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Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com)
Linux.com reports
that Dell has teamed up with Canonical to sell Dell desktops and laptops
with Ubuntu preinstalled. "Jane Silber, director of operations for
Canonical, says Canonical will be working to certify certain models of Dell
computers to ensure that they work with Ubuntu. The two companies are not
announcing what models will ship with Ubuntu at this time, but Nick Selby,
senior analyst with The 451 Group, says that there will be one notebook and
three desktop systems."
(Log in to post comments)
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 19:49 UTC (Tue) by sjj (guest, #2020) [Link] I wonder if they'll stuff Ubuntu as full of their own crappy ads^H^H^H utility programs as they do with their Windows installs.
Of course, with Ubuntu, it'll be really easy to clean up.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 22:06 UTC (Tue) by beoba (guest, #16942) [Link] Since they're likely going to be marketing towards more technically-oriented users with this lineup, I doubt they'll have much for ads.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 22:20 UTC (Tue) by allesfresser (subscriber, #216) [Link] I just idly wonder how long it will be before people stop assuming that only geeks will want to run free software... years? months?
Of course, Microsoft would like to FUD all the technophobes out there and reassure them that they're not smart enough to understand technology, so they should let brilliant Uncle Bill & Co. tell them how to live their lives...
But hopefully some people will start to see the light and realize they're not as stupid as Microsoft wants them to think they are.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 22:42 UTC (Tue) by emkey (guest, #144) [Link] As much as I'd like to believe you are right experience tells me otherwise. The thought of my 70+ year old Mother trying to work with a Linux system is scary to say the least. She gets into enough trouble with Windows.
Then again in terms of complexity the differences between Windows and Linux aren't all that great when you scratch just beneath the surface. I'm a fairly technical guy with a lot of background in Unix/Linux and a modicum of Windows related experience. I have far more trouble diagnosing and fixing problems on Windows than I do on Linux.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 23:46 UTC (Tue) by frlinux (subscriber, #27370) [Link] Allow me to disagree, my mother started with computers back 6 years ago, she was 60 at the time, she stated on windows, then i moved her (with a dual boot at the time) to Linux back 3 years ago. She is now exclusively using Linux.
Everything is possible (and no, i didn't have to give extensive training, i don't even live in the same country).
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 0:16 UTC (Wed) by frazier (subscriber, #3060) [Link] Ubuntu is a great choice for many 70+ year old mothers out there (if they're wanting a computer). There's a lot less evil things targeting the system, and so long as they're web browsing and checking web mail, it works well for that.
-Brock
Dude, your mother is getting Ubuntu Posted May 2, 2007 0:55 UTC (Wed) by man_ls (subscriber, #15091) [Link] Ditto. My young mother (she would kill me if I told you her age) is pretty happy with her brand new Ubuntu-upon-Toshiba laptop, and she comes from Mac OS 9 which is supposed to be much friendlier. True, I configured DVDs and MP3 playback for her, but I have not had to open a support ticket so far. At least I know that I will help her gladly, unlike with the default Vista install.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 3, 2007 8:09 UTC (Thu) by bkoz (subscriber, #4027) [Link]
Ditto.
I did this for my dad and one friend, just because of the malware/email attachment issues. Safe browsing is a powerful argument in favor of linux and one that has gotten surprisingly little press.
(My mom uses a mac. One of these days...)
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 1:55 UTC (Wed) by dskoll (subscriber, #1630) [Link] The thought of my 70+ year old Mother trying to work with a Linux system is scary to say the least. Why is that? My 75+ year old mother and 80+ year old father have no problem with their Linux system. Neither, for that matter, do my daughters (aged 5, 9 and 13). Naturally, I set everything up for them, and I (very) occasionally tweak and maintain the systems. But I guarantee that they'd find Windows no easier than Linux, and I'd end up doing a lot more tweaking and maintenance.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 16:42 UTC (Wed) by emkey (guest, #144) [Link] My mother likes to play Nancy Drew and other windows games. I've messed with various WINE solutions and while they are fine for me I didn't find them to be very compelling for her use.
