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Technology Stocks : How high will Microsoft fly? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mick Mørmøny who wrote (30131)	9/26/1999 11:45:00 AM
From: werefrog	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 74651

Software Price Crash Inevitable The MSFT Longtern Investors should be aware of this story. INTERVIEW-Linux founder sees software price crash By Roland Moller HELSINKI, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Computer software prices will crash when the need for constant upgrades disappears, and this is only a matter of time, leading computer and software expert Linus Torvalds said on Thursday. "There are already some signs of this beginning... (a crash) may come three years from now," Torvalds, developer of the free operating system Linux, said in an interview with Reuters. Torvalds found himself suddenly famous this year when major computer industry players like IBM endorsed Linux, and industry analysts said it could be a serious threat to software king Microsoft . Torvalds, a Finn, started working on the open-code operating system as a student 10 years ago because he was not satisfied with the tools available at his university. He made the system available to enthusiasts through the Internet, and developed it with the help of free programming contributions from all over the world. The hype surrounding the system recently propelled one Linux distributor's share price to nine times its IPO level in one month. Torvalds now works for Transmeta, Silicon Valley's most secretive start-up company, which is thought to be working on either a revolutionary high-speed computer chip or on software improving the way chips work -- or both. He still controls the core of the Linux system though most of the development work is being done by organisations he has little to do with. Torvalds predicted that demand for customised software such as Linux, which can be tailored to a client's specifications, would rise in the future. He also said that while the market for separately sold software would change as prices fell and customisation became more important, there would be no dramatic change in the embedded systems and applications market. Embedded systems are those built into and sold with electronic devices such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants and similar equipment. LINUX HEADED FOR DESKTOPS AND SMALLER DEVICES Torvalds said his focus in the Linux development was on designing it for ever smaller devices. He said Linux, most commonly used to run servers, including Internet servers, could become a common operating system on personal computers, breaking the dominance of Microsoft's Windows . "I believe it could break through on desktops, let's wait three years, and then look again at the situation," he said. But he reiterated that his focus was on designing Linux for appliances smaller than laptops rather than putting it on desktops. BELIEVER IN MULTI-PIECE DIGITAL FUTURE The integration of digital systems such as computers and mobile phones is making it possible to build devices which merge almost any functions, but Torvalds said he does not believe consumers want all-in-one systems. "I believe in purpose-built devices," Torvalds said. "If you look for instance at the Nokia 9000 (Communicator), it is a cute thing which I like, but it is not a good mobile phone and it is not a good PDA (organiser)." Similarly, he expects households to have not just one central multimedia box for digital television and Internet access, but several separate terminals that can share information with each other. "What if one family member wants to watch television and another wants to browse the net?" he asked. newsalert.com