[Am-info] Intel Says Linux Ready for Prime Time

[Gene Gaines]

washingtonpost.com
Linux Ready for Prime Time, Intel Says

By Cynthia L. Webb
washingtonpost.com Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 24, 2004; 9:48 AM

From: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A9694-2004Nov24.html
(registration required, complete article below)

  Despite all the hype about Linux and other open-source
  operating systems, the fact remains that Microsoft Corp.
  continues to dominate the desktop universe, with 90 percent or
  so of the world's personal computers powered by one version of
  Windows or another.

  No one is predicting an end to Redmond's desktop dominance any
  time soon. But there are signs on the horizon that open-source
  systems could eventually claim a big chunk of the PC market.
  From today's news: Long-time Microsoft partner Intel Corp. is
  working to help Asian PC manufacturers install Linux on new
  machines rolling off the assembly lines.

  The U.K. tech site The Inquirer stressed the significance of
  Intel's move: "While Intel has been a long time supporter of
  Linux in the server sector, it has largely maintained that
  it's not quite ready for the desktop. The provision of
  software drivers is interesting because in the past Intel has
  greatly assisted launches of Microsoft Windows by helping to
  provide large chunks of the OS. The choice to push the
  software into the distribution and dealer channel will also
  concern Microsoft." In other words, Intel -- one of the
  biggest players in technology -- has decided Linux is ready
  for the primetime desktop market.

=95 The Inquirer: Intel Aims For Microsoft's Linux Jugular

  The Wall Street Journal reported more details: Intel "is
  offering free software, documentation and other resources to
  help distributors in those countries assemble and sell PCs
  with Linux, which is increasingly in demand in government,
  education and business there. The Intel Quick Start Kit for
  Linux, as it is called, has features to help distributors
  install Linux and software that works with it, including
  programs called drivers that are needed to work with accessory
  components, such as printers, Intel said."

  The Journal noted that Intel is no stranger to Linux: The
  company "has long encouraged the use of Linux, in part because
  it runs on Intel microprocessor chips and spurs demand for
  them. That strategy, which has in the past mainly focused on
  hardware such as servers, cell phones and TV set-top boxes,
  illustrates the ways Intel sometimes diverges from working
  with partner Microsoft Corp. and its Windows operating
  system." CNET's News.com said "The chipmaker warmed up to
  desktop PC makers when partners in the Asian countries started
  requesting more help with desktop Linux, company spokesman
  Scott McLaughlin said." Intel "will open four Linux
  development centers to help software companies build PC
  applications for Linux computers," CNET said; the centers will
  be located in Beijing, India and Brazil.

=95 The Wall Street Journal: Intel Pushes Use of Linux On PCs In
  China, India
 =20
=95 CNET's News.com: Intel More Active In Desktop Linux

  Linux is winning more popularity contests as of late with
  government and research groups, Bloomberg reported, "because
  it is seen as cheaper and sometimes less prone to attack by
  computer viruses. The Linux operating system and other
  programs that run on it may be downloaded for free, cutting
  computer costs in countries with growing PC markets. Intel
  processors, which cost up to $999 each, power more than 80
  percent of the world's personal computers. Almost 95 percent
  of PCs run on versions of Microsoft's operating systems. Intel
  spokesman Robert Manetta said his company began to provide the
  software tools 'to meet demand.' The tools are being given to
  companies that make unbranded PCs, he said." As for Intel's
  new kit, the Wall Street Journal said, "None of the individual
  elements in the kit are particularly novel, but Intel hopes
  the combination should make it easier for PC assemblers who
  aren't technically sophisticated to use Linux."

=95 Bloomberg via The Seattle Times: Intel Helping Clients In Asia To Use L=
inux

  Redmond Fights Back

  Microsoft has already gone on the offensive to thwart the
  open-source challenge. Bloomberg explained: "To attract users
  in Asia, Microsoft said in September that it would sell a
  cheaper version of Windows. The software, known as Windows XP
  Starter Edition, will start selling in India by early next
  year," the news service said. "Last Thursday in a speech in
  Singapore, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer
  warned Asian governments that they could face patent lawsuits
  for using the Linux operating system instead of its Windows
  software, noting that Linux violates more than 228 patents,
  according to a recent report from a research group."

