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   From: Harold Stevens    
   Newsgroups: alt.os.linux.ubuntu   
   Subject: Re: Canonical and Linspire Announce Technology Partnership   
   Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 11:09:23 -0000   
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   In  BlackTopBum:   
      
   [Snip...]   
      
   > Only hope that Ubuntu doesn't go in the path of Mandrake   
      
   [Snip...]   
      
   > it became to "Mickey Mouse" like for my tastes   
      
   What's interesting to me about this alliance is the roots of Linspire; it   
   actually started years ago as a distro called Lindows, IIRC. Now you'd be   
   correct to guess that didn't sit well with Unca Bill, and of course there   
   was a lawsuit. M$ *PAID* Lindows $20M to become Linspire--now to me, that   
   is a great business plan. Get your competitor to fund both your marketing   
   and your cash flow.    :)   
      
   (All this from memory, and ICBW, but I think it's fairly accurate)   
      
   Anyway, Lindows/Linspire took up where Red Hat et al left off: going head   
   to head with M$ in desktops instead of (primarily) servers. And obviously   
   they must be doing something right, evidenced by Shuttleworth deciding it   
   was time to offer additional options to the desktop eyecandy crowd.   
      
   I'm like you in that I fundamentally don't care too much for the eyecandy   
   and multimedia hype. My roots are scientific and engineering computations   
   where glossy hype like that can be an immense waste of resources. However   
   I also understand that my bias isn't the best or even the most common way   
   most folks relate to operating systems--cell phones as an example.   
      
   I think we finally may have something to point the trolls and microsmurfs   
   to when they start whining about how little a dent Linux (etc.) is making   
   in the desktop market. Not that Unbutu/Linspire can make a dent in what's   
   a stacked deck in the OEM PC market immediately. But I do think this will   
   enable retailers a channel for *supported* whitebox desktops which should   
   offer the Vista Home "look and feel" at much less cost.   
      
   All this, without making complete fools of themselves, like Novell lately   
   doing its Axis Nonagression Bogopatent Pact with Redmond.   
      
   None of it my cup'o tea, but ulcers for Unca Bill; that's splendid.  :)   
      
   --    
   Regards, Weird (Harold Stevens) * IMPORTANT EMAIL INFO FOLLOWS *   
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