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| Information Week Report: Linux is Cheaper, More Reliable and Secure, Encourages Innovation |
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Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 04:41 PM EDT
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I was reading Information Week's report [PDF] on the Linux market. Information Week Research conducted a study to measure corporate use of Linux and Open Source software in January 2005. The results are stunning. "Nearly 90% of companies we surveyed anticipate a jump in server licenses for Linux. No other product comes close to these expectations – not Windows, Macintosh or Unix." The report predicts that "Linux server and PC licenses are expected to climb dramatically over the next two years, due in part to the perceived need for an alternative to Windows." And why this need for an alternative? A combination of three factors, lower costs, reliability and worries about security issues in Microsoft's products seem to be the dominant drivers: How widely deployed is Linux? Well, nearly half of the sites we interviewed use Linux on servers or PCs. Twenty-three percent have rollout plans for the next 12 months. Another 23% although using open source products have no current plans for Linux. Low cost and the lack of licensing fees are the primary reasons why companies deploy Linux on PCs and servers. However, concern about the vulnerability of Microsoft products is also speeding up Linux adoption. Of the sites using Linux on PCs, 73% are doing so in response to Windows security issues while 69% seek an alternative to Windows. Two-thirds of sites state that Windows security concerns are driving Linux adoption on servers while nearly three in five server users want another option to Windows. Many Linux sites cite its reliability, performance, and wide availability of development tools on the Web. Linux reliability is mentioned as a key adoption driver by more companies in 2005 than it was 2 years ago. That's interesting, isn't it, that the wide availability of development tools on the Web is driving Linux adoption in the enterprise? They have evidently clued in that they can tweak and innovate with FOSS to particularize solutions custom-made for them in-house.
I also found the following sentence intriguing: Two years ago a major hurdle in the use of Linux was reliable support and service, but no more. Companies are either providing training for their IT workers or have hired full-time employees with Linux expertise. Every Get the Facts study I've seen warns that Linux costs more, because of alleged increased service and support costs. From the Information Week study, it seems 1) that it isn't holding anyone back and 2) businesses figured out a solution, and 3) people who have actually made the switch say Linux is cheaper anyhow: For years, Linux advocates have touted the open source operating system as a less-expensive, more reliable alternative to Unix and Windows. Respondents in this study agree that Linux is less expensive. At least seven in 10 sites report that Linux is cheaper to operate than mainframe systems, Windows NT, Windows 2000 servers, Windows XP servers and Commercial Unix servers. Companies also say Linux is a cheaper PC option than Commercial Unix, Windows XP or Macintosh. Only PC terminals offer some cost competitiveness. While 38% of sites say Linux on PCs has a lower total cost of ownership than terminals, 45% say it’s the same, while 17% report that terminal costs are lower. So much for "Get the Facts". Maybe "facts" isn't the right word to use. I suggest any new "independent studies" take this into consideration, because it's bound to tip even their scales. Microsoft's FUD said it would cost more to run Linux than Windows, but the overwhelming majority of those who switched contradict strongly. The earth is not flat, and Windows is not cheaper than Linux, according to this report. The report also wanted to find out if SCO's litigation is holding back Linux adoption. The majority said no, but 7% said yes, and one in 10 said it's too early to know. So when it's time to calculate figures for Lanham Act damages, here's one concrete figure. Pilot testers at the surveyed companies reported a higher level of concern, however. Here is something interesting about innovation: One thing business-technology professionals believe about open-source software: It provides more opportunity for innovation than commercial or proprietary software. Two-thirds of the 439 business technology professionals we surveyed in January 2005 contend that open-source spurs more opportunities for technical innovation. Half (47%) say it encourages business innovation. There's a chart on page 6 that tells what hurdles remain. Respondents were asked what problems they've encountered after switching to Linux, and it looks like nearly 30% said none at all. The biggest hurdle reported was technical knowledge of personnel, the fixable problem, followed by compatibility issues with "existing software." Now, if somebody, like the EU Commission, for example, could just get Microsoft to allow easy interoperability with "existing software", we'd be cooking with gas.
