[CS-FSLUG] NI: Will Mac kill the Linux business desktop?

[Fred A. Miller]

FROM THE EDITOR
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Will Mac kill the Linux business desktop?
[by Jan Stafford]

Mac and Linux users are equally devoted to their desktops of choice
and, from my experience, equally disdainful of Microsoft Windows.
Being a member of both the Mac and Linux camps, I have mixed feelings
about Apple's decision to move Mac OS to the Intel platform. 

"There goes the Linux desktop." That was the first thought that came
to my mind. My first thoughts tend toward the overdramatic. 

As more thoughts piled atop the first one, I came to several
conflicting conclusions:

This move is so overdue for Apple that it may be too late. Thank
goodness Apple finally wised up. Then again, Apple is crazy to think
it can keep its Intel-friendly Mac OS off of non-Apple boxes, and
this move could destroy Apple's PC business. Of course, Mac users
will no longer be on the proverbial desert island, application-wise,
and that's a good thing.

Apple has a leg up on Linux in the business desktop market, so this
could put a stop to Linux's growth there. Yet, Macs are so identified
with niches, particularly graphics, that most businesses won't
consider using them. I can?t imagine Mac OS selling for less than
Linux, either.

Now, it's your turn. What were your first thoughts when hearing this
news? What do you think Apple's move means for the Linux desktop?
We'll send the 10th respondent a $25 gift certificate. Write to
mailto:editor at searchenterpriselinux.com?subject=MacTel.

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