[MLUG] Electronics Giants Love Linux

[Mike Miller <EMAIL:PROTECTED>]

The reason that Linux will topple Microsoft in this domain, I think, is
that no one will want to develop products that depend on Microsoft for the
long haul.  If they stick with Linux, they are free, in every sense, and
not dependent on nasty Microsoft.  It's not really the money *today*
because Microsoft would probably do quite a bit on the cheap to get these
corporations stuck in the Microsoft world.  Besides, Linux doesn't have a
Blue Screen of Death! - a Microsoft feature we can live without.  --Mike

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http://www.forbes.com/2003/07/02/cx_ah_0702linux.html

Forbes.com

Computer Hardware & Software

Electronics Giants Love Linux

Arik Hesseldahl, 07.02.03, 1:45 PM ET

If there's ever going to be a great galaxy of consumer electronics devices
that are all connected by a home network and through that network to the
Internet itself, it's going to run Linux.

At least that's what some of the world's most prominent manufacturers have
said with the formation of an industry group -- the CE Linux Forum -- that
will promote Linux in future products.

The companies involved aren't some small batch of die-hards. They make up
the crux of the consumer electronics industry: Japanese firms Sony;
Matsushita, parent of Panasonic; NEC; Sharp; Toshiba; and Hitachi; Royal
Philips Electronics from The Netherlands; and Samsung from South Korea.
IBM reportedly wants to join too.

Certainly the creation of the group is a warning shot at PC software
juggernaut Microsoft, which thinks home networks, PCs and consumer
electronics should interact without involving a penguin, the Linux mascot.

It's clear is what electronics manufacturers don't want: A royalty bill
from Microsoft. Already used to operating on razor-thin profit margins
with the products they make, using Linux software, which is freely
available, should save them all money on developing future products.

For Sony in particular, taking part in the forum is the latest step in its
duel with Microsoft. Linux is already the basis for Sony's CoCoon
initiative, which involves giving TV sets and other entertainment devices
a network connection, a hard drive and the ability to connect to broadband
Internet connections.

If Sony's plans are an indication of what to expect from its new partners,
that means an increase in security for copyrighted digital content such as
movies and music.

Of course, central to all that is a PC running Windows. And Microsoft has
its own ideas for connecting the home and all the electronic devices in
it. It has been promoting the Media Center PC version of the Windows
operating system for more than a year now with some success. The software
turns a PC into a TV, jukebox and a video recorder among other things.

Its Smart Display technology allows portable flat-panel displays access to
PCs elsewhere in the home for surfing the Web and accessing PC files. And
its Windows CE .NET software for embedded devices has been demonstrated on
household appliances as diverse as an exercise bike, a DVD player, a
portable digital media player that can handle music and video, and a
sewing machine. Obviously, there's a battle brewing.
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