  One federal agency's move to open source back home in the
  states offers a glimpse at how Microsoft is trying to undercut
  Linux. Federal Computer Week recently report on the U.S.
  Marshall Service's use of Linux to power some of its systems:
  "Traditional commercial alternatives would have cost $50,000
  per processor in software licenses, and 'that would have been
  cost-prohibitive,' John Campbell, IT specialist at the
  service," told FCW. But the article goes on to stress the
  concerns of proprietary software makers: "If all of this
  sounds too good to be true, it just may be, say officials at a
  handful of technology research organizations and commercial
  software vendors. Open-source skeptics argue that upfront
  licensing fees are only a small piece of the total cost of
  ownership that accrues during any software's lifetime, which
  can span three to five years or more," FCW reported.

  Enter Microsoft. "With open source, who's going to support the
  hundreds of thousands of users?" Quazi Zaman, platform
  technology specialist manager for Microsoft's federal
  division, told FCW: "With commercial software, end users have
  direct vendor support, third-party systems integrators and
  help desks. Then there's the training piece. How am I going to
  reduce enterprise costs if I have to get thousands of people
  up-to-date in using open source?"

=95 Federal Computer Week: The Real Cost of Open Source

  I'll Be Your Server...

  In other Linux news, "quarterly sales of servers running the
  Linux operating system topped $1bn (=A3533m) for the first time
  during the third quarter of 2004," IDG News Service reported,
  citing IDC data. "With year-on-year revenue from Linux server
  sales up 42.6%, Linux accounted for more than 9% of the
  $11.5bn in servers sold worldwide during the quarter, which
  ended 30 September, the research firm said. The server market
  as a whole grew by 5.5% compared with last year's figures, an
  indication that IT spending is on the rise from the
  conservative levels that IDC has tracked over the last few
  years, said Vernon Turner, group vice-president and general
  manager of enterprise computing with IDC."

=95 IDG News Service: Linux Server Sales Top $1bn In Third Quarter

  Chat About Linux With Roblimo

  Slashdot.org fans know the moniker "Roblimo" well: Robin
  Miller is an experienced technology journalist who has been
  writing about Linux open-source software since 1997. His new
  book, "Point and Click Linux" (Addison-Wesley), is aimed at
  the Linux beginner, offering a step-by-step path to installing
  and running the software. Roblimo will be online next
  Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET to talk about his book. Submit a
  question or comment now. Netscape's Revenge

  The open-source movement has one more thing to cheer about
  these days -- the rising fortunes of the Mozilla Foundation's
  Internet browser Firefox. The latest version of Firefox is
  cutting into the lead of Microsoft's Internet Explorer.

  "As Firefox marks its 5 millionth download and moves to retail
  stores, a survey showed Microsoft's heavyweight Internet
  Explorer slipping below 90 percent market share. OneStat.com,
  an Amsterdam, Netherlands-based provider of Web traffic
  measurement services, said that according to numbers gleaned
  from 2 million Web surfers around the world, the Mozilla
  Foundation's new Firefox releases appear to be cutting into
  Microsoft's still commanding lead in the browser market,"
  CNET's News.com reported. eWeek runs the numbers: "Global
  usage share numbers released Monday by OneStat.com showed
  Mozilla Foundation browsers increasing to a 7.4 percent share
  from 2.1 percent in May. Meanwhile, Microsoft Corp.'s Internet
  Explorer dropped 5 percentage points to 88.9 percent during
  the same six-month period. OneStat.com, an Amsterdam-based Web
  analytics vendor, based the usage share number on a sample of
  2 million visitors across Web sites in 100 countries."

=95 CNET's News.com: Firefox Cutting Into IE's Lead

=95 eWeek: Another Survey Says Mozilla Up, IE Down

  Microsoft is scrambling already, according to published
  reports. "The decline prompted the software giant to contact
  clients, urging them to think twice before switching to free
  alternatives to its own products," The Times of London
  reported. "The news came as Mozilla recorded 5 million
  downloads of its new Firefox browser. Firefox 1.0, a
  descendent of Netscape, the former market leader, was released
  earlier this month. Earlier versions of the software had
  gained a cult following by supporters who have claimed it is
  more reliable than Microsoft's. Such has been the software's
  appeal, users banded together to raise $250,000 and advertised
  this month's release of Firefox 1.0 in The New York Times."