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| Authored by: Griffin3 on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 04:44 PM EDT |
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hukt on fonix wurkt for me![ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 04:56 PM EDT |
Speaking of standards... someone needs to encourage Apple to support Open
Document as the default format for iWorks (ie - Keynotes & Pages). If
Microsoft was the only major company to have a proprietary format it would help
expose their position for the foolish one it is.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: tiger99 on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 05:05 PM EDT |
| And do please make clickable links if you can. [ Reply to This | # ]
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- OT Here please..... - Authored by: tiger99 on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 05:37 PM EDT
- IBM Timeline - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 07:31 PM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: ThunderfistCor on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 08:27 PM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: om1er on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 09:36 PM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:09 PM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:53 PM EDT
- Ubuntu made gnome good again - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:11 PM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:40 PM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 02:25 AM EDT
- Warning: Ubuntu Breezy (pre-release) still painfully slow - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 02:51 AM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: TAZ6416 on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 03:06 AM EDT
- Hoary and Breezy are great - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 05:51 AM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: ine on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 09:05 AM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 09:06 AM EDT
- Ubuntu ok, please try pclinuxos :) - Authored by: idahoan on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 11:18 AM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 11:20 AM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 02:21 PM EDT
- Experiences with Ubuntu? - Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, October 15 2005 @ 12:24 AM EDT
- "Linspire Pitches to Education Vertical Market" - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:18 PM EDT
- "Exploit already available for Windows vulnerability" - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:24 PM EDT
- "Minister of counterculture " - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:35 PM EDT
- "FoxNews.com readers slam pro-Microsoft column" - it's astroturfing according to Computer World. - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:43 PM EDT
- NO CHAIRS IN THE COURT!! - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:57 PM EDT
- IRS buys another yacht. - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:11 PM EDT
- Licenses (way off topic) - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:48 PM EDT
- FOSS choices for personal use - Authored by: Fox1 on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 12:37 PM EDT
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| Authored by: LaurenceTux on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 05:44 PM EDT |
Does somebody have any actual Raw Numbers and a list of factors that would
create a "Conversion Cost"
NANBA but i would think
1 Software Cost
2 Cost related to "forklifting" the current software
3 Migration Cost
4 Training Cost
5 Support Cost as a diff
Factor in Time Value of Money and actual spent money and i think that would
cover it.
Anything i missed??[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: HappyMagenta on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 05:50 PM EDT |
This shouldn't be surprising. Total cost of ownership calculations predicated
on scarcity of expertise for support are not going to hold up in a market where
Linux continues to gain. There will be a corresponding increase in the number
of people familiar with Linux and its administration as Linux matures. [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 05:51 PM EDT |
Since Microsoft began commissioning all these ludicrous studies that show things
we all know to not be true, I couldn't help but wonder why. How stupid do they
think people are? Of course, FUD works for the obvious reason at the surface
level, but I think their FUD campaign is not really to convince people that they
are cheaper. (Though if any suckers fall for it, so much the better.)
Their REAL adgenda is to disarm one of linux's strongest weapons by creating a
jaded public that is so tired of TOC studies that they start ignoring all of
them as being "biased". Then when the truth is revealed, at long
last, that linux is indeed cheaper, the public ignores it as propaganda.
Sadly, I think it's working. People don't get excited anymore by TOC reports
because "everyone knows that whoever is behind that study has an
adgenda." (Ignore the fact that that's only true because MS is behind SO
MANY OF THEM. If Microsoft is doing it, you can be sure that the more desperate
folks in the linux camp are doing it too.)
If they get you (or others) to ignore or discount the reports (largely due to
being overwhelmed by the dung-heap that MS has secretly produced), then
Microsoft wins.
[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: boban on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 06:40 PM EDT |
I remember a study that said that cost of redeveloping Linux is about 6 billion
dollars. Good old Microsoft keeps paying out billions in settlements every once
in a while.
I don't get it. They are happy to pay all those
settlements, and are at same time cutting down on salaries of their own
developers, and every piece of software they roll out is a minefield of bugs
& security holes. It is as if they were purposefully trying to destroy the
company. They can't be that stupid, so what could be going on?[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: fredex on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 06:46 PM EDT |
PJ, You're preaching to the choir here!
But I'm glad that others are beginning to figure it out.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 07:10 PM EDT |
Anyone find it interesting that the report shows 9% as the usage reported for
linux on the PC? (See the PC Platforms chart in the report) That's not 9% of
companies use linux on the PC, but 'of the PC's deployed at the companies asked
9% are running linux.' At what point does corporate linux desktop usage reach
critical mass? It's currently more than double mac usage according to this
report, yet some vendors STILL ignore linux while porting to mac. Is 1/10th of
the corporate desktop market not enough to garner vendor attention? [ Reply to This | # ]
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- Information Week Report: Linux is Cheaper, More Reliable and Secure, Encourages Innovation - Authored by: Reliant on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 07:31 PM EDT
- Tough choice - Authored by: overshoot on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 07:35 PM EDT
- Add one more business PC to the linux column - Authored by: pallmall on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 09:12 PM EDT
- Information Week Report: Linux is Cheaper, More Reliable and Secure, Encourages Innovation - Authored by: vinea on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 09:41 PM EDT
- 9% of PCs - Authored by: gfim on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:06 PM EDT
- Writing cross-platform - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 11:05 PM EDT
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| Authored by: RedBarchetta on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 07:25 PM EDT |
With each passing day hundreds of new applications become available for
Linux.
