“Linux and the Open Source Software movement have affected
worldwide computing–first in the data center and now moving in on
the desktop. Even though Microsoft Windows is the de facto desktop
and office automation standard worldwide, more and more countries
and their governments are looking to desktop Linux as an
alternative. The adoption and diffusion of desktop Linux is the
U.S. has lagged behind other parts of the world; however, federal,
state and local governments in the U.S. are adopting desktop Linux
much more than in the private sector. If government adopts desktop
Linux, it can have an escalating effect on adoption in the private
sector. Industry experts predict that desktop Linux adoption in
government in the U.S. will happen in two to five years…”