>Grrr.
>
>
Not necessarily. If you're Sun, Grrr. If you're a computer OEM who has
talked about either offering Linux-only machines or dual-boot options,
you might find yourself better off than before. Judge Kathy ruled that
if Microsoft retaliates or threatens retaliation against you for not
making their product "the one and only" on your computers you have
grounds for both a civil suit and a request for contempt of court
(criminal) prosecution.
I believe, based on internal rumors I can't verify enough to make into a
real article, that Gateway is the "major brand" computer maker most
likely to start offering Linux as an option.
Imagine a smooth-looking Lycoris or Xandros desktop, with pre-integrated
Codeweavers Wine offerings, selling in Gateway stores (and on the
company's Web site) for $1000 less than equivalent Windows computers. By
the time you include Win 2K or XP Pro, Office, and one or two other
popular producticity programs with the Windows version, the price
difference is that great -- or greater.
Lycoris has a built in, unhidden, user-controlled "back door" for remote
techs to log in and fix software problems. This can cut support costs
heavily.
Second factor that will make Lycoris and some of the other "new" Linux
distributions attractive is that they can be given to OEMs free or the
companies that produce them can even *pay* OEMs to install them -- as
long as enough customers sign up for software update subscriptions.
This is the secret of why Microtel started offering Lindows: to make one
of their $199 Lindows PCs fully functional, you are almost forced to
subscribe to Lindows Click 'n Run (unless you speak Debian, which
perhaps 0.1% of all computer users do). Lycoris, Xandros, Red Hat,
Ximian and others are all going toward software/update subscription
revenue models. Sure, they are all more relaxed than Lindows about
making it obvious that you can get the same software (except the
commercial Wine variants and StarOffice) free, but they would really,
really like you to sign up for their subscription plans sooner or later
for convenience if for no other reason. That is, for YOUR convenience.
For them, subscriptions can mean a nice profit lifeline.
Dell is eating the market for consumer PCs. All the other companies are
frantically scrounging around for ways to compete. It's inevitable that
some of them play with Linux, especially since there are now
subscription possibilities to drive profits, plus a reduced fear of
retaliation from Microsoft as they add Linux to their product lineups.
- Robin
>
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