Bonum Certa Men Certa

Do-No-Evil Saturday - Part II: Business Around SUSE (SLE*) and Xandros

handshake black and white



THERE have been quite a few articles of interest over the past week. SUSE appears in conjunction with Red Hat a lot of the time, but sometimes it's treated as its own unique entity. Such is the case in the following post from pseudonym 'Paul Murphy', whose previous headline, "Desktop Unix: MacOS X and “Sousa Linicks”," was changed shortly after he had initially published it.





As regular readers know my general preference in making IT decisions is to keep the hardware and software as simple as possible while putting the real focus on empowering the people using it. In general, therefore, I see “the right way” as one that centralizes processing for simplicity while decentralizing control for empowerment - but sometimes there’s no sensible way to meet user needs without giving them laptops and the question then is, which ones you should get?

[....]

For those who put a premium on user productivity, MacOS X is the no brainer option: it’s more matter of fact than Novell’s new GUI skin and packaging, and mostly just stays out of the way of knowledgeable users. In fact, for many it meets the IT ideal: it works so well, they don’t know it’s there or doing anything to help them - they just click and expect it to work; because, well, it just does.


The Register has this article about Sun. Servers in question support SUSE, among other platforms. That's despite the tensions.

The X6420 has two Gigabit Ethernet ports, and because it has fewer memory slots, it can support four 2.5-inch, hot-pluggable SAS drives. Solaris 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and 5, Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9 and 10, and Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008 are certified for the blade. So is VMware's ESX Server 3.5 hypervisor. With two Opteron 2352 processors running at 2.1 GHz, 8 GB of memory, and no disks, the X6240 blade server costs $2,610.


Another article from The Register, which is about IBM mainframes, touches on SUSE's dominance there. It's largely because of IBM, which assisted the acquisition of S.u.S.E. it's a subject that was covered here in the past (e.g. here).

Specifically, Novell is offering a 40 per cent discount on per-core support contracts for System z10 BC mainframes. Since Novell no longer gives out mainframe pricing to the public, it is hard to say what kind of deal this is. Assuming SLES 10 prices have not changed since the summer of 2006, when this rev of the operating system was launched, then basic support for SLES 10 costs $11,999 per mainframe engine (not machine) per year, with a standard 9x5 support costing $14,999 per engine per year and priority 24x7 tech support costing $17,999 per engine per year.

In January, Novell offered customers a three-year support contract for the price of two years to try to spur demand, and it is unclear if this deal is still in effect. To sweeten the pot a little, Novell is kicking in a free SLES self study kit (which has a retail value of $1,095) to System z10 BC buyers.


Here is is some more coverage about those mainframes.

This system is optimized to run Linux operating system. The company has worked with Red Hat and Novell to make sure that Linux runs without a hitch on this system.


SUSE is also being promoted/endorsed by SAP, to which it has been growing close for quite some time. This seems like a sort of reciprocal validation in a press release (also can be found here or here)

As sponsor of this event series and long-term partner to SAP, Novell will be present at the event and will answer questions on the use and advantages of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for small businesses and midsize companies. Other sponsoring partners include SAP(R) Business All-in-One partners Bramasol, Inc.; IDS Scheer; itelligence Inc. and Optimal Solutions, as well as SAP(R) Business One partners Accelbus Systems, LLC; Apollo Consulting, LLC; Real Solutions of North America, Inc.; Synesis International, Inc. and TBC International Consulting, Inc.

"We're very pleased to be continuing to support the SAP World Tour for the SME market," said Susan Heystee, vice president, general manager, Global Strategic Alliances, Novell. "Both SAP and Novell have heard from our SME customers that they are increasingly looking for a complete solution, from the operating system up to the application, with an integrated source of technical support that will help them lower cost and reduce complexity. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server is a recommended Linux distribution and internal development platform for SAP applications and its further optimization will deliver the performance, reliability and scalability that customers demand."


Despite or because of the economic climate, Novell's identity management product is being deployed on SUSE at a large bank.

