[olug] Linux on the Desktop (BCC'd to others)

[Eric Penne]

Random Thoughts

I'm now using Linux on my home and work computer as my main OS. 
Windows is loaded on it also but I only use the Windows side at home
for printing.  I haven't taken the time to work with it in Linux. 
There are drivers for it but I'm lazy.  I also just recently found a
program that will play all media formats including the proprietary
Quicktime 6 and windows Media 9 and Real Player.  All they need to do
now is get a suitable installer for this and make it easy to embed the
player in a web browser.  BTW Debian Rocks!

For most businesses Linux on the Desktop makes sense.  Engineering may
still have problems, since some of that software is very specialized. 
Secretaries and general office support though only need OpenOffice.org
and Mozilla.org for their everyday needs.  Linux has a very good Java
implementation so your inventory programs should run on it.  I'm pretty
sure Lotus Notes has a client for Linux.  The only thing missing is a
free open source groupware suite like Lotus Notes.

One thing that puzzles me is that Lotus Notes and other groupware apps
like MSExchange with Outlook haven't been replaced with web browser
based solutions.  Groupware is email, shared/private addresses,
shared/private calendaring, and shared/private online storage.  There
is a free open source web based groupware suite that is beta (0.9) but
very stable.  That just seems to make sense to me since all the data is
stored on a server (just like LotusNotes and MSExchange).  The
difference is that you only have to load 1 program on the PC for web
and groupware (Mozilla/IE) instead of 2 (Mozilla/IE and Lotus
Notes/Outlook)?  I would think system admins would like that option
better since the setup would be much easier on new systems.  It would
also be OS independent.  It would work on all Windows, Linux, and Mac
systems.  Remember that Windows is composed of Win95, Win98, Win98SE,
WinME, WinNT4, Win2k, and WinXP.  Each of those is it's own OS since
many times a program on one will not work on another.  So even in just
a Windows only environment it would be easier.

Sometimes good marketing beats good products.

Eric



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