Linux and application suppliers are forming a desktop
consortium to promote the use of the open-source operating system
on corporate and home desktops.
The group's members will include Linux suppliers SuSE,
MandrakeSoft and Lycoris, as well as a host of Linux application
companies including Codeweavers, Ximian and NeTraverse. Also
included are open-source organisations such as Debian.org,
Samba.org and OpenOffice.org.
The consortium is still in the planning stages, but a "formation
committee'' has been created to get the organisation on its feet.
The group said it would strive to be a "well-balanced,
vendor-neutral organisation" that advocates Linux on the corporate
desktop.
Jeremy White, interim chairman of the consortium and the chief
executive officer of Codeweavers, said the idea gained support late
last year after casual talks among members of the open-source
community.
A 90-day timeline is now in place, with the goal of bringing in
OEMs and major technology companies to give it a broad reach.
The group will work to bring people who are using Linux on the
desktop together with users considering it.
Linus Torvalds, who created Linux in 1991, called desktop Linux
"inevitable".
"We already have all of the tools, in open-source software,
necessary for 80% of office workers in the world: an office suite
including spreadsheet, word processor, and presentation program; a
web browser, graphical desktop with file manager and tools for
communications, scheduling, and personal information management,"
Torvalds said.
IDC analyst Dan Kusnetzky said the group will have formidable
challenges.
The main stumbling blocks for Linux on the corporate desktop
continue to be the difficulty of buying preconfigured computers
running Linux from the factory and the absence of some
applications. And, while open-source alternatives are available to
Microsoft's dominant Office suite, some compatibility issues and
missing features remain.
But by banding together as a consortium, the group has a chance
of making a dent, Kusnetzky said. The collection of companies could
together work to resolve remaining issues of program availability
and even the dearth of preinstalled Linux machines - eventually
helping to increase the market share of Linux on the corporate
desktop.