“Now that Linux has gained credibility among IT managers and
received the imprimatur of Wall Street investors, both groups of
stakeholders are demanding that Linux vendors offer more than
repackaged freeware and telephone support. By some measures, these
vendors have their work cut out for them.”
“The big question right now is reliable vendor support,” says
Bill Santille, a VP responsible for IT procurement at investment
bank ABN Amro Inc. in Chicago. “Second is the availability of
talent and expertise. Sure, Linux is free, but you have to go
out and hire all the talent.” Santille says IT staff with Unix
experience can go part of the way to solving the support
problem-but only part. “For companies like ourselves that are more
risk-averse,” he says, “we have more of a wait-and-see
attitude….”