“Readers of this column over the past month will have noticed a
certain big company vs. little company motif. Maybe it’s the
upcoming LinuxWorld Convention and Expo in New York, but for some
reason, the safe money nowadays seems to be moving in the direction
of larger, more traditional businesses.”
“That’s not to say small companies are out of the running
altogether, of course. A few days ago I paid a visit to WorkSpot, a
30-person company based in Palo Alto, Calif. And while the visit
wasn’t enough to dispel a growing cause for concern over the
momentary health of the open source business sector, it was enough
to remind me that even in tough times, being small has its
advantages….”
“Indeed, watching WorkSpot CEO Kathy Giori put her company’s new
AppSpot thin-client product through its paces, I had to fight back
an instinctive “So what?” AppSpot essentially lets Windows-based PC
users run Linux server-based applications via their Microsoft
Internet Explorer browser.”
“Such a move seems about as counterintuitive as chopping the
roof off a Ford Aerostar and using it as a pickup truck until you
realize the following fact: Windows apps cost money to license;
most Linux and Unix-based apps do not.”