Ten years ago it was difficult to find certain vertical
applications for Linux, like accounting software. But over the past several
years the number of available applications has grown exponentially. As an
example, if you run Linux and need a mail server (SMTP), there's more than a few
dozen FOSS apps to choose from. If one doesn't fit, you can always try another.
That hasn't always been the case with proprietary software. At very minimum,
you can't even test-drive most proprietary software for free, or without
limitations. So why paint yourself into a corner?
The evolution of
FOSS is such that within a few years, we should see a plethora of commercial
grade applications available for Linux, free! There are actually some that
exist now, but not in the relevant in numbers we see with Windows. In other
words, we've reached the point where the OS (Linux) is stable enough for
developers to take it seriously for large, long-term projects. The advent of
those projects is just a few months, or dozens of months away.
That is
when the real software commoditization will take place (and no, I don't think
proprietary software makers are evil -- I just think they need to provide
unemcumbered versions to the public, otherwise someone else will, much to their
peril)
Here's some random links from my link library to help you
find the FOSS answers you are looking for:
Linux.org - a good site that tracks Linux
projects and updates.
Linux
Software Encyclopaedia - a bounty of Linux applications.
Linux4Chemist
ry - for you chemists out there.
The UNIX CD Bookshelf -
some very useful O'Reilly books now published online, free for the world to
use.
DMOZ
Open Directory Project - various net servers.
OpenSSL Certificate of Authority
setup - in contrast to using a third party COA provider, you can setup your
own COA for free.
---
Collaborative efforts synergise. [ Reply to This | # ]
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- Application availability - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 07:40 PM EDT
- Application availability - Authored by: Reliant on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 07:41 PM EDT
- Application availability - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:05 PM EDT
- Application availability--I Just Want ONE - Authored by: Weeble on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:33 PM EDT
- Application availability--I Just Want ONE - Authored by: stevem on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:57 PM EDT
- DVD-RAM - Authored by: Ed L. on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 01:45 AM EDT
- A fanatic... - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:58 PM EDT
- Backing up the right tree - Authored by: brian-from-fl on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 12:09 AM EDT
- Application availability--I Just Want ONE - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 12:12 AM EDT
- If your using Red Hat or Fedora... - Authored by: Mecha on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 01:14 AM EDT
- tar and ftp - Authored by: RedBarchetta on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 01:26 AM EDT
- Application availability--I Just Want ONE - Authored by: DrStupid on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 05:26 AM EDT
- FOSS backups - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 06:42 PM EDT
- Application availability--I Just Want ONE - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, October 16 2005 @ 09:59 AM EDT
- Application availability - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 07:29 PM EDT
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 08:04 PM EDT |
"Nearly 90% of companies we surveyed anticipate a jump in server
licenses for Linux. No other product comes close to these expectations – not
Windows, Macintosh or Unix."
Hmm, why would I need any linux
licenses? The whole point of all the linux boxes I maintain is that the software
doesn't need any licenses to be bought. [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 09:38 PM EDT |
How does one evaluate the credibility of these online magazines? (I went to the
site and it seemed to have typical industry rag articles and ads. ie. it looked
quite legitimate.)
Anyway, asks the devil's advocate, why should we get excited about what these
people say? I suppose that my answer would be that if I knew who read the
magazine, I would have a good idea of its credibility. Do these online
magazines themselves even know who reads them?
[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: vinea on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:05 PM EDT |
Online survey with 439 respondents. I wonder what percentage of people asked
actually filled it out. Pretty sure I wouldn't have been happy to pay $95 for
this...though I suppose that RedHat would be more than happy to quote from it.
All in all pretty meaningless. About the same kind of fluff MS puts out...less
actually since this the assertions have no supporting data other than respondent
perception.
Is Linux TCO less than Windows TCO? Who knows...you can't from this study.
About the only TCO I know from personal experience is low is OSX given that I
know the ratio of Mac techs to Windows and Linux techs at our site of some 3000
technical users. Mac is still an allowed desktop so usage is relatively high
compared to elsewhere. We have 2 techs.
So about that $95 at the top...did Information Week/CMP release this? Because
it looks like its still for sale here:
http://www.informationweek.com/reports/showReport.jhtml;jsessionid=41SXFR2XUU3TU
QSNDBECKHSCJUMEKJVN?articleID=60300075&_requestid=662757
Vinea
OS Agnostic - On my desk is Fedora Core 3 x 2, OSX x 1 and Windows x 3. My desk
is really cluttered with computers. [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: vinea on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:18 PM EDT |
One more brief comment...while I'm not a huge fan of these distros as distros
(RHEL and SLES) I don't know that I would ever suggest any company I worked for
actually deploy anything else.
I can be happy with Debian, Fedora, Gentoo, etc to develop or play with but for
corporate deployment my expectation is the RH and Novell will pay more attention
to the TCO and corporate infrastructure issues important to IT managers than the
maintainers of other distros.
