Dell Does Linux

  • Thread starter Thread starter Alias
  • Start date Start date
http://www.businessweek.com/technol...ogy_technology+index+page_today's+top+stories

Heh.
Click to expand...
From another article...

"However there was a slight snag in bringing Linux to consumers as
there was no one distribution that any Linux bods could agree on.

The IdeaStorm community suggested more than half a dozen distributions.
But Dell didn't want to pick one distribution and alienate users with a
preference for another"

If they don't settle on one distro, expect the PC with Linux to cost a
lot more than the one with Windows to cover the cost of support.
 
Dale said:
"but complying with the most popular online suggestions could worsen its
woes"
Click to expand...

The fact that they are even considering it writes volumes. The fact that
they can't make up their mind is probably one of the reasons they went
from number one to number two.

Alias
 
Alias said:
http://www.businessweek.com/technol...ogy_technology+index+page_today's+top+stories

Heh.

Alias
Click to expand...

".... When computer maker Dell asked customers how to spice up its products
and improve service, the flood of responses may have provided more feedback
than the company bargained for. ..."

And the best this article could conjure up was that "customers" wanted
Linux?
Hmm, as a long time (now former) Dell customer, I'd have bet it would be
something like "Give us SOME Customer Support - even a SCRAP!"

Can you even IMAGINE trying to troubleshoot a LINUX support ticket with one
of those non-English speaking script readers in India?
 
 
Alias said:
The fact that they are even considering it writes volumes. The fact that
they can't make up their mind is probably one of the reasons they went
from number one to number two.

Alias
Click to expand...

I guess, I actually thought they had already done this before. I know
Wal-Mart tried selling PC's with Linux and that failed. All the PC makers
seem to offer some measure of Linux, though Dell is probably being the most
vocal about it.

http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1930851,00.asp
 
Exactly.. what was your point?

You obviously hadn't read and fully understood the article, and your post
heading was misleading in that Dell had responded to a call for what users
asked ( I suspect that many were just anti-MS activists) and were just
reporting on the results..

The last time that Dell played with Linux on regular boxes was a similar
response to calls at about the time that XP was in the same situation as
Vista is in now.. Dell dropped Linux like a hot potato on anything other
than servers, the part of the computing world for which Linux is ideally
suited, and continued to market Windows as XP driver and software
compatibility problems were fast waning.. Wal-Mart were also caught up in
the Linux storm of the day, but if you look now, I don't think that you will
find a Linux option for sale there..

There is nothing wrong with Linux in its place, and presently that place is
servers.. as a regular service multi-use desktop OS, it still falls way
short of the mark.. if you think for one minute that peddling an OS that is
clearly not yet ready for mass use, especially as you and others here know
so little about it other than what comes packaged in it and what it
basically looks like, will do Linux any good, then you need to seriously
rethink your strategy..

Linux should not be seen as just an alternative for those who dislike MS and
don't like to pay for anything.. it should be used on its own merits..




Alias said:
Yes, your point?

Alias
Click to expand...

--


Mike Hall
MS MVP Windows Shell/User
http://msmvps.com/blogs/mikehall/
 
Mike said:
Exactly.. what was your point?
Click to expand...

Dell's considering Linux, what else?
You obviously hadn't read and fully understood the article, and your
post heading was misleading in that Dell had responded to a call for
what users asked ( I suspect that many were just anti-MS activists) and
were just reporting on the results..

The last time that Dell played with Linux on regular boxes was a similar
response to calls at about the time that XP was in the same situation as
Vista is in now.. Dell dropped Linux like a hot potato on anything other
than servers, the part of the computing world for which Linux is ideally
suited, and continued to market Windows as XP driver and software
compatibility problems were fast waning.. Wal-Mart were also caught up
in the Linux storm of the day, but if you look now, I don't think that
you will find a Linux option for sale there..

There is nothing wrong with Linux in its place, and presently that place
is servers.. as a regular service multi-use desktop OS, it still falls
way short of the mark.. if you think for one minute that peddling an OS
that is clearly not yet ready for mass use, especially as you and others
here know so little about it other than what comes packaged in it and
what it basically looks like, will do Linux any good, then you need to
seriously rethink your strategy..

Linux should not be seen as just an alternative for those who dislike MS
and don't like to pay for anything.. it should be used on its own merits..
Click to expand...

A large computer store chain in Spain has been selling computers with
the Linux of your choice installed for years. In the USA, of course,
this won't happen any more than they will elect a president that isn't a
total idiot.

I installed Ubuntu in two hours. It took five days to properly install
all the drivers for XP on the same machine. It took about an hour to
just prepare for and install IE7!

Alias
 
Mike said:
Exactly.. what was your point?