And I don't want to provide her any support if I can avoid it. I'm 600+ miles away and her ability to mess things up in subtle and difficult to understand ways is nearly legendary. Wait, maybe I'm talking about myself in that last sentence. If I am then I got it from her, no doubt. :)
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 3:18 UTC (Wed) by leoc (subscriber, #39773) [Link] I switched my 65+ year old computer-phobe in-laws from XP to Ubuntu last year and they are much happier. Things "just work" and I have to spend a LOT less time at their place cleaning up viruses and junk software that they naively install. With Ubuntu, they can do their word processing, email, and photo downloading without any problems.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 16:44 UTC (Wed) by emkey (guest, #144) [Link] Linux is only marginally less prone to viruses and such than Windows. As Linux gains popularity on the desktop we're going to start seeing more and more virus, etc.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 19:07 UTC (Wed) by bronson (subscriber, #4806) [Link] This is absolutely true. People will *always* want to download whizzy customizations straight from the internet. Weatherbug, comet cursor, etc. It's just human nature. If Linux ran downloads from jails by default then I would agree that it was safer by default. As it is today, for the common user, Linux and Windows appear to be more or less equally vulnerable.
"You can delete all the files in my home directory but for pity's sake don't set my laptop's clock!!"
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 3, 2007 14:08 UTC (Thu) by peace (guest, #10016) [Link] Of course with Windows, you can delete all the victims files *and then* set their clock.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 3, 2007 14:18 UTC (Thu) by peace (guest, #10016) [Link] Please define "marginally". I don't think that word means what you think it means. The numbers simply do not support your assertion.
Also, please note, that just because Windows is popular *and* insecure does not mean that Linux will be insecure at any popularity level. I'm not sure exactly what brand of false reasoning your exhibiting, but it does not compute.
Windows made it's bed in the mid nineties and now it has to sleep in it. Not every OS made such horrible decisions around security.
-peace
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 29, 2007 22:03 UTC (Tue) by emkey (guest, #144) [Link] I've been working with Windows and Unix/Linux like operating systems for twenty plus years now. I have a very good understanding of each and I'm here to tell you that while the Unix/Linux security model is generally superior it is only marginally less vulnerable to the sorts of problems that plague the windows world. viruses? Totally doable. Mallware? Totally doable. Trojans? Totally doable. You don't need escalated privileges for any of these. Throw in the fact that Windows has increasingly sophisticated firewall software that is enabled by default while most Linux systems don't and the overall picture starts to tilt in Windows favor.
I know exactly what marginally means BTW. Which is why I didn't hesitate to use it again in my response. ;)
And yes, I'm aware of iptables. I manually configure it on my home and work systems because I have to.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 7:43 UTC (Wed) by nhippi (guest, #34640) [Link] I think you are making the common fallacy of mixing System administration with System usage. Your 70+ mother would be fine using ubuntu for most common enduser tasks (web, mail, openoffice). But she will fail attempting to administer it. Then again, most people fail to maintain their windows systems properly...