Plus I like the fact that there is support contract and someone to call if need
be.
Otherwise I'd end up getting that call...
Vinea[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: tqft on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 10:58 PM EDT |
Remember the Monkey Dance Ballmer did?
What was it about?
Developers.
Where the apps go - the people follow.
---
anyone got a job good in Brisbane Australia for a problem solver? Currently
over employed in one job.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: vinea on Thursday, October 13 2005 @ 11:28 PM EDT |
My feeling is that MS is moving toward that thin client architecture. Large
central server farm and XBox like thin clients on folks desks.
That should drive TCO prices and initial aquisition prices down. $400 for a
stripped XBox 360 that can't play games and 17" LCD monitor.
Make the money back on MS office subscriptions and Windows Server 200x
licenses.
Vinea[ Reply to This | # ]
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- LTSP - Authored by: Bill R on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 12:25 PM EDT
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 12:45 AM EDT |
| Are small businesses starting to use Linux and nobody is noticing? Or do they
just use what their support vendor tells them to?
Personally, I run a
company doing pretty much only Linux support for small businesses and schools.
The reason our customers choose us over the competition probably can be summed
up by the following:
- Money normally spent on licensing can go to labor
setting up more advanced services and overall support
- Money normally
spent putting out fires can go to labor setting up more advanced services and
overall support
- Money normally spent on upgrades can go to labor
setting up more advanced services and overall support
- Money normally
spent fighting and removing viruses and spyware can go to labor setting up more
advanced services and overall support
In other words, despite
perhaps only a small reduction in their tech budget, they are getting far more
computer services and support.
With proprietary software a small business
might spend their tech budget over the course of a few years getting and
maintaining a basic print server, file server, web server and email system.
The same budget (or possibly less) running F/OSS is probably enough for us
to give them a spam/anti-virus scanning email server, web proxy with optional
content filtering, web server, secured FTP server, file server, print server,
tape backup server, more documentation, free upgrades, a firewall, all public
services runing in a DMZ, PLUS enough left over to have us do virtualy all of
the system administration.
So what is the TCO? It may be costing them the
same $/year to use F/OSS. But look how much more that $ buys. That's
why I love my job. I can charge a decent labor rate but know I'm giving my
customers some real value for their money. As long as our customers feel the
$ they are spending is really contributing to their business success then I
feel that I'm doing something right. [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 01:00 AM EDT |
The text says one in ten - but from the graph (page 2) it seems that two in ten
(19%) says that it is too early to tell if SCO's suit will have an effect on
their OSS plans.
Regards
/Peter[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 07:46 AM EDT |
My two cents worth - I have installed windows and linux on identical pcs and
everytime linux was much easier to install.
no drivers to download, no anti-virus, anti-spyware, or any other anti-apps/apps
to go to the web and get.
just a nice experience - gets out of way and lets me get to work.
the common joe doesn't install windows on pc's - they get someone like me to do
it for them.
so the theory that windows is easier to install is just a load of FUD from
microsoft.
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| Authored by: arrg on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 08:48 AM EDT |
One is a barracuda Spam firewall and it works very well. Cost very little to own
and requires very little maintenance. The second device I just installed is a
rocketvault D2D backup system, also running some flavor of open source software.
It too requires very little maintenance and is about 1/4 the cost of any windows
related solution. I have found that one of the ways you can simplify your life
as an admin is to go with devices rather than servers. Devices require less
maintenance, no Microsoft, thus no MS updates or virus protection, they also
tend to recover better and faster than a server.
---
Time is funny stuff, space has it's points too.... - Hap[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 10:06 AM EDT |
| What kernel/OS are we talking about here? Someone needs this 'GPL'
thing explained to them using shorter words, and I don't think it's me. [ Reply to This | # ]
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- Licenses? What? - Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 01:22 PM EDT
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| Authored by: paul_cooke on Friday, October 14 2005 @ 01:29 PM EDT |
cos they're busy signing up the content providers to using their proprietary
Janus DRM technology, which surprise, surprise, only works when served from
ms-windows servers... and can only be view with microsoft windows clients
Gates choice of Janus for the project name is very revealing... Janus is the God
of doorways, the gate keeper between the old and the new... and is also
two-faced...
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Use Linux - Computer power for the people: Down with cybercrud...[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: iraskygazer on Tuesday, October 18 2005 @ 02:53 AM EDT |
Notice that most companies seem to view the security issues with Microsoft as a
reason for moving to Linux. The latest Linux kernel packages from a number of
top distributions deliver a wrapper that enables savvy administrators to sandbox
even the root account. The SE Linux package can make a system very secure and
this is something Microsoft Windows can't come close to in it's current
configuration. Beware of what would happen if MS attempts to wrap their OS with
a similar type of wrapper based on Linux.[ Reply to This | # ]
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