----- Original Message -----
From: Alan Shoemaker <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 1999 11:50 PM
Subject: Re: [expert] Web site (doubleblink)
> Civileme....I don't think it's too suprising that the poll came out like
> that, after all, there have been two MacMillan distributions of
> Linux-Mandrake that both say "RedHat with enhancements" right on the
> box. These boxed distributions can be found in many of the major
> discount stores in the USA and they are likely one of the major
> contributing factors for the phenominal growth of Linux-Mandrake over
> the past 6 to 8 months.
>
My LUG distributes Mandrake at local computer shows. We purchase the disks
from www.linuxcentral.com and mark them up just enough to cover our
distibution expenses,so they are very inexpensive. Yet we have trouble
marketing them as "Mandrake". RedHat has so much market awareness that it is
easier to say they are "RedHat on steroids" or "RedHat with improvements".
But the fact remains that RedHat compatability helps sell the disks. I look
at it this way: Elisha Grey and Alexander Graham Bell "invented" the
telephone, but my Nokia cell phone is certainly much better than theirs. I
see RedHat and Mandrake as being in a similar relationship: it's the same
idea, but done better.
BTW, I make a distro based on Mandrake that I use and distribute to my
friends. It is essentially Mandrake with 1)bugfixes/updates , 2)extra
programs (many from cooker contribs), 3)mods to the /comps file 4)enhanced
DOS and recovery utilities and 5)extra documantation. I immodestly call it
MDB or "Mandrake Done Better"; there's always room for improvement.
Hoyt