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 8:48 UTC (Wed) by job (subscriber, #670) [Link] My experience is that for non-technical users who doesn't install their own hardware or software, Ubuntu "just works" on a much larger degree than Windows does.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 13:43 UTC (Wed) by copsewood (subscriber, #199) [Link] My 87 year old father's new Dell computer with Vista on it just basically didn't work, despite his efforts to get Dell to fix it (he had some problems understanding help desk staff for whom English is a second language). He is very happy with Ubuntu which I put on it for him, he does everything he used to on Windows 98, wordprocessing, web browsing and email. He manages to have figured out for himself how to keep it updated and he even dist-upgraded it himself from Edgy to Feisty without any problems.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 3, 2007 11:42 UTC (Thu) by ekj (subscriber, #1524) [Link] This actually fails to be the case.Not only does my father (~60, nontechnical) use Linux, but so does my grandmother (~85), infact for both of them its much better than any of the alternatives. Notice I said *USE*. Not install, or configure, or maintain. But they'd both be unable to perform these tasks with *any* OS. Using Linux means they are, in practice, very unlikely to get viruses. It means they are quite unlikely to manage to mess up the entire machine. It means it can trivially be administered from afar. It also means the UI can easily be configured to only have what is relevant for her. If all she needs is 5 programs, then 5 app-launchers is all she needs. Additionally, we've got some very very userfriendly programs. My grandmother finds it trivial to find the favourite photo of the grand-grandchildren using Kphotoalbum. Finding all pictures of Wenche in Paris (for example) is literally 4 mouseclicks:
She doesn't do anything fancy. Firefox, Kphotoalbum, Kmail, that's pretty much it. Oh yeah, and Solitaire offcourse. Honestly, I don't see a single advantage Windows would have for such a user.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 3:49 UTC (Wed) by proski (subscriber, #104) [Link] I just idly wonder how long it will be before people stop assuming that only geeks will want to run free software... years? months?And then we'll be able to buy Dell with Ubuntu and AOL preinstalled!
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 2, 2007 9:41 UTC (Wed) by NAR (subscriber, #1313) [Link] how long it will be before people stop assuming that only geeks will want to run free software... years? months?Decades? I tried to switch my uncle's PC to Linux, but failed miserably. The main problem was that none of the help files were useful: they were all in English, but he doesn't speak English. Some of the applications were also not localized. Also I wouldn't dare to try to install and configure the software required to syncronize with his mobile phone. It didn't worked on XP at first, but there at least he gets support from the operator. And there's the problem that one can't play DRM-ed porn on Linux.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 19:59 UTC (Tue) by frazier (subscriber, #3060) [Link] from the article:Dell spokesman Jeremy Bolen says that it's too early to talk about price points and which models will carry Ubuntu, but that it will be "the kind of offerings that address a cross-section of users." Provided things work out this way, both varying price points and less expensive than Windows, Dell will be giving this a much better shot than Red Hat got some years back. It's a shame the timing isn't corresponding with a recent Ubuntu LTS release. -Brock
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 20:10 UTC (Tue) by donbarry (guest, #10485) [Link] It remains to be seen also whether they will carry through on their "lower price point", in particular, whether they are still paying a Microsoft tax per their contractual obligations to Microsoft even on machines that don't ship with Windows. In the past with their server boxes running GNU/Linux distros one didn't get a price break. I asked my Dell representative specifically whether there would still be a Microsoft tax (hidden or not) (on an existing if unpublicized campus deal for getting Dells without OS) and got two different non-responsive answers in two different emails:
email 1: "The units are priced the same with or without the OS(based on XP Home pricing)"
email 2: "it'll only be a few $ lower w/ no OS installed"
The closest that he came to answering the question about Microsoft payments was: "technically no since there no OS to register" which sounds weasel-wording to me, though he probably simply doesn't know.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 20:20 UTC (Tue) by JoeBuck (subscriber, #2330) [Link] I wouldn't expect a cheaper price point. Dell doesn't have to pay Microsoft for the license, but it appears that they are going to give Canonical some money to help them support Ubuntu on their machines, and there will be some additional cost for their support engineers to deal with two OSes rather than one. As long as only a few users ask for Ubuntu, this extra work for a relatively small number of customers will swamp the financial savings on licenses. Also, Dell would give up the payments from other companies for all the crapware they typically install (30-day trial of AOL, that kind of thing).So at least initially, I think it would be fair for them to charge the same for either option (Windows or Ubuntu), at least if they really plan to support Ubuntu users (or have Canonical do it).
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 20:47 UTC (Tue) by drag (subscriber, #31333) [Link] I would hope that Dell would work out a deal with Canonical were they advertise Canonical's support services as a option for people to select in their hardware purchase.
That way they can get kick-backs for that, just like they do for Window's crapware that they bundle.
