I read this article and smiled. Here is the email that I sent the columnist:
You do realize that Red Hat uses GNOME as it's main desktop, right?
Novell, is doing good and it will do even better. I will only say, buy yourself a copy of SUSE 10.0 install all of GNOME and then insert a music CD or a memory card like and SD or Compact Flash and watch Banshee for the music and f-spot for the photos kick in automatically. These applications were written using mono and they take full advantage of GNOME and GTK.
Perhaps it would be best to compare what Microsoft does with its consumer OS (Windows 9.x, Windows XP) and later its server class OS (Windows NT, 2000, 2003). A lot of the desktop innovation is pioneered in those consumer operating systems and later is integrated into the next release of the server operating systems after a large user base has tested and reported back bugs. Watch Novell do the same with SUSE and Novell Linux Desktop to later better SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, OES and my personal favorite for 2006, Novell Linux Small Business Suite.
I think Novell is doing real good. They just need to remain true to their vision and not falter due to ill conceived conclusions from market analyst and press members that are not willing to read deep enough into a product and its strategy before creating a distorted view that is later published in the shape of news piece.
Best regards,
Paco
Did any of you see how the market closed this week for these three stocks (MSFT 26.64, RHAT 27.98, NOVL 9.10)? Microsoft has been hovering around the 25-30 mark for the past 2 years while Red Hat has exploded in the past 6 or 7 months. Of course, I personally think that the big story is Novell, who in the past month has made some nice gains.
I said it before and I will say it again, there is no reason why Novell and their product offering could not top those of Red Hat. I believe that 2006 will be the year were individuals as well as corporations will grant Novell an invitation into their computer systems.
Paquito had a great friend in high school that eventually got married and now has a baby girl. He works the night shift at a cardboard container factory and has never had a computer. Maria and I had decided to give them a computer as a Christmas gift and I was now getting ready to load the operating system in it. I still have a copy of Windows XP OEM that came back shrink wrap form Iraq that Paquito never ended up installing. I was going to put that in the machine, but then I remember stories of friends in the mono community that had never really had a Windows machine or experience with that OS! Maria my wife and business manager said:
"You installed SUSE for me, and I have been using it for the past year without any problems. Don't install Windows, let them use Linux."
Yesterday, I invited them over to hand off the mid tower case with a 17 inch CTX monitor and an old HP LaserJet 4MP. The system was loaded with SUSE 10 and just before they left I showed them how to use Kino to load and edit video through a firewire connection (and a DV camera). How to listen and catalog music CDs with Banshee and how to import pictures with f-spot.
Paquito's friend and his wife were very happy. I will report back in a few months to see if they can remain true to Linux in a Microsoft Windows centric world.
Posted by martinf at December 24, 2005 09:52 AM