One of the largest independent banks in America, UMB Financial Corp., (UMB) is implementing Novell(R) identity management solutions on SUSE(R) Linux Enterprise Real Time to streamline user access and increase data security. A multi-bank holding company headquartered in Kansas City, MO, UMB has 3,500 employees and offers complete banking, asset management, health spending solutions and related financial services to both individual and business customers nationwide. With Novell, UMB has streamlined user access, reduced information technology (IT) administration time and improved its ability to comply with regulatory requirements.


Further south in Latin America, Novell's role is mentioned despite the fact that Red Hat is pretty big there.

According to Muñoz, the company has a strong presence in the retail and financial services industries, with emblematic clients such as BBVA, Carrefour and Sodimac, among others.

"In Brazil we are working on a very important project which is the spread of the use of Linux in the country, in partnership with companies such as Novell (Nasdaq: NOVL) and Microsoft [Nasdaq: MSFT]. Our role is to join them to develop some case studies or business cases that can compare to other experiences in the use of Linux in the US or Europe," Muñoz added.


OES2



OES is based on Linux now. Novell has a new beta, which is covered in the following:

1. Beta of Novell Open Enterprise Server 2 Available

Novell, provider of open source software, has announced the public beta of Open Enterprise Server 2 with Service Pack 1 (SP1), which brings interoperability between Linux, Windows, Macintosh and NetWare to the next level.


2. Novell Open Enterprise beta targets Netware users

To woo existing Netware customers over to the Linux platform, Waltham, Mass.-based Novell Inc. has introduced a beta version of its Linux-based Open Enterprise Server 2

A proprietary utility application that runs on top of SUSE Linux Enterprise, the new Service Pack 1 (SP1) public beta of Open Enterprise Server brings the year-old Open Enterprise application up to par with Netware in performance and scalability and adds new interoperability and ease-of-use features that Netware and other systems lack, according to product manager Sophia Germanides.


The O'Gara shill [1, 2] covered this too (no link) and we mentioned it briefly last week. Worth bringing up again is this Waggener Edstrom ugliness (full document here [PDF]), which should remind the world how Microsoft spies on bloggers and reporters.

Xandros



Xandros may not be Canada-based but there are some roots there and it is mentioned in this article about the recession in Ottawa.

Xandros and Scalix, two Linux technology companies with research operations in Ottawa, are rolling out the Scalix e-mail and scheduling software feature in Japan. Scalix said it has more than 1,000 corporate customers.


Here is another article (among many) about the Xandros derivate from ASUS, running on the Eee PC.

Though the S101 got all dressed up on the outside, its inside still sports the usual netbook components. A 1.6GHz Atom processor, 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB SSD give the S101 its internal thrust. Running Windows XP (the Xandros Linux version won’t be available in the U.S.) the S101 seemed to handle normal netbook such as launching applications swiftly and surfing the Net. The SSD booted the system in a decent 50 seconds.


Here is another one.

I love my little Asus Eee 900 netbook. It's been doing quite well in the world market for notebook computers, and there are more on the way. Mine came with Xandros' really scaled down Linux software, but I loaded Ubuntu-eee instead for a much fuller experience. It's great in tight seating on planes.


AXIGEN, a proprietary mail handling and delivery system, has earned a new distributor, which turns out to be also a channel partner of Xandros.

Amazis.net sp. z o. o. is the distributor of many Open Source solutions developed around the world. It is the sole representative of Mandriva, O3Spaces, AXIGEN Mail Server, Xandros and Scalix. In addition, it also closely cooperates with Codeweavers, Cedega, NoMachine.


More about Xandros and Scalix to be revealed in a coming show?

Munich, Germany October, 2008 Xandros, the leader in making Linux and Windows work together, today announced that key staff will showcase the latest Scalix email, calendaring and messaging solutions at Systems 2008 in Munich, Germany, October 21-24. Systems is the leading business-to-business trade show for IT, media and communications in Germany.


