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« Peace breaks out?!? | Main | Sorry, but I have to... »
Desktop Linux: The Dream Is DeadMonday October 18, 2010
One of the saddest (but tragically true) technology articles I've read lately is Robert Strohmeyer's article in PCWorld Desktop Linux: The Dream Is Dead. The most important paragraph is:
Ultimately, Linux is doomed on the desktop because of a critical lack of content. And that lack of content owes its existence to two key factors: the fragmentation of the Linux platform, and the fierce ideology of the open-source community at large.
One of the key pieces of the linux ideology that has been a huge part of the problem is the focus on "free". In extreme corners of the community, software developers are supposed to be feeding themselves by doing day jobs, and writing software at night. Often, employers sponsor open-source work, but it's not enough and sometimes has a conflict-of-interest. In the enterprise world, there is an economic model: service and support. On the desktop side, there is no similar economic model: desktop software is a labor of love.

The enterprise model for linux has been a huge success. Folks from the proprietary software world find this perplexing. One of the better ways of looking at it is that proprietary software typically has a large sales force, does expensive advertising, and so has a generally large cost-of-sales. Often, the cost-of-sales is alarmingly close to the license fee — they cancel out. So why not just give the software for free and let it sell itself? Volume goes up, so service and support revenue will go up too. All goodness. My major problem with this revenue model is that it creates a dis-incentive for quality: crappy software needs more service and support. This is counterbalanced by the fact that crappy software is also less likely to get adopted, but the tension is there. I've actually heard senior executives push back on projects to improve installation and configuration because that removes service and support opportunities - "features" and demos are good because they help sales. This isn't just an open-source phenomenon: I've heard it very strongly from large proprietary software companies.

But for desktop software, the service-and-support model doesn't work. To be successful, desktop software has to "just work". Some folks do shareware or donateware, but it's not very successful: such models rarely generate enough money to keep the developers fed. And the packaging model of most of the distributions discourages economic models: they slurp up the source and compile it themselves, holding on to the relationship with the user. Money isn't evil: it's just a way of keeping score in a barter economy. I'm happy to trade code for food. And it doesn't take much money to make things work: look at the iPhone app store. If the Gimp cost a few dollars, the development team could put a lot more energy into the Gimp and it would be hugely better for it. Now it's just a shadow of Photoshop (sorry), which succeeds despite rapacious pricing.

Developers follow the money. They aren't evil, they just need to be fed and housed. Unless the Linux community gets over the whole "free" thing on the desktop, Strohmeyer's pronouncement of death will hold.

Comments[51] Share
Comments:

Dead? Where have you been? It's very alive! You might say it's not gaining *enough* market share or momentum, but people who want to use linux on a laptop (the desktop is dead!) can do it pretty easily and pretty well! And usually with an experience much better than on Microsoft's or Apple's OS (compare for example the install/unistall experience on a decent linux to any proprietary alternative - central repository works so well that Apple has stolen it for the iPhone!)

Posted by davide on October 18, 2010 at 01:09 PM PDT #

sorry for that , This would be my first time to disagree with you :( if some IT empire like Oracle have some software components that GNU/Linux OS heavily depend on ! what would we say if they did like what they did with OO yesterday ? depending on community Free Software could have some disadvantage , but at least , we wont worry about our feature !

Posted by Ahmed Ezzat Afifi on October 18, 2010 at 01:11 PM PDT #

I think it's too early to call. Open source has one advantage that no commercial competitor ever can: longevity. Companies come and go; Microsoft and Apple could go out of business (or 'change focus') tomorrow and suddenly their entire software ecosystem would be in doubt; Linux will just soldier on, independent of any one company, providing a solid desktop experience and development environment.

Posted by pj on October 18, 2010 at 01:25 PM PDT #

Hmm. I dunnow, to some degree I'm okay with Desktop Linux staying an enthusiast "market", because then you get a focused tool for a focused group of users, instead of a desktop that attempts to be everything to everyone--one of the things that makes me like Windows and OS X less on the desktop (for my personal use) than GNOME. I think that perhaps what will work, going into the future, is the model where the desktop work essentially supports (and is subsidized by) the enterprise work. For example, Fedora is essentially a testbed for RHEL. Ubuntu on the home desktop is essentially subsidized by Ubuntu on the enterprise desktop or server (and of course by Mark's existing bank account, which I'm guessing would probably take decades to run out at the current rate that Canonical uses funds). -Max

