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September 27, 1999

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Linux Reaches Out

Users weigh the operating system's merits for use on the desktop

By Scott Leibs

Illustration by Peter Fasolino

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s the Linux glass half-full or half-empty? While this Unix spin-off is emerging as a viable operating system at the server level, its suitability for business desktops is still a matter of debate. Critics contend that despite gains in ease of use, Linux still carries the taint of its techie heritage--and the paucity of applications for the operating system dooms it to niche-player status in the desktop world. But devotees counter that Linux is already much easier to install, maintain, and use than it was just a year ago--and that software vendors are beginning to unveil products ranging from vertical applications to integrated office suites to meet customer demand.

Amid all the talk, this much is clear: Critics of Linux come in all shapes and sizes, but proponents seem to be a remarkably homogeneous group. Companies that have embraced Linux are typically either those that have been Unix shops for some time or those that employ IT staffers who champion the operating system.

Take Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Inc., the apparel retailer that's rolling out Linux systems to more than 250 stores around the country. Each store will eventually have about five PCs that run Linux, handling everything from back-office functions, including shipping and receiving, to Web access. Stores that offer gift registries will also give customers access to them via Linux terminals, though there are no immediate plans to swap out all point-of-sale terminals, which still run MS-DOS, in favor of Linux boxes.

Burlington CIO Mike Prince says the idea to use Linux originally came from a handful of college interns in the company's IT department. "It was really the kids who got us going," Prince says. "They kept espousing it, and it slowly gathered a presence in-house." But Burlington was particularly receptive to the thought because the company had already decided to embrace a thin-client architecture running Java applications--an environment well-suited to the Linux operating system.

Mike Prince Photo by Stephen Sherman "You've got enormous flexibility on what operating systems Java applications can run," Prince says. "By moving to thin clients, we can save a lot of money on hardware. The kids said, 'Grab a cheap PC, throw Linux on it, and you've got a thin client.'"

In a deal worth more than $1.3 million, Dell OptiPlex PCs and PowerEdge servers running factory-installed Red Hat Linux are replacing Sun UltraSparc workstations and Solaris 4.1 servers. Prince considered turning to Windows NT Terminal Server 4.0 and Windows thin clients for the upgrade, but was glad when the Linux alternative came to light because NT has proven unstable in supporting Java, he says. Earlier this month, Burlington signed a deal with Red Hat Inc. to provide telephone support, configuration, installation, and ongoing maintenance for its Linux systems.

Linux's ability to satisfy companies' technical requirements is enhanced by the fact that it can do so very cheaply. Linux can be downloaded from the Internet for free or purchased from a handful of vendors, including Red Hat and Caldera Inc., at very low cost--$30 to $99 per user, often with a suite of utilities and other support software, services, and documentation included. Add to that the fact that Linux runs efficiently even on 486 PCs, and companies looking to save money suddenly take notice.

Still, it was comparatively easy for Burlington to choose Linux as an underlying operating system on servers and desktops because the company doesn't rely on many third-party applications, the applications it has already written for Unix are easily ported, and most future homegrown apps will be written in Java. Companies that rely on packaged apps or that have not embraced a thin-client architecture may be less likely to embrace Linux on the desktop.

"The cost of moving from one version of Windows to the next is enormous," says Michael Gartenberg, a VP at Gartner Group. "Can you imagine moving from Windows to a Linux-based suite of applications, even if the applications you need exist?"

No Revolution Yet
Even some vendors who have experienced recent success with Linux at the server level stop well short of claiming that a desktop revolution is imminent. Tom Figgatt, an executive for IBM's NetFinity Windows NT server line, says his company has seen a burst of activity in Linux at the server level, with shipments exceeding expectations, but the operating system so far has only limited applications on the desktop. "We see it on desktops in limited uses, such as hosting a small Web application, or in a replicated system where lots of people are doing one thing all day long, like hotel reservations systems," says Figgatt.

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