You obviously hadn't read and fully understood the article, and your
post heading was misleading in that Dell had responded to a call for
what users asked ( I suspect that many were just anti-MS activists) and
were just reporting on the results..

The last time that Dell played with Linux on regular boxes was a similar
response to calls at about the time that XP was in the same situation as
Vista is in now.. Dell dropped Linux like a hot potato on anything other
than servers, the part of the computing world for which Linux is ideally
suited, and continued to market Windows as XP driver and software
compatibility problems were fast waning.. Wal-Mart were also caught up
in the Linux storm of the day, but if you look now, I don't think that
you will find a Linux option for sale there..

There is nothing wrong with Linux in its place, and presently that place
is servers.. as a regular service multi-use desktop OS, it still falls
way short of the mark.. if you think for one minute that peddling an OS
that is clearly not yet ready for mass use, especially as you and others
here know so little about it other than what comes packaged in it and
what it basically looks like, will do Linux any good, then you need to
seriously rethink your strategy..

Linux should not be seen as just an alternative for those who dislike MS
and don't like to pay for anything.. it should be used on its own merits..
Click to expand...

From: http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/9951/53/

"However, Dell intends to go ahead with a range of desktops and
notebooks certified to run Novell's Suse first, possibly followed by
other popular Linux distributions, such as Fedora and Ubuntu."

Alias
 
When I lived in Spain, ALL of the people who contacted me for help or
service were running Windows of one variety or another.. offering Linux as
an option is not the same as selling Linux as an option..

Ubuntu, as Linux distros go, is not bad, but it is no match for XP or Vista,
and it is not intended to be.. it is an alternative, not a point for point
replacement.. Linux is dogged by applications that look like they were
developed for Win 3.1, having the look and feel of that time.. software
availability is not good, and is not freely available in stores.. users
can't just run Combat FS 3 out of the box, nor a great many other popular
software titles out there..

It is not a question of 'I'll wager that I can install my OS quicker than
you can'.. that is just kid's stuff.. what people want is a computer that
will do all that the user wants and with the software of choice.. in that
respect, Windows wins hands down.. they don't want to wait for a package
that enables Ubuntu to run Windows programs, or struggle with a utility than
enables it.. they want to run stuff now, one or two clicks away, not months
in a Linux advocacy group trying to take on the job as a fully fledged
techie.. When Uncle Bob and Aunt Mary buy an educational game for the
grandchild, they would like to think that it would work, and expect it to
work..

Notice that I say nothing of the server community.. that is a completely
different ballpark.. Linux is essentially Unix ported for X86, and nobody in
their right mind would question Unix on a server, or midrange RISC 64bit
workstations and workgroup servers.. this is an area where Microsoft know
that they have a fight on their hands, and they don't ever deny it.. neither
do MVPs..

Nobody here cares whether you run Linux or whatever.. you do what fits your
circumstances best, and leave others to do the same.. if Ubuntu works for
you, way to go, we are pleased for you.. if you feel the need to run XP for
games compatibility, again way to go.. but please don't come in here like
some fanatical religious zealot telling us that we are all wrong and that
you are all right..

Linux and Windows both have issues for a variety of reasons.. IE and Firefox
both have issues (read the latest on Firefox vulnerabilities that are being
found daily because more are switching to it).. let us, as a computing
community, get along instead of starting this 'my stuff is better than your
stuff' crap.. we will all use what we feel will serve us best for whatever
reasons, and that is the way it should be..
 
Hmm, as a long time (now former) Dell customer, I'd have bet it would be
something like "Give us SOME Customer Support - even a SCRAP!"

Can you even IMAGINE trying to troubleshoot a LINUX support ticket with one
of those non-English speaking script readers in India?
Click to expand...

The non English speaking, heavily accented support people reading from
scripted troubleshooting procedures are the reasons I'm done with
Dell. I used Dells for the last 10 years, but next computer will
probably be built by a local company. Even if the local company goes
out of business, it can't be any worse than trying to get support from
India.
 
Why doesn't Dell make their own distribution instead of having to make do
with some other company like RedHat?
This way, they can control everything that goes onto their computers and not
have to worry about what anyone else (distributors) says, and even customize
their installations for the customers' needs.

They should probably make me their CEO. :-)
I'd have their systems dual boot for Linux and Vista!

-- Andy
 
Why doesn't Dell make their own distribution instead of having to make do
with some other company like RedHat?
This way, they can control everything that goes onto their computers and not
have to worry about what anyone else (distributors) says, and even customize
their installations for the customers' needs.
Click to expand...
Because then the Loonix Loonies will complain about that.
 
That was just a poll. Dell doesn't do Linux (yet). Whether
they ever will remains to be seen. As the article pointed out,
the respondents represent the savviest (most technical) edge
of the PC market, and can hardly be considered to reflect
the average computer user.

Gary VanderMolen
 
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