What other services do Linux software companies provide that may be interesting? Optional Redhat support? MySQL support? Linspire's Click'n'Run?
I would hope that some enterprising Linux folk would be thinking about ways make some money off of this sort of stuff.
Like I've seeen the 'video professor' advertising computer training cdroms on late-night television.
Maybe somebody would do a 'Getting Started With Ubuntu' series with pay-for service for more cdroms or videos or https web access to their media server. Something like that.
I could imagine a whole series of stuff like that. 'Getting Started with OpenOffice.org', or 'Getting Started with PHP'. 'Ubuntu Feisty Troubleshooting'.
Then they'd use the subscriptions to provide kick-backs to Dell and other OEMs as well as use the funds to provide professional-class instructional videos that get updated to keep up with the rapid changes in Linux distributions.
Something like that.
It's a net win for everybody. People get the documentation that is sorely lacking, they get familar with the OS. They have some place to turn to if they need help. People get to make a profit helping new Linux users out and OEMs like Dell get larger insentives for bundling Linux as well as lower overall support costs.
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 22:09 UTC (Tue) by beoba (guest, #16942) [Link] Perhaps VMware, Crossover, and that sort of thing.
suspend/resume wish Posted May 1, 2007 20:53 UTC (Tue) by plink (subscriber, #401) [Link] This is great news. What would make it even sweeter is if Dell and Canonical get suspend/resume to work well on all the Dell models being loaded with Ubuntu. That's been hit-and-miss up to now, even for Ubuntu.
suspend/resume wish Posted May 1, 2007 22:16 UTC (Tue) by Viddy (subscriber, #33288) [Link] I had a work laptop that was a Dell 620 (i think), and swapped out the hard drive with one of my own, and installed edgy on it.
What was very impressive was that everything except the modem worked straight out of the install (no festering):
I think cpu frequency scaling worked as well, but I can't remember if I needed to mess with it to get it to work.
What I remember being particularly impressed with was that the wireless chipset worked without needing drivers to be found/made/installed/blessed/festered with.
A guy who I worked with had the same laptop as me, and he showed me beryl working on it. That was impressive.
I remember pushing the suspend to ram button by accident, and getting that sinking feeling I do when I do it by accident on my personal Compaq laptop. Everything shut down as it does, and I mashed either the power or mouse buttons, and it came out of suspend, quickly, and started playing music. I blinked, unlocked it, saved everything that I was working on, and put it into suspend again, to see that it wasn't a fluke :) It wasn't. It just didn't seem to care.
"fester" Posted May 1, 2007 23:29 UTC (Tue) by jabby (guest, #2648) [Link] "I do not think this word means what you think it means." --Inigo Mantoya
:o)
Sorry to be pedantic, but "fester" has a pretty vivid mental picture associated with it, at least for me. Normally I wouldn't say anything, but you used it twice and it was a little distracting. It was clear from the context what you meant, though... Perhaps something like "fuss" or "futz" with a little "pester" thrown in? :o)
http://dictionary.reference.com/
suspend/resume wish Posted May 1, 2007 23:55 UTC (Tue) by tialaramex (subscriber, #21167) [Link] As another reply illustrates, it's already getting a lot better. My Z60m suspends and hibernates correctly and reliably, although there was a Fedora kernel update which didn't work with suspend-to-RAM and I had to hibernate instead for a week or two until they fixed it.
My home desktop (an ex-work P4 machine) also suspends either way, which makes up for the fact that it doesn't have much power saving technology (idles at 60W or so, suspend to RAM reduces that by 90%)
I think we're seeing the same effect as with SMP, there's more hardware out there which can support this kernel feature, users start to get used to having it, which means they file bugs when it doesn't work, which in turn helps to improve the quality of the drivers and so on.
