The New Challenge to Microsoft
[ . . . ] outside programmers have long complained that Microsoft makes it hard for them to create software compatible with Windows-based computers.
The government’s antitrust lawsuit was aimed at solving these problems. If it fails to do that — a ruling on a proposed settlement is expected soon — the best hope may be Linux. Since Linux software is free, hundreds of dollars could be cut off the price of a computer. No less important, since Linux’s source code — the intricacies of how it works — is publicly available, programmers don’t have to get permission or assistance from anyone.
But how many IT shops can exploit the power of Open Source code? Take a bunch of earnest young techs with fanny packs full of CDs, armed with the latest server packs and hot fixes, who always seem to fall back on “format and reinstall” as their problem solving technique, and picture them trying to manage Linux. There’s the command line to deal with, the lack of paper manuals, and the painful requirement that one think and understand the system as more than a disposable collection of licenses.
Too harsh a view? I’ve worked in a software development environment that was unable to leverage unencumbered code: would I expect the average MCSE at a non-technical firm to do better?
It’s interesting to monitor the drumbeat of these articles as they sound the deathknell for MSFT’s unquestioned dominance, but it’s hardly credible. Linux, FreeBSD,et al, are not as revolutionary as the personal computer was in the age of Big Iron.