[lug] MS Apps ported to Linux???

[Archer Sully]

"J. Wayde Allen" wrote:
>
> 
> That is an interesting article.  I'm curious, what do people think about
> the following comments from Doug Miller:
> 
>    ... "While we are threatened by the Linux business model, where
>    companies give away free software, we are not at all worried about that
>    operating system from a technological standpoint," Miller told eWEEK
>    before heading off to the conference. "There are no earth-shattering
>    technological innovations in Linux -- actually, there's a lot less than
>    can be found in the Windows and Unix platforms." ...
> 

He's right.  There is little being done in Linux today that wasn't
done 10+ years ago in the UNIX community, and done better.  I've 
seen comments from Linus that literally made my skin crawl in the
way he demonstrated an astonishingly comprehensive "know-nothing"
approach to OS design.

That said, there's enough in Linux to support an OS niche, and there
are some good things being done.  Of course, some of the good things
are in the form of technology migrating (or attempting to migrate)
from UNIX companies into Linux.  And it also leads into my next comments.

>    ... I think the shine is dulling around Linux as people scramble to
>    find a business model based on free software that actually works," he
>    said. "Ultimately, there's no such thing as a free lunch -- someone has
>    to pay for continued innovation and support." ...
> 

The fallacy here is that the customer really >wants< continued innovation,
which usually mean obsolesence for systems that were working just fine.
I think that part of the attraction of Linux is that the apps you know
will continue to run, and you won't find yourself forced to upgrade an
entire facility just because someone ended up with the latest word processor.

>    ... While there has been much talk about Linux as an operating system,
>    there hasn't been nearly enough talk about how it is solving customer
>    problems through a full suite of business applications, Miller
>    contended, adding it has a "long way to go" to solve the range of
>    business problems that companies like Microsoft solve today. ...
> 

Actually, I've seen more about solving customer problems than I have 
about the internals of the OS.  Problems being solved?  Well, tons 
of http/smtp/ftp servers, file servers, etc...  All of those little
routers that are getting out that run Linux.  There are certain roles
where it works so much better than windows that it isn't even funny.

>    ... "Linux is many, many years away from being an enterprise-ready
>    operating system that can compete with, and challenge, the Windows
>    platform," he said. "There is also no vision or driving force around
>    it. We are already in very good shape on the enterprise today and are
>    leading the charge on the Web services front and in new ways of looking
>    at delivering value. ...
> 

I'm not sure that Linux is really >trying<, at this point, to challenge
Windows.  And there are plenty of IT people who have plenty to say about
Windows being truly enterprise-ready itself, so in a way this is the 
pot calling the kettle black.  Linux is what it is.  In certain roles 
it works really well.  In other roles, well, it ain't there yet. 

As far as Web services, by which I assume he means .NET, I don't think
that there is any demonstrated demand for getting your office apps
delivered in that manner.  I suspect that IT departments at large 
sites will flat out refuse to go along with it.  
 
Archer Sully
Boulder, CO