What's Happening
with Linux?
By now the open source Linux operating
system was supposed to have taken over the desktop and
left Windows in the dust. While Linux has made major
moves in embedded systems and servers, it has a very
long way to go before taking over the desktop.
It's impossible to find reliable numbers
for the fraction of Linux desktop systems, because users
can freely download Linux or copy it from friends. Windows
apparently retains around 95 percent of the operating
system market. Linux may have exceeded Apple's share
of the remaining market and continues to grow, albeit
much more slowly than the once predicted revolution.
Linux can be had for free, and it has
little or no vulnerability to the virus attacks that
plague Windows. So why isn't it taking over the desktop?
Probably the most fundamental reason
is known as Linux migration. Weaning a PC away from
Windows and converting to Linux may seem straightforward
after the fact. But the process is not nearly as straightforward
as some have claimed. You can see for yourself by checking
out "So
You Want to Use Linux?" at Linux
Online!.
Another holdup is compatibility with
Windows programs. Software can make the conversion in
many cases, but legacy programs may be more difficult
to use. As for the virus issue, there is concern that
Linux will face the same problem as Windows as the user
base increases. But that's a long way from now.
In the grand scheme of things, Linux
and other open-source software are the wave of the future.
Meanwhile, Mark Brunelli, News Editor of TechTarget
has written a pair of articles that are must reading
for desktop Linux enthusiasts. The first article is
"Sizing
up the Linux desktop market, Part 1." This
article links to Part 2. Brunelli notes that the long
anticipated Linux desktop revolution simply has not
happened. Much more progress has been made in moving
Linux onto servers.
While Windows still holds onto the
great majority of desktops, Linux is gaining fast in
the embedded systems competition. This includes Personal
Digital Assistants (PDAs), the new generation of smart
phones, robots, servers, gateways, audio/visual entertainment
systems and a host of other systems with built-in processing
power. Users may not know or care that their system
is powered by embedded Windows or Linux. But the industry
certainly does. A recent survey of embedded systems
by LinuxDevices.com
found that systems using Linux led Windows by 313 to
290.
Forrest M. Mims III 
|
