[Gllug] Linux on Desktop

[Christopher Hunter]

On Mon, 2007-02-12 at 02:56 +0000, damion.yates at gmail.com wrote:

> 
> Many, if not most Universities used Unix, often for the Desktop.
> Computer science students compiled code under it as that was free and
> generally the easiest way.  This has changed significantly for the
> worse and now Universities are churning out Windows "experts". 

This is for several reasons:  

Firstly, MS give away their "operating system" and software to
educational establishments.  This has been their practice for many years
- "catch 'em early, and keep 'em" was how Ballmer described this
strategy.

Secondly, the job market is skewed in favour of Windows "experts".
Often a Minesweeper Expert and Solitaire Expert (MCSE) will out-earn a
sensibly qualified Unix admin. 

Thirdly, a huge proportion of businesses are unaware that there's
anything other than Windows or Mac available.  This is a fundamental
failure of Linux Advocacy - advocates are often seen as ranting geeks
with nothing truly sane to offer the business world. 


> Web servers were almost all Unix, now almost a 1/3 are Windows.

Globally, Windows / IIS accounts for less that 10% of web servers, and
that proportion is dropping.  It's just about the one area that MS have
little penetration - Ballmer is hopping mad about this and is proposing
giving away Exchange and SQL Server to ISPs!

> Fileservers, factory robotic control units, geeks toys and gadgets and
> their software tools were all Unix only, now almost all of these
> things are Windows only.

That's almost exactly opposite to my experience!  Ever more file servers
I see are migrating TO Linux - customers like the security afforded,
particularly after they've had their data corrupted by some "script
Kiddie" breaking into their Windows "server".


> It has been downhill for years.

It's not as gloomy as you perceive.  Globally, the proportion of Windows
users is FALLING!  

Outside the USA, desktop Linux use is a significant proportion of the
user base - for example: I was in the Far East recently, and in five
countries the only use of Windows I saw was on American airline check-in
desks (and they'd blue-screened!).  I was visiting factories and design
companies, and ALL were using Linux of one flavour or another.  

The "emergent" nations don't want and can't afford proprietary operating
systems.  The battle is already won there.  When I was in China, I asked
my host (an old friend) if there was significant piracy of proprietary
software.  He said "not any more" - there used to be copies of Windows,
Office, Photoshop, AutoCAD and the like on market stalls, but the trade
has entirely died out - as he put it: "Windows got the reputation of
working for a week and then breaking - it was no good".

> New people who think Linux is catching up, with no memory of how it
> was ahead before, and make the comments as I quoted above, are just
> annoying.  But they are not the reason the fight is almost lost.

You really are too gloomy.  This particular glass is HALF FULL!

> Those who have used Unix, especially Linux based systems for years,
> who have switched to putting up with Windows at work, just as it's less
> hassle than to fight with those currently in charge of these
> decisions, make me very sad.

Me too, but this situation is changing.  Companies I've known are
leaving MS products because of the continual problems.  Desktop (and
server, obviously) Linux is seen as requiring less maintenance, no
per-seat licencing, no "anti-virus" nonsense, and all the other obvious
advantages we've all known about for ages.  

The business world is seeing that Linux is viable (I've personally
migrated about 30 companies in the last year, ranging from 5 to 400
employees) and all it takes is concerted, sensible, logical advocacy.  

The "I've heard of Linux, but don't know about it" or "Can I get my Dell
machines with Linux?" or "I don't see anything about this Linux stuff in
the press" has GOT to change.  We can't easily afford high profile media
campaigns (unless we're Ubuntu, and they haven't done it), but that
ultimately is what we need.  IBM went some way with their servers ads,
but they were selling to a limited market.  

We need Tesco or Asda to start selling pre-installed Linux machines for
at least £100 less than the equivalent Windows one!

>   Very technically competent coders I've
> known, have changed and say they've ported their app to Windows or are
> using Windows as wifi "just works" or similar, are possibly the
> biggest cause of the downhill slump.

Wi-fi is a major problem, but it's being worked on!

Chris


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