Linux can save educational institutions a LOT of money. Especially when they are able to obtain computers that businesses are throwing out because they can no longer run Windows. GNU/Linux has a huge array of education software, and a lot of schools are using the online games which makes it a very good platform for all of the above. It is amazing at the waste from corporate America where the thought process is to "upgrade the PC to support the new version of Windows", where they should instead be saying "install GNU/Linux to allow us to continue using these PCs and give us freedom".
Caving in to Microsoft is exactly the goal, by Microsoft. The entire UEFI Secure Boot issue is another attempt by Microsoft to control hardware, when they are a software company. While I can see benefits of trying to comply with Microsoft, I don't think it's the right thing especially for the end users because it sacrifices end users freedom to use their machine as they intend. Microsoft wants control over this, and we should not allow it. Unfortunately, PC vendors already have allowed it and passed this along to the users. I think the only real reason a user would need to have Secure Boot working is on a dual boot system. How about scrapping Windows, disable Secure Boot, and install your favourite flavor of GNU/Linux and call it good. If you need Windows, spin up a VM in VirtualBox and away you go.
This is a big step to ramping up GNU/Linux as a gaming platform. There are still a lot of hurdles to get many games working, but this move is a big step forward and I look forward to others jumping on board and following in these footsteps.
This is definitely a good way to go. One user mentioned the hardware cost. For a home server (a file server or similar), you can get hardware almost for free, if not for free. We run a PIII 667 with a gigabit card running CentOS 6 and it is very fast and extremely flexible since we can also do tape backups and a list of other things since it is running GNU/Linux. The older PIII or PII machines use less electricity as well, which is another benefit.
This is very surprising coming from a company (Google) that supports open platforms and encourages open source software. I don't understand what a web browser like Chrome needs to rely on so heavily of a long-term released operating system. The binaries should be written to run on any version of GNU/Linux.
Microsoft is surely trying to influence Dell, as it has in the past. This time it will have invested in Dell so this makes perfect sense. However, I don't see it as being very effective for the price tag at stake, considering Dell's dwindling market share. And, Dell customers will still do what they do now, if they choose to rip out Windows and install GNU/Linux on the hardware, they'll do it regardless. I do give some credit to Dell for attempting to provide solid GNU/Linux support in the past, and unfortunately has succumbed to Microsoft's lobbying efforts.
I don't know why PC vendors have allowed Microsoft to control their hardware. The hardware should be released as-is, and the software to fit the hardware. It's completely backwards.