For some people, the sky is always falling.
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| cubrewer May 22, 2007 3:43 PM EDT |
Linux from Dell may suck but this blog by AKH is pure speculative pessimism. Let's see what Dell does before we start trashing them. I'm pretty encouraged by this line from Dell: "For hardware [not supported to our satisfaction], we are working with the vendors of those devices to improve the maturity and stability of their associated Linux drivers." (we'll see what mileage we eventually get) |
| rijelkentaurus May 22, 2007 3:51 PM EDT |
Agreed. |
| cammoblammo May 22, 2007 3:59 PM EDT |
I agree. What this boils down to is that Dell will have exactly the same problems with licensing that anyone else would have if they were to install Ubuntu. The fact that they're a huge computer company makes no difference. If they were to start doing deals with codec licensors, etc, they'd probably alienate the ones who asked for this in the first place a la the Novell/MS sweetheart deal. Being a big company does mean they have a bit of clout with hardware manufacturers. Manufacturers now have an incentive to fix up their drivers. And if Dell is preferring those drivers to be unrestricted, we might see some better licensing too. |
| Aladdin_Sane May 22, 2007 4:52 PM EDT |
cubrewer: While off-topic, your thread title reminded me of this: A favorite adaptation of "The Sky Is Falling" http://www.rickwalton.com/funstuff/skyfall.htm |
| bigg May 22, 2007 6:17 PM EDT |
I think he is a bit confused about Dell's objective. The market they are going after is selling hardware to Linux users. They are not trying to recruit Windows users to Linux. Everything I have seen indicates that they want to sell a machine that a Linux user can take out of the box, install his/her favorite distribution, and expect hardware compatibility. They're not into Linux evangelism. They're not into Linux marketing. Codecs and the like are not a hardware issue, hence they are not Dell's problem. They're a problem that exists whether or not Dell sells only Windows machines. As for offering only a subset of available hardware, that's the point. I can already buy any hardware I want but it doesn't do me any good to buy unsupported/poorly supported hardware. If I'm allergic to dairy products, I'd rather shop in a grocery store that doesn't sell dairy. Similarly, why would it be a problem if I'm unable to purchase an ATI video card that doesn't work with Debian. |
| Libervis May 22, 2007 9:02 PM EDT |
I also agree. I would say that the author of that article probably dislikes the very idea of Dell selling GNU/Linux in the first place. It might not be true, but his article makes it impossible for Dell to please. Btw, while it may be that these Dell's GNU/Linux machines wont be sold with a goal to recruit Windows users I am hoping for that as at least a part time side effect. It should make it so much easier for an ordinary user to buy a GNU/Linux PC and a bit harder to avoid. Although, to what extent depends a lot on how much will Dell actually push GNU/Linux sales, that is, how much will they advertise it and how accessible will they make it. |
| rijelkentaurus May 22, 2007 9:14 PM EDT |
Quoting: Although, to what extent depends a lot on how much will Dell actually push GNU/Linux sales, that is, how much will they advertise it and how accessible will they make it. That is true. I also think a lot depends on how hard the GNU/Linux community pushes these PCs. Now we can recommend Linux and a Dell...and not have to do anything to get it installed and running. It's gotta be easier to support something that's already working than to have to take the time to pick a distro for someone, install it and configure it to their liking. I, for one, like Dell's quality on their PCs and workstations. My company sells them and overall they've been good. I see more problems out of HPs and Gateways than anything else. I see less problems (almost none, except for the occasional dead hard drive) out of IBMs and Lenovos. As for Dell laptops, however, I think they are more or less crap. Even the business lines just have a very lightweight, pansy feel to them, as if they're going to fall apart in your hands merely from handling. I don't see a lot of problems out of HP laptops, and IBMs and Lenovos are so rock solid it's not even funny. One of our other engineers inherited a newer T60 (I think) that is rather thin with a 14" screen, and it still weighs in at about 8 pounds or so...feels like iron. I like that, it actually feels like a good piece of equipment. I still recommend to people that they buy IBM laptops even though my company sells Dells. |
| cubrewer May 22, 2007 10:55 PM EDT |
>depends a lot on how much will Dell actually push GNU/Linux sales AKH's blog post contains a quote from a Dell insider which seems to indicate that they only expect to sell about 200 Linux Dell machines annually. If that's the correct interpretation of the quote and the quote is accurate then surely Dell is not intending to "push" Linux. (i.e., I cannot imagine Dell spending much advertising money if they only expect to sell 200 machines). And then there's Dell's relationship with Microsoft... But who knows... Dell still has to advertise like crazy and what would it cost to toss a few Linux tag lines onto their existing ads... "Now with Linux" ... "Do you Ubuntu? We do..." |
| Sander_Marechal May 23, 2007 6:03 AM EDT |
cubrewer: They aim at 20000, not 200 machines. And I predict they'll sell many more (http://lxer.com/module/forums/t/25309/). |
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