Posted by Max Kanat-Alexander on October 18, 2010 at 01:27 PM PDT #

I disagree, yes developer follows the money, but the problem is that a lot of proprietary developers want to sell a bad quality application and you must accept how it is. The Linux crowd is very technical and know how to name the application when it is bad. So the kind of proprietary application you see on Linux is done by big corporations that have the staff to try, at least, to build something good, and not just sell a crap app/hardware that only works if you see it from the right Yes, building proprietary software for Linux is hard, APIs are removed from the system and redesigned frequently and the developer must keep up with that. Sell me games on Linux and I will buy them, I buy them for the PS3 so saying that we, the Linux community, have a "free" mentality is wrong. But do not dare to sell me crappy ports from Windows :-)

Posted by Robert on October 18, 2010 at 01:30 PM PDT #

Actually software *is* sold for Linux. There is Matlab, various ASIC tools etc which you may actually buy. Lately there are some for-pay games. Personally I am all in for paying for software, as long as it makes sense cost/performance wise. For example, I would probably not pay for a software which relies on proprietary formats, buy I might actually pay for Microsoft (gasp...) Office were it to run natively on Linux and use ODF rather then the 'open' XML format they use. Regarding the fragmentation, last time I checked Ubuntu had about 80% of linux desktop installation, and its share is only growing. So there actually is no real problem here. The second in line btw is Fedora with about 8%. FWIW Ubuntu has a new proprietary software store in its latest version and I fully welcome that. I think that this is a step in the right direction. Note: my comment is formatted without newlines (at least in the preview). Is it because I am using Firefox on Linux? Here is some irony for you.

Posted by Amehaye on October 18, 2010 at 01:55 PM PDT #

I would have to disagree as well. Generally I'm a fairly technical person using Linux at home so my perspective can be a bit skewed. It seems like there are two worlds when talking about desktop software. There is the 'content creation' world and the 'content consumption' world. Just looking at 'content creation' it seems like Linux is just fine. My wife started using my Ubuntu box just because it's on a machine that's faster and she can do the minor video editing on it that she needs to. So, my wife (very non technical) choosing a Ubuntu box over a Windows laptop seems like Desktop success to me. I think it depends on how you measure success.

Posted by Greg on October 18, 2010 at 02:02 PM PDT #

I don't quite buy that desktop Linux is dead, but it depends what you mean by desktop (think Android). Also, it's important to distinguish desktop Unix, which, if you count Apple's products, is doing rather well. The question is perhaps, is "desktop" dying? Products such as the iPad are in an interesting nether-world between desktop and laptop and phone.

Posted by Tim Boudreau on October 18, 2010 at 03:12 PM PDT #

At some level, it seems like these are workarounds for how thoroughly Microsoft has ruined the desktop user experience for consumers. When I see my non-techie relatives computers, the common case is that, if you open a web browser, half of the screen height is toolbars various applications have installed. I've set several of these folks up with Ubuntu installs which they are very happy with - fairly amazing, considering the spotty user experience in Linux just a few years ago. Now, it *is* still spotty - and you're right, Gimp's UI is atrocious.

Posted by Tim Boudreau on October 18, 2010 at 03:12 PM PDT #

But (just judging from the amount of "is your PC slow" ads on TV), it appears there is a market at least for small consultants to pitch "Would you like your PC not to get viruses and get slower and slower over time?" - if someone were to organize a foundation that supports *those* guys, you might have something. How relevant desktop is going to be in the long-term future remains to be seen, though. So I think "commercial desktop Linux is dead" is not quite the same thing as "desktop Linux is dead" - much of the appeal of small devices that serve common computing needs is a direct result of what Windows has done to the desktop user experience. If there is indeed still a need for desktops in general, then that's a problem there is likely some money in solving - just not Netscape-IPO-scale money.

Posted by Tim Boudreau on October 18, 2010 at 03:13 PM PDT #

I somewhat disagree. I remember similar stuff was said for linux enterprise solutions. Then companies like redhat showed how to think outside monopolistic box. For desktop, just consider user oriented services around the desktop like ubuntu's cloud or music store. I see many possibilities here.

Posted by Stan on October 18, 2010 at 03:45 PM PDT #

Boy, Oracle software is the pits to install, configure and use... I must say, Sun's stack was really nice to work with. Why Why Why did you have to sell Sun's software to Oracle.

Posted by freebie on October 18, 2010 at 04:00 PM PDT #

I have to say that already I think that linux is almost to the point of being for the average desktop user. It is so easy to use in my opinion and so powerfull as well. And there is a little bit of something for every one.

