[Sussex] Is 2008 the Year Of The Desltop for Linux?

[Gavin Stevens]

On Mon, 28 Jan 2008 10:47:42 +0000
Steve Dobson <steve at dobson.org> wrote:

> Hi All
> 
> Yes, I know you've head it all before.  I've become somewhat jaded
> about the idea that Linux will replace Windows on the desktop. 
> However, others are more hopeful.
> 
> I came across article [1] which I recommend to you for reading.  It
> links to article [2] about a large roll out in India that is equally
> interesting.  But what is most significant to me is how IBM are
> supporting Linux.
> 
> It appears to me that IBM made the right choice by not developing a
> Linux distro of their own.  By providing support for a number of
> different distros are they not better able to support their clients? 
> If you want RedHat in the server room and Ubuntu on the desktop which
> company would you prefer to go to for your support?  RedHat, Canonical
> or IBM?  
> 
> Sure all three have the skills.  We all know that one Linux distro is
> pretty much like another, after all the code base is the same.  But if
> RedHat recommended their desktop system, or Canonical Ubuntu for the
> server room, would you think they were making that recommendation
> because it was right for you or because it was easier for them?  If
> IBM made either of those recommendations wouldn't you think that they
> probably had a point?
> 
> So will 2008 be the year of the Linux desktop?  I don't know.  I'll
> believe it when I see it.
> 
It's true that Linux has a long, long way to go in terms of users
changing from Windows, but Linux is definitely ready as a "product" (I
use the term in the absence of anything else more appropriate).

Some interesting things give me hope: I was wandering round the BCF
earlier this month & one of the vendors had Vista on offer for GBP65,
when it's usually more like GBP195 - he said he was having real trouble
selling it & he has been selling Windows for a long time. He even
confessed that he was evaluating Linux (Ubuntu, I think). Also, my 12
year old stepson now has Debian Etch on his PC - Windows has been wiped
off his HDD with a stiff brush. He was always moaning about something
when his machine had Windows on it, but since I installed Etch for him,
he has taken to using his PC every day & no moaning, only praise. A
friend of his who lives nearby, was given a PC for Christmas. It cost
nearly GBP400 & has Vista & they are signed up to AOL. Matthew (my
stepson) visited this friend after school today & upon his return gave
the following assessment of his friend's computer: "Ohmygod, his PC's
got Vista on it & it's like, _well_ slow - it sucks well bad."
Apparently, this is normal speech for 12 year-olds these days, but I
think it makes the point.

Gavin.