ZDNet UK: Running Linux with Office XP: Is it Ready for Business?

“Linux as a viable desktop operating system has been apparently
coming over the horizon for so long that it would easy to dismiss
as a mirage. But recently, a few developments have shown up on the
radar that are worth paying attention to for anyone wondering what
the fate of Linux will be.

“One of these must be the recent deal awarded to Germany’s SuSE
Linux to replace 13,000 ageing Windows NT desktop PCs with Linux
installations. SuSE is also putting 4,000 desktops into place for
insurance company Debeka, and says four or five Fortune 100
companies in the US are considering installing its desktop product
alongside their existing SuSE Linux server installations. Red Hat,
which has never claimed to be very interested in desktops, unveiled
end-user-focused software with its most recent distribution, and is
rumoured to be planning an enterprise desktop product for this
autumn.

“Linux companies have been releasing supposedly user-friendly
distributions for years, but selling thousands of desktops to large
businesses is another matter entirely. Is the new
enterprise-oriented desktop software really all it’s cracked up to
be? ZDNet UK took a closer look at the newly minted SuSE Linux
Desktop–the software the city of Munich will be using–to find
out…”

Complete
Story