There was a time when I thought the Linux desktop was going to take a market share at least equal to Apple’s. Maybe even 5% or 10% of the total desktop market. I had high hopes that the One Laptop Per Child Initiative would put Linux laptops in the hands of impressionable young minds who would never have the chance to become dependent on Windows. Though that plan has fallen through the cracks. I don’t hate Microsoft Windows I just don’t have a desire to see any operating system dominate the market in such a way that the lack of competition stifles innovation and forces users into an endless upgrade cycle, offering progressively smaller incremental value.

That’s why I like Linux as a desktop platform. For many years I was an advocate for using the Linux desktop, I even wrote a Windows to Linux migration book for business users. Though the time has yet to come for the widespread Linux desktop adoption. I have speculated in the past that Novell’s SUSE Linux Desktop or Ubuntu would see traction but as of late I think that even that prediction is off base. I think the companies that will break our addiction to Windows will not be neither of them. It will be Google and Amazon. Here’s why.

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Technorati Tags: amazon, Google, Microsoft Windows, Novell, OLPC, SUSE, Ubuntu

Bill Gates steps down as the Chairman of Microsoft on July 1st to transition to full time philanthropic efforts with the Gates Foundation. However, I wonder how effective Bill will be other than writing checks. You see Bill’s never played well with others.

• Microsoft v. United States
  
• Microsoft v. AOL (Netscape)
• Microsoft v. Apple
• Microsoft v. Sun

At a speech on Monday for the Institute of Systems Biology he gave a speech followed by a Q&A session he reportedly answered one poor chap’s questions on whether open source methodologies would be used in his research.

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Technorati Tags: Bill Gates, Microsoft, OLPC, Open Source

Today is EarthDay (visit the open source Drupal-powered website for details from the Earth Day Network). In September 1969, at a conference in Seattle, Washington, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on the environment. Senator Nelson first proposed the nationwide environmental protest to thrust the environment onto the national agenda. This would be the first Earth Day. Now the event is celebrated twice a year at different times depending on what hemisphere you are on.

In recognition of Earth Day here are a few open source ideas that might help save the planet or at least extend its shelf life.

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Technorati Tags: Earth Day, green IT, GreenIT, OLPC, One Laptop Per Child, Open Source, OpenMicroServer, OScar, Zenoss

I have been watching the Linux laptop market for a while now. I used Linux on a Dell for over six years and was reasonably happy until I discovered EVDO. There simply wasn’t good support for the cards so I switched to Mac OS X.

I got a little excited over the OLPC  very cool but limited. Then the Asus EEE was released and that too seemed to be promising but a little limited. Now it looks like Elonex is planning on launching a sub £99 (About $195 US) called the Elonex One with some very cool features including a detachable screen that can be used as a tablet though it’s unclear whether the screen is a touchscreen or includes some other input mechanism. The target audience is education since the performance and hardware is somewhat antiquated by today’s standards.

I personally am holding out for the release of the Lenovo x300 which is supposed to rival the Macbook Air with a small form factor, SD drive, and included DVD drive. I also have high hopes that Lenovo will offer a Linux option as they have with other models. Here’s the latest from their blog. It does look promising but also a little pricey. Then again I always seem to pay top dollar for my laptop. 

Technorati Tags: AsusEEE, Elonex, EVDO, Lenovo x300, Linux Laptop, Macbook Air, OLPC

OpenSourceCommunity.com

If you are interested in open source content management systems, whether it’s Joomla! or Drupal or WordPress or Typo3 or Plone, this is a place you can talk about it. If you are interested in open source productivity tools, like Open Office, this is a good place to be. If you are interested in talking about the different flavors of Linux, here’s a great place to do that. 

NY Times: Intel Quits Effort to Get Computers to Children 

A frail partnership between Intel and the One Laptop Per Child educational computing group was undone last month in part by an Intel saleswoman: She tried to persuade a Peruvian official to drop the country’s commitment to buy a quarter-million of the organization’s laptops in favor of Intel PCs. 

This will always be the struggle when a company who supports a philanthropic endeavor that has the potential to circumvent their profits.

Performancing Blog: Reader’s Choice Award

Performancing is running a Reader’s Choice Awards. I was happy to see some of my favorite blogs on the list:

• Darren Rowse (ProBlogger)
• Seth Godin (Seth’s Blog)
• Brian Clark (Copyblogger)
• SEO Book Blog

Seth Godin: Marketer of the Year, 2007

Very relevant to my analysis yesterday. Seth calls a dead heat between Ron Paul and Barack Obama.  

OnStartups: Ga-ga for Groups? LinkedIn is Lame, Facebook is Fantastic

I have to agree here. LinkedIn has never manifested a proper groups experience which is ironic given their networking purview.  I created a Facebook group tonight and it was up and running in minutes.

Washington PC: "Eee" Could have Meant Excellent

Rob Pegoraro weighs in and says the Asus Eee has potential but gives the Linux ultra-portable a big thumbs down.

Technorati Tags: Asus, Blog Awards, Eee, LinkedIn Groups, OLPC, One Laptop Per Child, Open Source, Performancing