What I'd like to see coming through is better application support. Unlike Windows, we're not in the position of having application vendors blocking suspend (Vista at last bans this practice) but we do have applications that could benefit from noticing that they've just been thawed out.
suspend/resume wish Posted May 2, 2007 0:54 UTC (Wed) by JoeBuck (subscriber, #2330) [Link] Suspend-to-RAM and suspend-to-disk (hibernate) work fine for me on a Dell Inspiron 5100 running Fedora Core 6, without any tweaking by me. I use the free radeon driver, and compiz works with it.The only glitch is that when I run compiz, after a resume there's some crud on the screen; switching to another side of the cube and switching back cleans it up. For some reason there's no screen crud with metacity.
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 1, 2007 22:03 UTC (Tue) by dwheeler (subscriber, #1216) [Link] This is no doubt controversial, but I'd like to see dual-boot (Windows/Linux) as an option, as well as ensuring that the components have all FLOSS drivers under Linux. For many people using Linux is a transition, and they may have a few programs that still run under Windows only or be afraid of the transition. The ability to buy a dual-boot system from Dell means that they can _gradually_ transition to Linux, instead of an all-or-nothing high-risk transition. I think the ability to get dual-boot systems, if Dell will offer it, will encourage more people to take the plunge.... because they know that they have an alternative if it "doesn't work out".
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 1, 2007 22:10 UTC (Tue) by allesfresser (subscriber, #216) [Link] Maybe they could offer a coupon for a Windows CD as a "break glass in case of emergency" kind of deal... so people don't waste disk space on an OS they won't use, but still have the option to ease their minds until they get used to using Ubuntu.
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 1, 2007 22:11 UTC (Tue) by beoba (guest, #16942) [Link] How will Dell know your preferred partitioning scheme? If you plan on using Ubuntu 80% of the time, does it make sense for Dell to assume you want things split 50/50?
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 2, 2007 2:31 UTC (Wed) by njs (subscriber, #40338) [Link] They could even ship with KVM (or whatever) preinstalled on the Linux side, so you can get to your weird windows apps with a click on the desktop, no need to leave Linux at all. (Obviously there are many variants on this general smooth transition idea, including stuff involving Wine, fancy rdesktop setups, user data that lives on a partition equally accessible from both Linux and Windows, whatever works.)
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 2, 2007 3:27 UTC (Wed) by drag (subscriber, #31333) [Link] That would only work for a short time, unfortunately.
You could do it with XP, but with Vista EULA agreements forbid using their software in a VM unless you purchase the business or ultimate edition.
So it may work out for professionals, but even for people who would be interested in this functionality they probably won't if they have to pay a 200-300 dollar premium for it.
It would take work for Dell to get Windows hosted in a VM in a slick enough package for OEM stuff. I don't know if it would be worth the extra support costs and such for Dell to do that.
Beleive you-me Microsoft saw this angle coming and took steps to prevent it from working well.
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 2, 2007 17:14 UTC (Wed) by beoba (guest, #16942) [Link] Arguably, if you're in the process of transitioning to Linux, you probably aren't worried about Vista-only functionality, just in getting your old legacy apps working until a replacement is available.
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 3, 2007 2:05 UTC (Thu) by njs (subscriber, #40338) [Link] >You could do it with XP, but with Vista EULA agreements forbid using their software in a VM unless you purchase the business or ultimate edition.
...Well, I guess no-one has ever accused MS of not being clever. Is this a technical or merely legal requirement? (I.e., can an operating system running inside a hardware-virtualized environment tell that it is running inside such an environment?)
If it's a legal requirement, it's only binding (assuming EULAs are binding at all) on the end-user. So there's nothing stopping we, who are not parties to that contract, providing nice packages that install kvm (or whatever), auto-detect other installed operating systems, and insert menu items in appropriate places. (Obviously people who actually click on these menu items would be violating their contract, but that's their own decision.)
Discussion question: Will Canonical's entering a contractual agreement with Dell end up forcing Canonical not to provide such packages? I can easily imagine that kind of user-friendly VM support becoming a feature of default distro installs, and the press release says that Dell will be installing pure default Ubuntu...