Posted by Haiyun211 on October 18, 2010 at 06:26 PM PDT #

Hi James, Sorry, but I would have expected a little more from you than just joining the old chorus of "Linux desktop is dead" blah-sayers. I use Debian GNU/Linux Lenny and I have all the apps that I want. The quality and stability of most of the software packages is great and nothing is easier than a quick "apt-get install [whatever]" to install some new stuff. At work I have to use Windows and I had to use MacOs X in the past, and I think both mostly suck. I thought you were a fan of OpenSolaris. As a desktop system, that's a much steeper learning curve less appealing to the mainstream than Linux distributions like Ubuntu, OpenSuse or Debian. regards Oliver

Posted by Oliver Doepner on October 18, 2010 at 07:36 PM PDT #

James , Linux Desktop might be a market niche compared to Win,Mac counterparts. But on the new Platforms such as SmartPhones , Tablets; Linux might succeed ,thanks to Android. Android might well turn out to be Linux's ticket to the masses , where the traditional Linux has failed to gain a foothold.

Posted by Ganesh Karthick on October 19, 2010 at 12:11 AM PDT #

It's interesting to note that there are some niche markets in which Linux actually does dominate the desktop through proprietary, expensive software. Visual effects studios, for example, are full of Linux desktops which run software costing thousands or tens or even hundreds of thousands (the stuff seen at Siggraph :) ) . They do that because they need the performance and stability, the configurability and because it's cheaper to also put the same system, free, on their renderfarm of thousands of nodes. But they do it for legacy reasons too, as that software was initially developed on Unix workstations (SGI, Sun) years ago.

Posted by Dragos Stefan on October 19, 2010 at 12:30 AM PDT #

Talking about the desktop is talking about last decade's battle. This decade is about mobile Internet and mobile gadgets that are linked to "the cloud". The real issue here is the Linux community is always fighting last year's battles.

Posted by Winfried Maus on October 19, 2010 at 01:12 AM PDT #

Completely agree with this post.

Posted by Davide Perini on October 19, 2010 at 02:05 AM PDT #

Cannot agree that the desktop is dead, but I can agree that the lack of commercial content is hampering its acceptance. One part of it is unfortunately a chicken or egg problem. Big companies won't sell on Linux because there are not enough users. There are not enough users because big companies won't sell on Linux. The other part is not really about buying it is about pirating. Even if all software could be bought for the Linux desktop you cannot ignore that a lot of people get software from friends rather than the shop. So if it means that your friends' pirated games and software won't run on the Linux desktop then you won't run Linux, because why go and buy it now if you can just run the pirated version on Windows? Personally I firmly believe that the Linux desktop will get there. It won't go away and it will continue to improve and get more users. At some point the critical mass will be reached and big software companies will notice.

Posted by Dirk on October 19, 2010 at 02:49 AM PDT #

I may have to disagree as well. I am basically a software testing guy who involved in testing the applications on multiple operating systems. I worked on MAC x, Win and Linux desktop system. All I can say from my experiences is that the issues I face on MAC and Win machines are always larger in count than with Linux desktops. Apparently, I would agree that Linux is prioritized less as the % of win users are larger than Linux. But again, As far as the mobile technologies are considered Linux is always on top of the world. I used android, Win and symbian OS. but I never had a better experience with any OS other than

Posted by Srini on October 19, 2010 at 03:48 AM PDT #

In the large organisation I work for Linux desktops outnumber Macs at least 3:1. So there is hope in the enterprise desktop market.

Posted by Stephan H. Wissel on October 19, 2010 at 05:25 AM PDT #

I totally agree with you and the article. I switched to a Mac in 1991 because Linux just didn't have the quality of applications that live on the Mac. I look at desktop Linux today and not much as changed since then. There are still few if any games, and multimedia is still so-so. I would pay something for the gimp or any other software that gives some value. What gets ridiculous is when companies like Adobe charge exorbitant fees for software.

Posted by Chad Preisler on October 19, 2010 at 07:04 AM PDT #

I've been using Linux at home for a couple years now. Since turning freelance (about a quarter now) for work too. Have installed it on hand-built machines and my new Dell laptop. I can really say, the experience is fascinating! I'm not talking about geeky fascination here, making love with the terminal and such.. I'm talking about real user-perceived usability! Yes, the user _may_ need to search a bit to do something special, but she just needs to _persist_ for only a few minutes and not quit right from the start. She'll get there! Hardware support is there; Quality software is there (GIMP is awesome and just needs 16-bit editing); Desktop usability and quality is there. What's not there yet is awareness, but Ubuntu is moving forward on that front. The Linux desktop may never dominate over Windows, but it will definitely acquire a substantial share at some point. And this point is getting closer, not farther..