Next to come: the remainder of Novell's business.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Rejecting 'Snoop-Phones' and Turning "Old" Phones (or Tablets) Into Freedom-Respecting Appliances
Paul Fernhout (pdfernhout.net) wrote back to Akira Urushibatathis this past weekend
Apple is the Company of Dictators and Worse
Apple is just another greedy corporation in search of sweatshops and even pedophiles (especially the high-profile ones)
Counting Unhatched Eggs Is Not Counting Chickens
Everything here will persist as normal
The "Infinite Bread"
The biblical story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 has software parallels
In Many Cases and in Many Different Ways, Technology Became Less Durable and Less Reliable Over Time
The "modern" things are more complex. And complexity is a foe or reliability and repair-ability.
Microsoft's LinkedIn is Losing Money, Traffic, and Hope; Now It Wants to Sell Its Users' Lifeblood (and Data)
Let this be a reminder of what social control media really is about
Microsoft Lunduke: Freedom of Speech Means Spreading What I Have to Say and Banning People I Disagree With
4Chan is one he aims for and he is siccing 4Chan trolls at people he doesn't like
Richard Stallman Back at the "Rudolf-Diesel" Hörsal "MW 2001" in About 40 Hours
He spoke there before; there's a very high seating capacity there
 
Slopwatch: Google News Promoting Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt (FUD)
What is the value of Google News if so many results in it are fake 'articles?
Our Uptime This Year Was Better Than AWS (Also a Lot Cheaper)
We never used "the cloud"
Amazon Web Shenanigans
An ongoing, experimental endeavour
Death of Elias Diem: FSFE mailing list archives hidden
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 20/10/2025: Louvre Museum Reveals Weakness, About 7 Million Protest US Turning Into Oligarchy/Monarchy
Links for the day
They Should Have Listened to Techrights Over a Month Earlier (Xubuntu Site Compromised)
we reported this issue about 40 days earlier and nobody did anything about it
Richard Stallman to Give Another Talk Today in Bavaria (Bavarian Academy of Science)
Tomorrow at 6 PM he speaks in Munich
Barry Kauler Explains That Puppy Linux and EasyOS Exclude Systemd to Keep Things Simple
Barry Kauler's Puppy Linux is in the community's hands. He now focuses on EasyOS and more.
Half a Year After Brian Fagioli Got Kicked Out of BetaNews for Slop He's Still Doing LLM Slop and Slop Images Targeting 'Linux' (Plagiarising Original Works)
If the Web gets polluted or flooded by slopfarms such as these, and Slashdot then sends traffic so these slopfarms (Slashdot probably doesn't do this intentionally), then real writers with real knowledge of GNU/Linux will lose the spark for publishing
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, October 19, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, October 19, 2025
Campaign of FUD Against Framework Laptops and GNU/Linux (Using Microsoft's Attack on Linux, 'Secure Boot')
Ritual Defamation Cult has turned its attention over to Framework
Liberation From 'The Feed'
They rank things based on the editor's choice/ideology (he or she knows the sponsors, hence the masters)
Microsoft's Killing of Vista 10 Seems to Have Resulted in More Articles About GNU/Linux (But Also FUD)
We not only saw a rise in traffic, we also saw a remarkable rise in the number of articles
Today (a Day Before Richard Stallman Talk at TUM) There's a Patent Propaganda Event at TUM
Perhaps an opportunity for Dr. Stallman to rebut this "invention to patent" nonsense/fantasy (conflating monopolies with innovation)
OpenSource or "Open Source" as a Brand is Dying, Let's Get Back to Talking About Software Freedom
Those of us who actually want to reform the industry and put users in control of their systems/devices will recognise that "Open Source" was selling a lie or got-co-opted by liars
19 Years in Numbers: Techrights' Anniversary Countdown and Retrospective
In 2019 we began improving our workflows and, accordingly/predictably, we became a lot more productive
Slop Turns People Off (LLMs Lack Intelligence, They're Just Plagiarism Powerhouses That Fail to Deliver Any Real, Measurable Value)
"More" (or "MOAR") isn't always better
IBM Red Hat Has Re-calibrated or Adjusted to Bubble Economics, False Promises, and Slop/Plagiarism
This won't end well
Fake Numbers, Fake Claims, Fake Economy, and Media Grifters That Prop Up Fraud
Grifters like The Register MS won't be looked upon kindly after the bubble implodes
For Some, the GNU Web Site is Not Accessible This Week
