FYI Linux Backers to Support Standard
By WILLIAM M. BULKELEY Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL September 13, 2004; Page B4 Major Linux backers have agreed to support a single version of the freely exchanged computer-operating software, in a move to strengthen its competitiveness against Microsoft Corp. The Free Standards Group, a nonprofit trade organization based in San Francisco, is expected to announce today that providers of Linux versions from around the world agreed to back Linux Standard Base 2.0. Those who have also agreed include International Business Machines Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co., Dell Inc., Intel Corp. and other companies that sell Linux-based computers, software and services. Jim Zemlin, executive director of Free Standards Group, said the agreement "is essential for Linux to compete with Microsoft -- owner of the dominant Windows operating system for personal computers, and other operating systems. Without control, Mr. Zemlin added, distribution of applications and changes for Linux could vary in ways that make them partially incompatible. One benefit of Linux has been that it is an open standard, accessible to everyone. But for-profit companies such as Red Hat Inc. of Raleigh, N.C., and Novell Inc. of Waltham, Mass., frequently add features to Linux to make their products and services more appealing to customers. Even some Linux advocates have worried about the danger of Linux "forking" into several different variants, just as Unix, an older universal operating system divided into proprietary products sold separately by IBM, Sun Microsystems Corp., and others. Microsoft has been highlighting the specter of Linux fragmentation recently as it works to stifle the spread of the rival in the marketplace. It has run advertisements in Europe showing Linux penguins with various appendages such as elephant trunks and frog feet, as a warning to customers that its rival is likely to fragment into incompatible variants. "It's a pretty good advertisement, I've got to admit," says Mr. Zemlin. The desire to counter Microsoft's Windows is creating a broad alliance. Today's announcement also is expected to say that Linux competitors such as Red Hat and the SuSE unit of Novell, have agreed to support the new Linux standard, along with makers of other Linux versions known as distributions. These include France's MandrakeSoft, Japan's Miracle Linux, China's Sun Wah Linux and Brazil's Conectiva. Jeff Hawkins, vice president of Novell's Linux business, said "we've chosen to differentiate ourselves by offering support, and a higher degree of reliability," rather than by adding incompatible features. He said Novell can improve the performance of Linux and make it work on larger systems while remaining compatible with the standards. When special features are added to Linux operating software, makers of application software and computers are forced to continually test to make sure their products work with the variant Linux distributions. Jeffrey Wade, a Linux marketing manager at H-P, said the new standard "gives us an opportunity to cut costs," because "we can test to a standard instead of for each distribution." Dan Fry, vice president of IBM's Linux technology center, said the danger of Linux forking has been overstated, because changes in Linux itself are overseen by Finnish programmer Linus Torvaalds, who wrote the first version and owns the trademark on Linux. However, "it's important to have a standard that customers and software vendors can look to," Mr. Fry said. The standards push comes at a time when Microsoft executives have been touting increased success in competing with Linux. "We're where we want to be," in competitive marketing, said Martin Taylor, a Microsoft vice president who was assigned to lead Microsoft's push against Linux last year. He said that Microsoft is convincing customers that the total cost of ownership of Linux is often higher than Windows despite the initial higher purchase price for Windows, once the cost of support and updates is added. Linux backers said that Linux is continuing to gain ground against Microsoft and Unix on many fronts. In a related development, IBM is expected to announce today that it will start selling its first Linux-only computer as a low-end competitor to cheap Unix computers made by Sun and H-P. Previously, IBM sold Linux only as an alternative operating system on its computers. Write to William M. Bulkeley at bill.bulke...@wsj.com
