Boston Globe: Mac Poses as Much of Challenge to Linux as to Windows

[ Thanks to Jonathan M. Prigot for this link. ]

"The grass gets trampled when the elephants fight. Apple Computer's snarky ad campaign urging people to switch from Microsoft Windows machines to Apple's Macintosh computers probably won't put a dent in Windows sales. But it could mean serious trouble for the effort to put the Linux operating systems on home and corporate desktops.

Linux, a cheap, highly compatible substitute for the advanced Unix operating system, has seized more than a quarter of the market for heavy-duty server computers. But at most, 2 percent of desktop users are running the software, partly because it's notoriously difficult to use.

"That makes Apple's Mac OS X operating system at least as much of a challenge to Linux as it is to Microsoft. Mac OS X is Unix, but with Apple's elegant user interface bolted on. Scientists at places like NASA are unplugging their old Unix workstations and replacing them with Macs. How long before Linux desktop loyalists abandon the digital wrestling match and switch to Apple as well...?"

Complete Story

Related Stories:

• CNET News: Is That a Mac in a Penguin Suit?(Sep 11, 2002)
• Freezer-Burn: The Future of the Linux Desktop(Aug 28, 2002)
• Time: The Little Penguin That Could(Aug 20, 2002)
• New Yankee Group Study Sees Increased Users for Linux, Mac(Aug 07, 2002)