Comments on: What To Expect in 2010 http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/ Open Source, Open Standards Fri, 10 May 2013 08:56:11 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1 By: pogson http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7601 pogson Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7601 <p>TFA includes the false assumption that GNU/Linux is not already big on the desktop. It may be true in the USA and some other parts of the world, but globally, GNU/Linux became huge in 2009. The netbook was one obvious vector with 30% of that growth-during-recession going with GNU/Linux but the thin client is moving quietly up the middle. No one notices because only 2-3% of produced PCs are thin clients. The surprising 10% share of working PCs due to thin clients is due to their double or triple longer life than PCs. We still mostly run 1024x768 and need as little as 64MB to run a thin client. Most thin clients made in the last ten years will run GNU/Linux fine. A large proportion of thin clients and their terminal servers run GNU/Linux. Virtualization of all kinds can work with GNU/Linux. The software-app lock-in is just about gone with virtual machines as terminal servers and web applications working with any browser.</p> <p>We have had two years of netbook production and the rate is still increasing. ARM will take a major share of thin clients and small cheap computers. 2009 was the year the last bottleneck fell. You can find GNU/Linux boxes on retail shelves if you know where to look and certainly they are on the web. Netbooks are nearly 10% of PCs now. That made a huge difference in the number of ordinary/non-computer-geek humans who have seen/heard of/used GNU/Linux. There is no need to wait for 2010 for that to happen. GNU/Linux is ready on the desktop. I declare 2009 was the year because no bottlenecks remain. Everyone from the impulse buyer to the corporate IT department has access and know it works.</p> <p>Remarkable developments in 2009 which demonstrate the growing demand for GNU/Linux on the desktop were the moves by Dell, HP, Novell, IBM, and RedHat to provide migration routes/support/systems for huge deployments of virtual desktops/thin clients for business. Even the glacial migration by Munich\'s local government has gotten its act together with full use of ODF and FLOSS apps. They have overcome all barriers except actually chucking that other OS. That could happen in 2010 but the ground work was all done earlier. Many other organizations have huge stocks of XP seats just waiting to be cherry-picked for the easy migrations using thin clients. </p> TFA includes the false assumption that GNU/Linux is not already big on the desktop. It may be true in the USA and some other parts of the world, but globally, GNU/Linux became huge in 2009. The netbook was one obvious vector with 30% of that growth-during-recession going with GNU/Linux but the thin client is moving quietly up the middle. No one notices because only 2-3% of produced PCs are thin clients. The surprising 10% share of working PCs due to thin clients is due to their double or triple longer life than PCs. We still mostly run 1024×768 and need as little as 64MB to run a thin client. Most thin clients made in the last ten years will run GNU/Linux fine. A large proportion of thin clients and their terminal servers run GNU/Linux. Virtualization of all kinds can work with GNU/Linux. The software-app lock-in is just about gone with virtual machines as terminal servers and web applications working with any browser.

We have had two years of netbook production and the rate is still increasing. ARM will take a major share of thin clients and small cheap computers. 2009 was the year the last bottleneck fell. You can find GNU/Linux boxes on retail shelves if you know where to look and certainly they are on the web. Netbooks are nearly 10% of PCs now. That made a huge difference in the number of ordinary/non-computer-geek humans who have seen/heard of/used GNU/Linux. There is no need to wait for 2010 for that to happen. GNU/Linux is ready on the desktop. I declare 2009 was the year because no bottlenecks remain. Everyone from the impulse buyer to the corporate IT department has access and know it works.

Remarkable developments in 2009 which demonstrate the growing demand for GNU/Linux on the desktop were the moves by Dell, HP, Novell, IBM, and RedHat to provide migration routes/support/systems for huge deployments of virtual desktops/thin clients for business. Even the glacial migration by Munich\’s local government has gotten its act together with full use of ODF and FLOSS apps. They have overcome all barriers except actually chucking that other OS. That could happen in 2010 but the ground work was all done earlier. Many other organizations have huge stocks of XP seats just waiting to be cherry-picked for the easy migrations using thin clients.

]]> By: mbourque http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7602 mbourque Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7602 <p>I\'d be happy with an installation that I don\'t have to spend a day or two futzing with after a clean install to get sound and video working. I love working with Linux all day at work but I\'d like to come home to a system that just works :-) I\'m ever the optimist. </p> I\’d be happy with an installation that I don\’t have to spend a day or two futzing with after a clean install to get sound and video working. I love working with Linux all day at work but I\’d like to come home to a system that just works :-) I\’m ever the optimist.

]]> By: stosss http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7603 stosss Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7603 <p>@mbourque - use a distro that works out of the box. I started with Mandrake 9.0, a couple releases later moved to Fedora 2.0, 4 releases later moved to PCLinuxOS 2007. Then I learned it is heavily based on Mandriva which used to be Mandrake. 4 releases later I am still using PCLinuxOS 2010. I liked Fedora but got tired of having to un-install fedora brand apps and install the original apps that worked like they are supposed to work. PCLinuxOS works right out of the box. </p> @mbourque – use a distro that works out of the box. I started with Mandrake 9.0, a couple releases later moved to Fedora 2.0, 4 releases later moved to PCLinuxOS 2007. Then I learned it is heavily based on Mandriva which used to be Mandrake. 4 releases later I am still using PCLinuxOS 2010. I liked Fedora but got tired of having to un-install fedora brand apps and install the original apps that worked like they are supposed to work. PCLinuxOS works right out of the box.

]]> By: techevar http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7604 techevar Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7657/#comment-7604 <p>If you want a .*nix version use MAC OSX. I am a huge Linux fan and have used every distro under the sun. I started out on Fedora, then went to SuSe and finally I jumped on the Ubuntu Bandwagon. In the end, I was frustrated with a desktop that was partial. Lets face it a Desktop should be able to read every web format out there and Linux is constrained. Have you ever tried to view videos on a Linux desktop? Sure there are Codecs but who wants to go through all of that nonsense. I want a desktop that works everytime and not have to worry about specific configurations. I converted to Mac about a year ago and have not looked back! I can open up my terminal and SSH into my Linux Servers and when I need a windows only format I fire up my VM Fusion and have the best of both worlds. I believe in the Open Source Market just like the rest of you but unfortunately Linux will never be there.<br /> This world revolves around money and hardware vendors can\'t make money on free. </p> If you want a .*nix version use MAC OSX. I am a huge Linux fan and have used every distro under the sun. I started out on Fedora, then went to SuSe and finally I jumped on the Ubuntu Bandwagon. In the end, I was frustrated with a desktop that was partial. Lets face it a Desktop should be able to read every web format out there and Linux is constrained. Have you ever tried to view videos on a Linux desktop? Sure there are Codecs but who wants to go through all of that nonsense. I want a desktop that works everytime and not have to worry about specific configurations. I converted to Mac about a year ago and have not looked back! I can open up my terminal and SSH into my Linux Servers and when I need a windows only format I fire up my VM Fusion and have the best of both worlds. I believe in the Open Source Market just like the rest of you but unfortunately Linux will never be there.
This world revolves around money and hardware vendors can\’t make money on free.

]]>