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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mary Cluney who wrote (90175)	12/11/2004 9:35:14 AM
From: greenspirit	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793895

I like the concept of "inflection point" and believe we just haven't seen it fully materialize with Linux yet. It's coming though, and I think Google will play a role in that moment of convergence. Microsoft will respond by dramatically reducing the cost of the operating system, and maybe even giving it away free at some point. They know how to play that game. I know what you mean though, I thought long ago we would rent software at video rental stores. So my track record is hardly 100% accurate. I also thought we would buy film which turned every 35MM camera into a digital camera. Didn't pan-out either. Now digital camera's are so darn cheap they may produce throw-aways soon.

To: Mary Cluney who wrote (90175)	12/11/2004 11:40:47 AM
From: D. Long	Respond to of 793895

When Linux first came out with the concept of "open source" software, I said to myself who would pay for Microsoft OS when millions of programmers would be contributing to open source software and providing OS for free. I think you're wrong again Mary. <g> I love Linux. On the server side, it (and other Unix and Unix-like OSes) dominates. I worked with it for years in IT on the server side and it's preferrable to Windows NT. But on the desktop side, things get stickier. Linux is great on the desktop if you're a nerd. But most people aren't geeks, they don't know alot about computers and don't want to learn, either. They want it to simply work, like an appliance. What's more, people aren't rational when it comes to product choice - people stay with what they know, not necessarily with what is technically superior. People in general don't like change, and they don't like something that doesn't work the way they are used to things working. Which is why Linux on the desktop is an uphill battle. Microsoft has a lock on the market because a. the majority of ordinary users are aleady familiar with it, b. because most consumer applications are written for Windows, c. because MS has a lock on the OEMs like Dell, who are profit-motivated to be hesitant to offer Linux side by side with Windows because of MS arm-twisting and the increased cost of product testing and development and support staffing and training. Apple has been an alternative with application compatibility for years, and most people wouldn't try, let alone migrate, to a Macintosh which is easier to use and harder to break than Windows. If a Macintosh is too different, then Linux has a real barrier. Derek