Posted by Vagelis on October 19, 2010 at 07:17 AM PDT #

Hello James, the Linux Desktop is so alive that in the last 5 years of my life + work I used Linux for the whole day. Every new release is getting better and better and more people are involved in the development of Linux. Some are just translating some words of their applications they often use or write HowTos. Linux is very alive! And Java is also very alive. JEE6 is very good and the new features of OpenJDK7 are also very good. RichFaces4/JSF2.0 has very good Features what make life very easy. And JVM-languages like Scala will give back good ideas for Java itself. Cheers! Daniel Bruessler

Posted by Daniel Bruessler on October 19, 2010 at 10:19 AM PDT #

[Trackback] Reescribir la historia es feo. Pero atribuirse el invento de otro es peor. Si usted ha actualizado Java

Posted by Tecnobloc on October 19, 2010 at 11:27 AM PDT #

I love linux forever. I have linux on my PC & Laptop. and always prefer to use command line. As i know... linux is used by desktop users who knows the power of linux... it will alive forever..

Posted by amIT on October 19, 2010 at 01:27 PM PDT #

[Trackback] Reescriure la història és lleig. Però atribuir-se l'invent d'un altre és pitjor. Si vostè ha actualitzat

Posted by Tecnobloc on October 19, 2010 at 03:26 PM PDT #

James, while completely agree on the post (Linux guys should finally learn from Apple), you mentioned packaging. It is really painful topic and I still wondering what was the reasons that at Sun Microsystems you, guys, did nothing good that could bring "OS world" to "Java world"? Historically (and chronically) it happens that Java is like literally an OS inside OS. It is not just a single piece of software that can be treat as anything else, e.g. vim editor. It has its own JAR versions, dependencies and so on. What still happens in 21th century: system folks treats Java as "yet another software", hence trying to RPM it or JPackage it, while Java treats system folks as "yet another OS". I am wondering how these two worlds can be actually joined together, in order to achieve the following goals: a) Distribute non-free, b) Manage it all flexible (i.e. have many versions of Java software and JAR libs in the same space, e.g. Solaris Zone).

Posted by BM on October 19, 2010 at 08:59 PM PDT #

I have known that desktop Linux has been dead for some time. It is also true that the community has not even considered Linux to be a desktop OS, in that they have allowed bugs like the X memory corruption bug (which allowed privilege escalation on the local machine - thereby at a stroke making Linux unsuitable for commercial desktop deployment) to sit unfixed for five years. The strategy has simply been 'Ignore the desktop'. The elitist attitude of many in the Linux community has also been 'If you can't use desktop Linux, you shouldn't be using a computer' - to which the mass user response has been either: a) stick with Windows or b) buy a Mac You can't blame the users for taking the hint.

Posted by odjones on October 19, 2010 at 10:47 PM PDT #

@BM, thanks BM. That's what i am always wondering in my head about java. Fine, java was designed to run platform independent but the way it has been treated in the hands of the native OSes builders, i.e. by MS, and Apple, iOS, meant that it should have assumed a complete ecosystem of its own long before now. Why do us java developers always have to beg to be treated nicely by MS Windows and others. Can't java just be made to run right on the metal especially on the desktop. I know it involves alot of things but there are many disparate efforts in that direction which seems to not be receiving alot of attention. We have JNode, JX, Maxine, Guest vm, etc. Why cant these guys just come together in a way, and give us something wholesome. I just cant wait for the day i will boot my noteboot straight into java, and i believe the time is now else, someone is gonna steal the idea to build a new platform and call it, say, andromeda.

Posted by new Color(1.0f, 1.0f, 1.0f, 0.5f); on October 19, 2010 at 11:57 PM PDT #

James, you spend to much time using Apple products ;) Let me tell you my experience: 1. got ubuntu 10.xx 2. installation done in 15minutes, add needed pkgs in very short time 3. installed all mplayer, ffmpeg with all needed bits and pieces for video content. Simple and to the point. 4. installed Nvidia CUDA, OpenGL graphic drivers 5. mount my NAS Job done. Everything works as expected. I can do 2D/3D, CUDA, write technical papers in LaTeX, make dvds, connect cameras, burn dvds, listen music, videos, play a variety of formats from mac, windoze world. And yes, all these were free ! The Linux Desktop is very much alive and kicking!

