I could not resist sending this to you all ... http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a3VyE_ofSwwE&refer=news Its amazing to hear that MS is actually suffering on the OS business - and just because of the fact that 30% of the Netbooks are sold with Linux.
It just emphasize what I have been trying to say here - which is that on the desktop level Windows is too dominant to defeat at this point. But you have a unique opportunity until next December when Windows7 is supposed to be released to eat more and more market share in the Netbook domain. I may be hallucinating but Canonical and the community here need to concentrate all of the efforts around a real winning opportunity, which in my opinion is probably the Mobile edition. Instead of spreading the resources thin. I am not sure how soon an opportunity such as this will come our way to make a difference. Best, Tal On Fri, Oct 10, 2008 at 11:30 PM, Tal Beno <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Sorry for rumbling more about it ... > > As stated software strategy is an elusive trade. Putting aside enterprise > software and focusing on the consumer market, we are facing a unique > opportunity here. Microsoft is making a dual strategic mistake in my humble > opinion when not pushing XP as "the" mobile (netbook/umpc/mid) OS. It has > corrected itself by not eliminating it and reversing the process. But they > are also heavily invested in Windows mobile and as a big corporation it is > almost impossible for them to maneuver to the right direction. > The mobile OS should no longer be considered as a different entity but a > derivative of the desktop OS, with agility and resolution adaptation. The > Ubuntu mobile project seems to have all of that. Actually if I were to > speculate as stated in my original reply, I would say that Canonical has > much more chances with the mobile edition than with the desktop one, > concerning market share and the possibility to finally put a Linux flavor as > a truly wide distribution for the consumer market. > > But my personal opinion is probably different from most open source fans. I > don't see any open source project becoming the next big thing without big > corporations standing behind it. And I may be stating a strange opinion > here, but open source and big corporations should go together. I can see > various software companies which could adopt the Ubuntu mobile project for > various reasons. Without spending big money on this effort the community > will just get frustrated. That said if played right the wonderful community > around Ubuntu could definitely make the difference and elevate it to the > right places. > > To summarize, I can't help thinking that ATM this project is still not on > the road for glory. I don't see Canonical aiming high enough nor have the > vision or the killer instinct they could show. I would personally take > Steve's advice if I were them concerning the forums the advertisement and > the OEMs. I would also suggest putting this agenda as the number one > priority for the company and revamping the Ubuntu front page with mobile > reference. > > Best, > Tal Beno > > > > On Wed, Oct 8, 2008 at 2:11 PM, Steve Paine <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >> I think TAL has a good point that there's an opportunity here that could >> take root if given more support from the back-end. Over the last week we've >> all seen the active response from users too which is an even better >> indication that this distro could be worth focusing on by both the community >> and Canonical. >> >> Its great to hear that Canonical are putting weight behind it then. Thanks >> for the feedback from Emmet. >> >> As a further encouragement to Canonical and the community I want to say >> that I am personally getting queries from OEMs and manufacturers about what >> I think of Linux on netbooks and UMPCs. They are worried about the user >> experience and (possibly unfounded) reports of higher return rates for >> Linux-based netbooks. OEMs want a solution and they want a well-recognised >> solution but if there's a risk of it damaging their brand, they wont take >> it. It's here that I see Canonical playing the main role. You are obviously >> talkingn to OEMs directly in the b/g but how about tempting other OEMs and >> developers via high quality branded blogs and not via IRC (Please, IRC is >> great but users, OEMs, ISVs, resellers jsut dont have the time to >> participate. ) or mailing lists. Canonical also need to do marketing. Now. >> Not when Ubuntu Mobile is launched. Its almost funny that this distro was >> announced on a personal blog until you realise what potential we're talking >> about here. >> >> Ubuntu Mobile seems to be taking root. ISVs and community members need >> reasons to join now. Canonical need to provide the feedback that gives them >> confidence that this project will go forward with aggression, good end-user >> focus and with long-term goals to become the de-facto