awesome ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nashid Hasan" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 19, 2002 11:28 AM Subject: [brlug-general] Mandrake on Microtel systems at Walmart.com soon
> This time its Mandrake...... > > > As early as next week, Walmart.com will begin selling Microtel PCs loaded > with the Mandrake Linux distribution. > Keep your eye on Walmart.com for new Microtel systems bearing the Mandrake > logo. The systems will sell alongside the newly announced Lindows-based > PCs, say sources. And continue to look for more online retail > envelope-pushing from Wal-Mart's online wing, of all places. > MandrakeSoft CEO Jacques Le Marois confirms the news this morning, and > company spokeswoman Margaret Waters says, while a contract with Microtel > has not been finalized, the company is working on getting Mandrake > certified to run like clockwork on the Microtel systems. Waters is hopeful > that the dotted line will be signed and PCs up for sale by the end of next > week. > Walmart.com and Microtel are getting a lot of press lately, mostly because > Walmart.com is the first major retailer to offer something other than the > standard Windows PC. With Walmart.com taking the first leap, it's possible > that other stores will follow in selling bare systems and those with Linux > preloaded. > Walmart.com has a few well-placed electronics buyers who are savvy to > Linux, and a management team looking for ways to reinvigorate stagnant > computer sales numbers. The combination has resulted in innovations like > the Windows-free Microtel line and has generated strong sales and low > return numbers, a trend Walmart.com may hope will continue with the > introduction of Linux systems. According to sources, the buyers chose > Lindows first because of perceived user-friendliness. > But the move to Mandrake may be seen as a better one for the Linux world > and for people who want to purchase the Microtel systems with Linux, > because Mandrake has been around for years, is already on the brink of a > 9.0 release level and has an established reputation for providing support. > In support of LindowsOS, however, Rich Hindman of Microtel says that as of > Monday, June 17, the version of Lindows that lives in the systems sold > through Walmart.com is LindowOS 1.1, not the beta SPX mentioned in a quote > from a Lindows PR spokeswoman in Tuesday's report. > A source close to Walmart.com says that Lindows itself is "ready to roll," > and that drivers are the only hold up. The Walmart.com units contain > special custom drivers written specifically for the Microtel project. "The > only way someone can get Lindows 1.1 is to buy a computer with it > pre-installed," says Hindman, vice president at Microtel. > There has been some disdain expressed in the Linux community over the > perception that Lindows has been reluctant to release source code under the > terms of the GPL. Brad Kuhn of the Free Software Foundation expressed some > concern that Lindows was going to market at Walmart.com without a fitting > EULA. "We have promised [Lindows CEO Michael] Robertson a rewrite of his > EULA, and it is waiting for time from our general counsel to write one. We > do wish he'd told us in confidence that this Wal-Mart deal was imminent; we > could have expedited the work on the EULA if we'd known." > > > --Nash > > > _______________________________________________ > General mailing list > [email protected] > http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net >
