Windows 7 – Nail in the Desktop Linux Coffin?
Two events in the last month have gotten me worried about the future of desktop Linux. First is a declaration by Mark Shuttleworth [Ubuntu's founder] that there is no money in desktop Linux. This is significant because Ubuntu represents the closest stake the Linux world has had to being used as a desktop operation system. First of all, Ubuntu seems to have matured [I didn't upgrade from 7.10 because I didn't have a compelling reason to.]. Of course there is the mist of cloud computing and broadband which might make most of our computing to become utilitarian … but I have always thought that is a plus for desktop Linux because you still need an OS to run a web browser. If cloud computing makes the case for desktop applications less compelling for most, then desktop Linux will gain a huge edge over both Windows and MacOSX.
The second disconcerting piece came out of the last Microsoft Professional Developers Conference – the unveilling of Windows 7. I made the case on this blog earlier in the year that given the kind of hardware specs Vista needs to really fly, desktop Linux is a better alternative. Well … Microsoft seems to have pre-empted that with Windows 7 … I learnt that the executive who heads the Windows development team has as his primary laptop, a netbook based on an Intel Atom processor and 1GB of RAM and that Windows 7 will run very fast on those specs!! Considering the Windows familiarity and eye-candy factors, it seems Window 7 suddenly is putting Linux out of the play on most things that matter to the typical PC user except price?
So please share your take on this? Is this a move the Linux desktop community need to worry about? What moves must desktop Linux make to counter this? However it turns out, am planning to get a new laptop soon and irrespective of its OS, I plan to install Ubuntu because I specifically need it … but then, I am not the average user.
While most of the time I think I can laugh at Microsoft, with Windows 7 on the horizon I’ve started to scratch my chin and wonder if they’ll redeem themselves in the eyes of those cast off by Vista.
Vista, by contrast to what you say about Windows 7, should be seen as a reason if ever there was one, to discover desktop Linux. Microsoft had failed a lot of users with Vista, and that in itself may have sparked decisions to leave the market$hare giant and check out that open-source OS people have been talking about…
If that Atom-powered netbook is any indication, perhaps Windows 7 is shaping up to be the redeemer for Microsoft desktop computing. Desktop Linux may take a hit when Vista-defectors-turned-Ubuntu-users hear from trusted opinions that Windows 7 is “better,” and those new Linux users haven’t had the time to get comfortable with their new OS yet. Or they came into some more money and have justified paying for their software again!