choice on netbooks and >> medium sized touchscreen devices. >> >> I have a to-do to write another Ubuntu Mobile article soon bul will >> probably fire a few questions to Canonical PR before I do that. I'll try and >> tie it in with the first release at end of October with a new video. >> >> I'll also be campaigning for Poulsbo/SCH/GMA500 support for the next >> release as I know some OEMs that are looking for a solution here. (Some >> faith in Ubuntu-MID appears to have been lost through the delays with the >> Gigabyte M528/Compal JAX10 device.) >> >> Good luck to all for Intrepid release. >> Steve >> >> >> >> On Sat, Sep 27, 2008 at 7:25 PM, Emmet Hikory <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> >>> Tal Beno wrote: >>> > I wish to comment please on Steve's original mail as well as on the >>> overall >>> > reply that Steve got from Mr. Emmet Hikory. >>> >>> Although I've been replying to a number of these mails, it's not >>> that I'm someone particularly special when it comes to Ubuntu Mobile: >>> I'm just a user who was unsatisfied with both Ubuntu MID and Ubuntu >>> Desktop on my Kohjinsha SR. Oliver credits me with some help with the >>> installer, but that truly belongs to the many contributors to the >>> installer technologies used, some originating in Ubuntu, and some in >>> Debian. I may be an Ubuntu Developer, but that's just because I've >>> been an Ubuntu user and contributor for long enough that someone >>> granted me upload rights (I have not checked to see if any of my >>> patches are in Ubuntu Mobile). Nothing I'm saying represents anything >>> other than my opinion, and shouldn't be taken as a statement of policy >>> of any sort. >>> >>> > But as many analysts are claiming the Linux landscape is way too >>> fractured >>> > in general and on the mobile front, so to make this one stand out of >>> the >>> > crowd and give MS a real fight (as with the desktop edition) Canonical >>> can't >>> > throw it on the community as a prime resource, at least not at this >>> stage. >>> > I beg to argue that this is all a big waste of time if you don't intend >>> > realizing the huge potential you have in your hands, and invest much >>> more >>> > resources on its success. The community will follow only when seeing >>> your >>> > own initial commitment ... >>> >>> I take great issue with this assertion. Ubuntu is developed by a >>> large and diverse community, and that Ubuntu Mobile is developed >>> entirely within and as part of Ubuntu is surely a good means by which >>> to ensure that the work done includes the work of the largest number >>> of interested parties. While is it certainly true that Canonical >>> offers significant support to Ubuntu, including almost all of the >>> infrastructure and funding for a number of the developers (I believe >>> it to be over 10%, including more than a third of the most active >>> developers, although I could be mistaken), for which much appreciation >>> is deserved, it is not the case that Ubuntu Mobile is something which >>> Canonical is "throwing on the community", nor is it the case that >>> Ubuntu Mobile being community created and community supported >>> necessarily means that nobody associated with Canonical will be >>> involved in that community. >>> >>> While Oliver has created the initial preview image for Ubuntu >>> Mobile, the idea originates from the UDS held in Prague, has been >>> discussed in the #ubuntu-mobile channel in freenode for some time, and >>> relies heavily on the work of the entire Ubuntu community in order to >>> function as well as it does. The Ubuntu Mobile community is expected >>> to support this new flavour (as is true for the community surrounding >>> any Ubuntu flavour), and that community consists of interested people >>> from many sources, including Canonical. If there are no interested >>> individuals, then there is no community, and there is no point in >>> having such a flavour of Ubuntu. I know I'm interested, and judging >>> from the mail here, the comments to Oliver's blog entry, and the >>> comments to Steve's article, I'm fairly certain I'm not alone. >>> There's no reason we can't make Ubuntu Mobile great, but it's not >>> right to frame this as a competition between corporate entities, or to >>> try to fit some analyst's model: the key idea is to make something >>> that we want to use, and to seek out any resources we need to make it >>> as good as it can be. >>> >>> -- >>> Emmet HIKORY >>> >>> -- >>> Ubuntu-mobile mailing list >>> [email protected] >>> Modify settings or unsubscribe at: >>> https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-mobile >>> >> >> >> >> -- >> Steve 'Chippy' Paine >> Promoting mobile computing devices to >> over 220,000 people per month through >> UMPCPortal.com >> >> -- >> Ubuntu-mobile mailing list >> [email protected] >> Modify settings or unsubscribe at: >> https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-mobile >> >> >
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