Posted by stefan parvu on October 19, 2010 at 11:58 PM PDT #

Stefan, Your comment is very reminiscent of what Amiga users used to write about their platform, back in 1995. We are all familiar with history. The average computer user knows nothing about mplayer, ffmpeg, OpenGL or suchlike. Don't even get me started on LaTeX... I can also say without any hesitation that the average computer user will *not* RTFM, STFW or even ask a friend when their computer does not do what they expect it to. They will reboot the computer and go back to Windows. Or buy a Mac.

Posted by odjones on October 20, 2010 at 12:51 AM PDT #

[Trackback] Reescribir la historia es feo. Pero atribuirse el invento de otro es peor. Si usted ha actualizado Java

Posted by Tecnobloc on October 20, 2010 at 05:03 AM PDT #

Desktop is dead and soon windows too. Cloud is the future and the father of java should know about that! Web terms, just like the old unix school.

Posted by Bruno on October 20, 2010 at 07:34 AM PDT #

I think maybe the article and jag's entry is focused on computing for entertainment enduse. I have a background in mechanical engineering and use Java for CFD. There are a number of commercial CFD and data visualization software packages ($$$$) that support primarily Windows and Linux. I personally use Mac and may be the only registered Macintosh user of a certain brand of grid software. It crashes my X11 everytime I use it; but I prefer it because it is better than Gambit. odjones comments may be relevant. There are engineers, with CFD backgrounds, who don't write code, don't know LaTeX or GnuPlot... so things have to be idiot proof to be successful, especially if you're talking about the average enduser (whatever that means)

Posted by Ben on October 20, 2010 at 10:06 AM PDT #

While I disagree with the reasons, I do agree with the conclusion. I think the desktop is becoming less relevant every year. Desktop operating systems in general will take up less and less of the share of IT. I think the Open Source community should look forward and start to concentrate on the mobile and tablet space - the devices that will usurp the desktop in the next few years.

Posted by mr-potter on October 20, 2010 at 12:02 PM PDT #

Linux Desktop improved A LOT in the last recent years. How can you say it's dead or it will be soon if the number of adopters grow each year ?

Posted by Cristian on October 20, 2010 at 12:08 PM PDT #

Linux has always been and always will be an "also ran" simply because, well, it really isn't that good. It's clunky, inconsistent, still has large incompatibility problems, lacks quality software, quality UX is virtually non-existent... and the list goes on. It's a niche OS, suitable for certain applications like set-top boxes but for an every day generic OS for the masses, it fails in virtually every possible way. Good riddance.

Posted by Ian on October 20, 2010 at 03:41 PM PDT #

To tell you the truth, I find ubuntu easier to use than my OS X 10.6.4. Yes Mac may have some wonderful software packaged with it but in all fairness so does linux. I find myself using Ubuntu more and more every day. My newer PC laptop ( it's been years since i bought a PC ) currently has Ubuntu 10.10 on it and works with 0 issues. the 17 inch laptop only cost me 429. Do i need my macs anymore? Maybe a few years ago.. Unless i truly need it.. i think my mac days may be over....

Posted by BJ on October 20, 2010 at 04:58 PM PDT #

ah.. I remember back in the old days, Xandros, Lindows/Linspire and then now Ubuntu, Linux Mint. As much as I love Linux and the spirit of open source, there is no way Desktop Linux is going mainstream. Let's face the fact, lack of games and popular application (photoshop, dreamweaver, etc) combined with the rise of OS X, plus android,chrome OS now lurking in the corner, I don't see the major PC manufacturers pushing Linux into the masses. Goodbye desktop linux! It's only for the geeks who enjoy typing lots of "make" multiple times. :)

Posted by ST on October 20, 2010 at 09:56 PM PDT #

MS creates replacements, others have been able to create only alternatives so far, most of which are inferior (Apple's desktop is not really superior but a niche alternative). Bottom line is, noone can beat MS on desktop. Desktop linux users (gullible enough hoping to replace their Windows) are nothing but lab rats, indirectly testing code for 1. embedded 2. enterprise markets. Embedded market wants Linux because it saves them license fees hence increases profits (not that Windows CE or whatever is inferior). Enterprise market wants Linux not because they really want to avoid license fee but when things go wrong they need fast support and fix, most of which requires looking under the hood and closed software does not provide for that. And that's about it. Mic does not work, sound, 3D, wireless are jokes, suspend/resume is next to nothing. ACPI? fingers crossed... Desktop linux serves noone but a bunch of enthusiasts, academics and unemployed techies begging for money via Paypal.

