Linux offers everybody just what they need, not everything everybody might want. The open source model, under which Linux operates, inspires creativity, leading to accelerated growth and better products; whereas the traditional closed source model inspires both fear and scarcity, creating a vicious cycle that leaves everyone worse off.
Recently, Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer in a wrote, "I actually think we would need to withdraw the Windows product from the marketplace". Note that this is the company's Chief Executive Officer and not just a spokesman or something of that order.
As someone who has to run a business that depends on Microsoft products, can you afford to overlook this significant statement? The idea that a single company, in a fit of petulance, could stop distributing needed updates and bugfixes to software on which you relied to earn a living should really make you reconsider your stand. It would be wise to ensure that Microsoft products are not crucial to the functioning of your company. Imagine if they actually carried out their threat: your technologies would stagnate, your profits would take a nosedive and your business would grind to a screeching halt. One of the first things that is taught in business schools is not to put all your eggs in one basket.
Now, if for some reason, Red Hat decided to stop shipping Red Hat Linux, perhaps because a court told the company it must include both GNOME and KDE on its bootup menus, it would be a minor irritation at most. Corporates and home users would have other equally good, if not better alternatives to choose from.
Here are a few other points why you should consider moving to Linux.
Stability
The stability of Linux as an operating system is legendary. The open nature of Linux means that it has been reviewed and debugged by millions of top-of-the-line software engineers, hackers and corporate giants worldwide. The tremendous benefits of Linux are evident when you use it. You will see none of the typical crashes you see from other proprietary closed-source operating systems.
Security
Fatal and glaring security holes are being found in Microsoft operating systems every so often. It is trivial to crash or bring down any Windows machine connected to the Internet, even from across the planet, due to security holes. This obviously does little to improve reliability for your enterprise. The Linux filesystem is designed from the ground up with security in mind. The same goes for the memory management and networking systems.
Networking
Consider this. With most Linux distributions today, right out of the box, you can:
- Set up a router, firewall, or bridge
- Provide Network Address Translation (NAT) for your network
- Run the world's most powerful mail server
- Run the world's most popular web server, Apache
- Run an FTP/Telnet/SSH server
- Provide timesharing and true graphical remote login capabilities
In another interesting article, Computer Currents has a that starts out with the words "Linux beats NT at its own game".
Performance
Linux's legendary low resource requirements allow it to act as a low to mid-range web server even on hardware as old as a 386. Considering that Linux can cause a 386 with 8 meg of RAM to serve dozens of web hits per second, imagine what it can do with the latest processors in the market!
Power and functionality
From simple desktop tasks like text editing to intricate uses like running servers, Linux can carry out most tasks with ease. Imagine the world's most powerful search engine, google.com which runs 10,000 Linux servers and does a breath-taking job, replacing so many of the traditional search engines that pre-dated it.
Cost
Linux is free. If you have a fast internet connection, you might even try downloading it from one of the many ftp servers offering the free downloads today. You can always buy an official pack for any distribution from the company itself such as Red Hat, Mandrake etc. Or even if you have a friend who uses a Linux distribution, you may borrow and replicate the CD, without any legal problems. You could also install it off the network for your entire office. The only software costs you incur with Linux are any additional proprietary software you may want to add over and above the existing operating system to create a customised solution for your organisation. Your software costs are as good as zero.
Linux has slowly but surely edged out proprietary operating systems and traditional software development models. With giants like IBM, HP, Compaq and Sun embracing it, can your organisation afford to be left behind?
Centurion Linux: Freedom - get used to it!
