Lies, Damn Lies and Linux Market Share Statistics

""Tracking Linux is difficult in the current climate," Montreal consultant and Slashdot blogger Gerhard Mack concurred.

""My current laptop came with XP simply because I got a better deal on the hardware; how can Dell know I opened it up and swapped the Broadcom wireless adapter for a more Linux-friendly Atheros that I got on eBay and reformatted?" he explained. "They can't. Unless someone wants to make an automated Linux counter for the distros to install, we're out of luck. And even then it will count low thanks to Linux having a large number of privacy-conscious users who will disable that feature if it exists."

"Indeed, while Linux does have some sales data for evidence of market share, the fact that it's generally free makes tracking it difficult, Slashdot blogger yagu told LinuxInsider.

"Consider, for example, how many Linux servers are running without management's knowledge, he pointed out -- "I know they're out there; I've worked in places where this is humorously so," he said."

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