Posted by ifyes on October 21, 2010 at 01:27 AM PDT #

James Gosling, the Father of Java has spoken. I knew this would be stated. Dell gave up on selling laptops with Linux. That was a sign. "Money isn't evil: it's just a way of keeping score in a barter economy. I'm happy to trade code for food. And it doesn't take much money to make things work: look at the iPhone app store. If the Gimp cost a few dollars, the development team could put a lot more energy into the Gimp and it would be hugely better for it. Now it's just a shadow of Photoshop (sorry), which succeeds despite rapacious pricing."

Posted by thenonhacker on October 21, 2010 at 08:26 AM PDT #

Sorry, but completely disagree and also disagree with desktop becoming more and more irrelevant. Linux on the desktop is growing and growing and growing - every year a little bit more. What some consider as unfocused development in reality is providing a varity so that everybody can choose what he/she likes best. People are different and their way how they want to work is different! As everybody on his notebook already gets dual core at minimum - what enourmous computing power! Most modern web applications make heavy use of javascript running at the client. So the step back to a real desktop application is not unlogical. And guess that we are far from everybody having (fast) internet everywhere!

Posted by Martin Wildam on October 21, 2010 at 08:47 AM PDT #

James, may I suggest that rather than terms like "dead" (even though it is referring to a dream), a better notion is "relevant"? I just came from Andalusia, Spain - where all public and gov't computers are running GNU/Linux (some 500k desktops). Particularly interesting to me was the Guadalinfo project, which has some 756 "telecenters" of public access systems. Guadalinfo wanted to better serve customers/citizens with disabilities, and so is investing in further improvements to GNOME accessibility (paying developers, who are "following the money"). The grand dream of displacing the installed base of Windows & Mac was I think always a pipe dream. And in much of the world (e.g. U.S.), desktop Linux has no market relevance. But desktop Linux has growing relevance in some pockets of the world - e.g. Andalusia Spain (and Extremadura Spain, and Brazil, and...). And we are seeing (at least some) hiring of developers to work explicitly on desktop Linux. Which is a cool thing.

Posted by Peter Korn on October 21, 2010 at 08:47 AM PDT #

i'm working with one of the largest banks here in east coast. all our apps have been migrated from solaris to linux. linux can be dead in advertising and marketing but not in the community.

Posted by Wilfredo Sellado on October 21, 2010 at 11:19 AM PDT #

[Trackback] Desktop Linux: The Dream Is Dead ?????? ???? Back to the Desktop Linux ??? ???

Posted by hyoki's me2DAY on October 21, 2010 at 06:07 PM PDT #

There is tension inherent in any software that is sold directly to users as well, since the model contradicts the three laws of robotics: 1) A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm; 2) A robot must obey any orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law; 3) A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law; Software that is sold invariably incorporates some kind of protection against piracy, which means that it must disobey orders from the user to protect its own existence, i.e. it puts law 3 above law 2. See Asimov's short stories for an idea of the many exciting ways things will go horribly wrong when you do that. :) (Also: This blog disallows HTML syntax but disregards paragraph breaks in the input. Is there some other syntax we are supposed to use, or are we just to accept the unreadable result?)

Posted by Henrik on October 22, 2010 at 10:05 AM PDT #

[Trackback] Services are products too, and they are a big chunk of e- commerce market. When I refer to services, I am talking about everything from the working at home service to the writing of the specialized programs for a company. It is such a wide field of opp...

Posted by life business blog on October 22, 2010 at 06:39 PM PDT #

Ubunutu 10.04 and 10.10 are incredible and I would take them over windows (BSOD) and Mac (proprietary lock in, high price) anyday. It is rock-solid, the UI is clean, smooth and impressive, it does not crash, etc

Posted by Wise Finish on October 22, 2010 at 08:48 PM PDT #

The Linux desktop may lack eye candy and consistency, but at least I can use it as a Java development platform without worrying whether some Big Brother "deprecates" it :-)

Posted by Cay Horstmann on October 23, 2010 at 01:02 AM PDT #

Saying that HP, IBM and Azul supply their own JVMs isn't exactly relevant to the discussion of Apple, because they supply JVMs to run on their servers in support of selling hardware and/or software. Who is the largest supporter of OpenJDK of Linux after Orasuncle? Is it Red Hat? If its true, this makes complete sense, because they make money on Java running on servers in RHEL.

Posted by Bill Robertson on October 23, 2010 at 05:13 AM PDT #

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