They seem to have gone into some kind of lock-down mode
Symptoms of Upcoming Microsoft Layoffs in XBox
A crashing franchise
Psychiatrist confession: Germanwings crash & Debian toxic culture recognized before suicides
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Gemini Links 19/10/2025: Scentjacking 101, Slop Hype Boosters, and Steam Next Fest
Links for the day
Slopwatch: The Serial Slopper, LinuxSecurity, and Google News
Let's hope slopfarms die as soon as possible
Links 19/10/2025: Cambodia Scam Centres, Slop Hurting Wikipedia Traffic
Links for the day
As Economies Crumble Free as in Beer Will Matter, Not Just Free as in Freedom/Libre (Libertad)
French regions choosing to embrace Software Freedom
25 Years Ago, an Explanation of How Reducing Free Software to 'Apps' Would Interfere With Freedom Goals
there's nothing unreasonable about it
A List of 63 Known Gemini Clients (Software to Browse Geminispace Content With Gemini Protocol)
Not counting browser plugins for Web browsers
Gemini Links 19/10/2025: "Firma Odin Is Transforming" and Bot Attacks While "AFK"
Links for the day
US Government: 6.1% of Site Visitors Use GNU/Linux
GNU/Linux has a considerable share and it is growing
LLM Slop Could Not Rise to Prominence Without Media Complicity and Artificial Hype
Inane garbage disguised as "journalism"
Why the FSF No Longer Recommends Debian, as Explained by Richard Stallman This Month
some weeks ago
All the Latest Half Dozen Articles by Mehedi Hasan (UbuntuPIT) Only Admit at the End That He's Using LLM Slop
Disclosure is OK, but the practice of using slop is not
The 'Modern' Web of Fake Security and Easy Censorship of Whole Domains
Each year it gets worse
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, October 18, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, October 18, 2025
The Term "AI" is Not New and What Today's Media Calls "AI" Isn't Even AI
Only the hype was new... and totally artificial
Gemini Links 18/10/2025: "Planetary Rings", Steam, and PSU Replacement
Links for the day
Defeating LLM Abuse (State-of-the-Art Plagiarism) in the Area of Linux and GNU, Free Software, BSD, Security and So On
The aim is to get them to stop using LLMs to rip off other people's work
Links 18/10/2025: Russell Vought in Charge, US Government Leans to Russia Again
Links for the day
Credit Where It's Due: LinuxConfig.org Quit Doing LLM Slop, Back to Original and Real Articles
We waited for a while to say this, now it seems conclusive
Of Note: UbuntuPIT Aware of Critics of Slop, Adds Disclosure of Use of LLMs
We appreciate the honesty
Links 18/10/2025: Madagascar's President Flees and ICE Arrests Protest Comedian Robby Roadsteamer
Links for the day
Richard Stallman Near the European Patent Office (EPO) in 3 Days From Now
It'll be a good opportunity for patent examiners to listen, ask questions, and maybe greet him in person
From Scholar to Booster of Slop (and Even Slop in His Own Blog)
We're going to keep an eye on future posts of his
End of Vista 10 Also Good News for the BSDs
There are many news sites that recommend trying GNU/Linux this month
What's Wrong With Liking Parrots or Birds as Pets?
They'd demonise people for speaking about freedom, no matter what they say or do
Digital Sanitation Good Practices
leave behind Microsoftism
10 Days Ago Richard Stallman Gave a Long Interview in French (linuxfr.org)
English translation
Science, Not Fast Food/Junk Food
The commercial exploitation of users won't stop until users exercise full control over their software or - more broadly - their computing (including data)
The Free Software Foundation, Which Has Appointed a 43-Year-Old President, is Looking to Add Another Board Member (or Treasurer)
expect the FSF to add more people
Richard Stallman Confirms Next Week's Talk at Technical University of Munich, We Urge EPO Staff to Attend
That's probably late enough for EPO staff to attend after work
Gemini Links 18/10/2025: Notifications and Geminaut
Links for the day
Many Red Hat People Are Leaving, But It'll Be Framed Publicly as Leaving IBM
Similarly, IBM layoffs (or "RAs" as they're called) include Red Hat layoffs
Expect More Waves of Microsoft Layoffs This Month (at Least Two Rounds Confirmed Already)
From what we can gather, assuming the recent rumours about XBox are true, there will be at least 3 waves of Microsoft layoffs this month alone
Security Issues in Cisco and Jenkins Passed Off as "Linux" Problems
Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt (FUD) tactics
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, October 17, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, October 17, 2025