I'd like to see dual-boot as an option Posted May 3, 2007 2:15 UTC (Thu) by njs (subscriber, #40338) [Link] On further thought, I think there's an even more compelling reason why we win if Dell offers a dual-boot option: there will be some people transitioning to Linux who want a fallback, like you mention; I think there will be many more people who are not planning to transition at all, *but* have heard of this "Linux" thing and are curious. If when ordering a new computer they get a checkbox that says "throw Linux on too", they might well click it just to satisfy their curiosity. (Linux makes a very cheap impulse buy.) Then some percentage will get hooked...
Dude, you're getting Ubuntu (Linux.com) Posted May 1, 2007 22:27 UTC (Tue) by smitty_one_each (subscriber, #28989) [Link] Got my Dell with Ubuntu from http://www.emperorlinux.comRegrettably, the Gentoo addiction proved incurable.
Dell, you can go to Posted May 2, 2007 0:00 UTC (Wed) by grouch (subscriber, #27289) [Link] Most likely, Dell will do what they've done in the past -- hide the computers on their website, advertise nothing but MS, have those despiccable little "Dell recommends Microsoft Windows" icons all over the place, force you to remove MS Windows from a checkbox at least half a dozen times on the way to 'check-out', and still insist on putting it in there one more time on the final form before executing the order.I wouldn't trust Dell to tell the truth about the sun rising. Give 'em six months of playing hide the non-MS computer and then they will make a public announcement, complete with Ballmer and MS logo for a backdrop, that they tried but couldn't sell any computers with "alternative" operating systems.
Dell are serious, they have to make this work or find another way to stay in business Posted May 2, 2007 0:48 UTC (Wed) by gdt (subscriber, #6284) [Link] All of the major vendors offering Linux on desktops and laptops is inevitable. Margins are so narrow that once desktop Linux is 10% of sales, no company will want to forgo that 10%. This is what we saw with servers. So if you are a major vendor the question is when to jump. Do you go first and risk retaliation from that Major Software Vendor, or do you go last and risk having no brand recognition with desktop Linux purchasers? Dell are in strife. They want to get back to the basic idea that made their company great -- sell the customer exactly what they want, with huge amounts of customisation, but we do this in such a way that makes their assembly line efficient. If they can't do that then Dell will be competing against the whitebox manufacturers and, as we've seen, Dell loses that competition. So here is a group of customers wanting a customisation -- desktop Linux. So if Dell's sale model is going to succeed, it has to take on and serve that demand in an efficient way. We're seeing that with other customer-driven customisation demands as well, such as Dell continuing to offer Windows Xp. All of this leads to Dell being the first major manufacturer to make the jump. I wish them the best.
Dell are serious, they have to make this work or find another way to stay in business Posted May 2, 2007 5:48 UTC (Wed) by Cato (subscriber, #7643) [Link] Very good points. There's also an interesting transition from desktops to notebooks going on for the PC industry and Dell:
* The share of notebooks sold increases every year
* Notebooks are less suitable for Dell's build-to-order model in which the customer selects exactly which components should be included
* Build-to-order is essential to the way Dell has always sold direct - without that, you need to build based on market predictions and ship these to the channel (retail shops)
* Having more software-based options for notebook customisation helps Dell provide "software build-to-order" for and still sell direct, as you mentioned
* Pre-installed Linux, if it's done right and it sells reasonably well, gives Dell a differentiator, at least until others start selling this - and it might reduce its overall support costs due to the lower prevalence of malware on Linux.
Dell, you can go to Posted May 2, 2007 1:00 UTC (Wed) by JoeBuck (subscriber, #2330) [Link] Dell's in business to make money. If a lot of people buy the Ubuntu machines, and they don't have support issues, they'll expand it. If only a few people buy the Ubuntu machines, and they are expensive to support, Dell will drop it.And Ubuntu/Canonical is free to send deep links into Dell's site, if Dell doesn't make it easy to find.
