“…I think it’s extremely important to
revisit, reexamine and reevaluate one of the fair-haired segments
of last year: companies touting various versions of the Linux
operating system. Last year this sector had all the drama and
glamour of a Hollywood flick, as Linus Tovalds, the Finnish native
who helped create this free UNIX-based operating system, got almost
as much press as Bill Gates.”
“From the investor’s point of view, the
Linux picture has been nothing short of disastrous. For example,
share value in the once-mighty Red Hat has plummeted from its
52-week high of $148 to around $7 per share. Similarly, VALinux
share price has fallen from a 52-week high of $179.25 to about $7
per share. Meanwhile, Caldera – which never reached the heights of
its two rivals-is selling at about $2 per share, far off its
52-week high of $33 per share.”
“This brings me to what I think is the fatal flaw in the
promulgation of the Linux operating system: lack of profit motive
up and down the distribution food chain. If the often vilified Bill
Gates proved one thing by making Windows the most-widely used
operating system in the world it is this: profit motivates.
Put another way: money talks and bull excrement walks.”