Windows is on its Last Legs!?
,----[ Quote ]
| Sound insane to you? I invite you to check Amazon’s Bestsellers: The most
| popular items in Computers and PC Hardware list. As I write this, on the
| evening of April 13th, eight of the top 25 sellers are Linux-powered Asus Eee
| UMPCs (Ultra Mobile PCs) and there’s also the Linux-fueled Nokia N800 tablet
| for a total of nine Linux systems. There are also seven Mac models on the
| list, topped by the Apple MacBook MB403LL/A 13.3-inch; Laptop. Finally,
| beneath almost all the Linux PCs and all of the Macs, you’ll find four, count
| em four, Vista-powered laptops.
`----
http://practical-tech.com/operating-system/linux/windows-is-on-its-last-legs/
The making of Wine (how to make Windows apps merrier with Linux)
,----[ Quote ]
| Flash forward to today. It's been the better part of a decade and Microsoft
| has not been toppled by anyone's reckoning. However it did release Vista -
| perhaps the most hated Windows operating system of all time (though it's hard
| to beat Windows ME on that count). Enterprises badly want alternatives to
| Windows. Desktop Linux has come a long way since 1999, too. and (who knew?)
| the Mac has become the ultra chic, must-have PC. The enterprise has its
| alternatives - if it can only get those mission critical Windows apps to work
| flawlessly. Wine, in its commercial form, has been doing so for years.
|
| So, in 2008, the 1.0 version will hit the streets and the timing could not be
| more perfect. White admits that not every Windows application will work
| flawlessly on Wine, but many a critical one for the enterprise has been
| specifically optimized.
`----
http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/26915
The migrations to Linux are very real (albeit quiet). Last week it was Ecuador,
Venezuela and even the EU parliament said it was testing Linux desktops with
some considering a Microsoft embargo. Links below.
Yesterday:
Argentina Mulls Open-Source Move
,----[ Quote ]
| Argentina may become the first country in the world to require all government
| offices to use open-source software, pending the outcome of a bill recently
| introduced in the nation's congress.
`----
http://argentinadiscovery.nireblog.com/post/2008/04/13/argentina-mulls-open-source-move
Last week:
Ecuador migrates to Free Software and Open Standards
,----[ Quote ]
| On April 10, 2008, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa Delgado signed a decree
| ordering that the software used by public administrations in the country be
| free software (and implicitly based on open standards). Fuller story in
| Spanish...
`----
http://www.digistan.org/forum/t-52909/ecuador-migrates-to-free-software-and-open-standards
Venezuela and the Hackers’ Revolution
,----[ Quote ]
| The Third International Forum on Free Knowledge was recently held in
| Maracaibo, Venezuela, bringing together many people interested in the
| development of free software worldwide. One reason Venezuela chose to host
| this event is that, in January 2006, their new free software law came into
| effect, which mandates that all government agencies migrate to free software
| over a two-year period.
|
| [...]
|
| The Venezuelan revolution is perhaps the first revolution in history saved by
| computer hackers and is one of the reasons the government is so very strong
| on promoting the use of free software, particularly in public administration.
| The Venezuelan government wishes never again to have vital infrastructure
| held hostage or sabotaged by agents of foreign nations.
`----
http://www.dailyradical.org/knowledge/Venezuela_and_the_Hackers_Revolution
EU: Europarlement testing Ubuntu, OpenOffice and Firefox
,----[ Quote ]
| The European Parliament's IT department is testing the use of GNU/Linux
| distribution Ubuntu, OpenOffice, Firefox and other Open Source applications,
| the British MEP James Nicholson explained last week in a letter to Italian
| MEP Marco Cappato.
`----
http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/en/document/7565
Is Microsoft Now Banned from EU Contracts?
http://www.computerworlduk.com/toolbox/open-source/blogs/index.cfm?entryid=697&blogid=14
Euro MP thinks Microsoft should be banned from government contracts
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2008/04/10/member-eu-parliament-asks
Green MEP says Microsoft should be excluded from EU contract awarding procedure
http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/106338/from/rss09
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