Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 00:46:29 -0500 From: "Jack Velte" <jackv@earthling.net> To: <freebsd-chat@freebsd.org> Subject: Upstart challenger to Microsoft's operating software gains serious momentum Message-ID: <001a01be5bcb$87e0d4e0$6a6c4cd1@jackv.pacbell.net>
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AP News Service NEW YORK (AP) _ Burlington Coat Factory could have chosen new Windows-based computers for its 250 discount clothing stores this year. Instead, the chain plans to buy 1,300 machines running the Linux operating system, an upstart challenger to Microsoft's more established Windows NT software program. The move underscores the fast-growing popularity of the Linux system, a respected version of the Unix operating software widely used in powerful business computers that run local networks of machines or Web sites. Linux may sound more like a ``Peanuts'' cartoon character than a serious operating system for business computers. But surging demand for the inexpensive software may pose an important new threat to Microsoft Corp., the dominant computer software maker. Giving Linux an important endorsement on Thursday, International Business Machines Corp. announced plans to start selling business computers that come pre-loaded with Linux. The rollout comes after similar moves by Compaq Computer Corp., Dell Computer Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Silicon Graphics Inc. Linux comprised about 17 percent of the software shipped for running business machines last year, up from 7 percent in 1997, says International Data Corp., a high-tech research firm. ``Linux has come out of almost nowhere and quickly become the darling of certain elements of the programming community,'' said Tim Bajarin, president of the Creative Strategies Inc. consulting firm, based in Campbell, Calif. However, it remains to be seen if Linux can break out of its status as a niche product and spurs mass demand among customers. Users rave about Linux's positive attributes, such as its tendency not to crash and its flexibility. Developed in the early 1990s by a Finnish student named Linus Torvalds, Linux can be downloaded for free off the Internet, or bought in commercial versions from distributors such as Red Hat Software for as little as $50. And unlike Microsoft's software blueprints, Linux's source code is shared over the Web, which makes it easy for programmers to blend in improvements. As a result, a small cottage industry of developers around the globe has sprung up. But there still are relatively few software applications that run on the Linux system, particularly compared to Windows-compatible programs. While systems administrators and programmers at companies increasingly are embracing Linux, many corporate managers are heavily committed to Microsoft through growing investments in Windows for desktop computers and Windows NT for business machines. ``The momentum for Windows and Windows NT is extremely strong,'' Bajarin said. ``Microsoft is not going to give up any territory without a major competitive fight.'' Still, demand for Linux is growing. At Bristol Hotels & Resorts, a Dallas-based chain of 120 hotels, developers use about half-a-dozen Linux computers to design Internet software that will perform such tasks as letting hotel guests make reservations online. The company hopes to vastly increase its use of Linux as the Internet becomes more important to its business. ``I'm very, very hopeful that the user community in the world will recognize this as an alternative and choose to embrace it,'' said Joshua Norrid, director of application development at Bristol, which uses about 4,000 computers. Whether Microsoft faces strong competition has become an important issue in its unfolding antitrust trial in Washington, which accuses Microsoft of unfairly squelching rivals. Microsoft, through a spokesman, was quick to reiterate its contention that rivals to its business are alive and well. ``Certainly, it's a competitive threat,'' Microsoft spokesman Adam Sohn said of Linux. ``We are happy to compete head-to-head with Linux on the merits of the technology and the business model.'' To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message
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