Linux has gained enough power in the commercial sphere that
computing giant Hewlett-Packard is evaluating whether to fit the
upstart operating system into its product plans.
“We do see a place for Linux in certain application areas,” said
Les Wilson, HP’s director of HP-UX marketing.
“Linux won’t ever threaten high-powered Unix versions such as
HP-UX that can handle multiprocessing systems, but with its ‘small
and sleek’ kernel–the core of the operating system–and modest
hardware requirements, it could be useful embedded into a ‘Web
appliance,’ mail server, or firewall box that companies could plug
into the network.”