Dell, you can go to Posted May 2, 2007 12:37 UTC (Wed) by grouch (subscriber, #27289) [Link]
When Dell previously made public noises about "offering Linux", they followed that by making it so that a person had to know about the existence of such machines, be willing to search the Dell website for those machines, and be willing to repeatedly over-ride the default choice of MS Windows on the Dell website forms to be able to actually order such a machine. Dell effectively hid "Linux" from propective buyers and discouraged purchasing any computer without MS Windows. The use of "deep links" from outside Dell's site are only effective if the potential customer is already aware of the outside site and already interested in purchasing. Those links will not engage potential customers who simply know that Dell is a place from which to buy a computer. Those links will not take advantage of Dell's name recognition, only the outside site's name recognition. In the specific case you mention, Ubuntu's name recognition will be leveraged. The name Ubuntu is not generally associated with PC sales. I would like to be forced to 'eat crow' regarding my criticisms of Dell. However, my disdain and distrust will remain until I see Ubuntu, GNU/Linux or Linux as prominently displayed and as easily obtained from Dell as MS Windows (any version). Until then, there are other places to buy computers with pre-installed GNU/Linux.
Dell and Linux Posted May 2, 2007 15:24 UTC (Wed) by gdt (subscriber, #6284) [Link] It would be useful to be more specific. Dell currently sells a lot of Linux computers, as you would expect since Linux servers are 12% of the entire server/mini/mainframe market by revenue. Also, Dell have for years tested their OptiPlex range against Linux and supported corporate customers putting RHEL on the factory installed disk image for those computers. That is, supported the use of Linux as a "terminal replacement" by banks and for other customer service points. It sounds like you are talking about the Dell "N series" desktops. They were released accompanied by a FreeDOS disk with the expectation that enthusiasts would purchase the machines and install Linux themselves. This failed. Dell's brand had become mud with enthusiasts. Sales for non-enthusiasts were killed by the need to install the operating system and Microsoft's FUD campaign against "Naked PCs". The marketing was poor because Dell were still in a position to be heavied by Microsoft. There were never sales generated by the launch publicity to justify more marketing -- if you have a look on the website today you can see that Dell are still trying to run out the initial N series inventory. Despite the risk and disappointment with the N series, Dell are trying desktop/laptop Linux again. I think that shows a commitment by Dell towards desktop Linux. Although I regret their failure with the "N series", unlike you I don't distain them for it. Rather I hope they've found the right approach and have better timing with this attempt. Using Ubuntu was a good idea, since it counteracts the deadweight of the Dell brand amoung enthusiasts. Much better than offering Centos or Fedora in some attempt to leverage Dell's experience with supporting RHEL on servers.
Dell can go to hell Posted May 2, 2007 23:43 UTC (Wed) by grouch (subscriber, #27289) [Link]
Who said anything about "servers"? Dell was not a passive victim of the monopoly; they actively participated in both building the power of that monopoly and in making themselves dependent upon it. No doubt they were drooling over all that hardware that would need to be upgraded for MS Vista. Too bad that customers figured out MS Vista is poison. Too bad Dell is still parasitically dependent upon renting the monopoly's wares.
Dell, you can go to Posted May 2, 2007 13:57 UTC (Wed) by cjl7 (guest, #26116) [Link] I'd say Canonical is about making money as well... (ubuntu support cost's more then Red Hat / Novell...)
The real question is when Ubuntu will be taken over by the suits and economics will be more important then quality software...
Lets hope I'm just cynical...
Anyhow, all effort to further distribute Gnu/Linux (and OpenSource) should be supported, it will make our sphere bigger... (and better?)
//jonas larson
Dell, you can go to Posted May 2, 2007 19:25 UTC (Wed) by t5.4 (guest, #42424) [Link] I'm more interested is how Canonical will be able to support the potential addition of many new users. Do they have enough human capital to handle this surge is my question.
Dell, you can go to Posted May 2, 2007 22:30 UTC (Wed) by drag (subscriber, #31333) [Link] Ditto for me.
Canonical has something like 78 employees?
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