Broadband Developments

At least that’s what some people are thinking.

Who will the anti-culture have to bash now? Can the Linux community rally a faceless Microsoft? Will they focus on Ballmer now? What about the Apple-ites? Can the Apple-Messiah Steve Jobs seize this opportunity?

Do people want to see Microsoft suffer without Bill Gates? They don’t realize they have Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer and Microsoft to thank. We can all admit that without Windows, business and the internet would not be what it is today. Sure, people love to bash the delayed releases, then criticize Windows when updates and patches roll out. Well Linux people here’s your chance.

It’s the Ying and the Yang. Linux wouldn’t even exist without the “enemy”. You can laugh at the blue screens and the amount of patching that goes on. In my work at a hosting company that hosts thousands of systems, it has been a rarity that I hear or have even seen a blue screen. Also, not once during this time has a Windows system been hacked. Compare that to at least once a week some critical Linux system gets hacked, usually by “kiddie scripts” but sometimes by some weak passwords. Plus everything is a one-off, marred by special libraries and releases of this and that.

I know Linux has an incredible amount of flexibility and power. I know there’s many things that work better, simpler, faster on a Linux server. Believe me, I use it because I have to. I also know however that I can do many many of those same things on a Windows system. If I have something I need to deliver to a customer, I’m building a Windows system. I want them to be satisfied that I am delivering an enterprise-grade product backed with support, scalability and stability. I can’t consciously deliver a hobby system that requires them to hire me or someone else again to support it and fix things all the time. Heck, even Dell is profiting extra from selling this “free” operating system.

And yes, a well-timed release of a Microsoft email from Bill Gates complaining about Windows XP came out this week. What’s wrong with trying to get something right?

Don’t get me wrong. I started out in this business in the Unix world, particularly with Solaris. The Unix-world transformed with the rise of Linux. I was in that camp. I’m in the business of getting things done however and tinkering with a hobby OS, as good as people may be doing that is not delivering. Sun Solaris was easily the best operating system at the time and Linux killed it and IRIX as well.

Linux will never win on the desktop. Let’s look at some of the reasons why.
* Linux supports all kinds of hardware - Except of course what I need installed. Try installing a wireless card, webcam or digital camera. It’s basically the hardware lottery whether your stuff is supported or not.
* Linux sects - Ubuntu vs. Fedora - Gnome vs. KDE - BSD vs. the world!
* Try running some games on Linux, not emulators, we’re talking native games. I have worked with so many closet Windows-using Linux gurus, it’s not even funny.
* Trying to be like Windows - How many open source alternatives do we have to look at out there? Open-this Star-that. Someone out there is determined to copy Exchange.
* False sense of equality - Boohoo Silverlight doesn’t work on Linux. So what.
* Windows Fever - The delusional belief that Linux will take over the desktop at some point. What’s the percentage now? Look at what has happened with the Vista launch, Microsoft actually has people clamoring for Windows XP. Even when the Vista wave went wrong, they won. Personally, I live Vista. There are some things that are slow, but there are many features I would miss if I went back to Windows XP. Yeah, Linux is free, but if it’s unusable to the average person, forget about it.
* Linux elitism - I guess people want to actually use their systems and not spend hours and weeks getting it to work, maybe. That makes them idiots to the Linuxites and that’s not very embracing.
* The Linux jihad - Flame away, people that share my opinion openly will certainly hear it from the Linux faithful. I can hear your blood vessels popping. Truth is we all admire your faith in it, so please don’t hold back. Part of being legitimate is the fact you have to take some of this. I have been hearing about it about Windows for years, so consider this a badge of honor.

Hey since Bill Gates is now retired maybe he can be brought out of retirement by Red Hat or something.

Will any of this matter as web-based applications continue to grow?