The release of OpenSUSE 11.0 is approaching. We gently remind readers that despite all the pretty colours in the Qt-based installer and the flexibility complexity of YaST, the distribution hasn’t sufficient added value to work better than counterparts, many of which are free and decent.
Here is what the Washington Post has just had to say about Novell’s SUSE:
Novell’s infuriatingly complicated, cranky implementation of Linux is almost guaranteed to send a beginner reeling in horror, or at least distaste.
The opinion about Vista isn’t particularly flattering either, but the author has, on numerous times in the past couple of years, expressed satisfaction with Ubuntu GNU/Linux.
You don’t need SUSE. Your peers, colleagues, family and friends probably do not need it either. I happen to keep track of OpenSUSE on a daily basis, so this is not an impulsive and spontaneous rant. SUSE is not the market leader. It lost momentum after the deal with Microsoft. █
There are some new products out there which chose SUSE as their GNU/Linux distribution. It’s important to be aware of them (or avoid them). The first is the H-P mini-laptop, which is blogged about here.
SRP for the basic model which comes with 1GB RAM, 120GB HDD and SuSe Linux is P24950. It’s definitely more expensive than the Eee, but it’s more feature-packed as well.
Here are some more bits about the Netbook, including the mentioning of MSI. It uses Novell’s Linux.
Linux fans may feel slighted, however, because while the $499 Windows XP Home version is equipped as mentioned above, the $399 SUSE Linux-based version is comparatively stripped. It pares down RAM to 512MB, omits Bluetooth, and has the three-cell battery as standard.
Further information
According to MSI, the Windows version of the Wind will go on sale Jun. 16th. The Linux version will be available “later this summer.”
Microsoft Corp. plans to demonstrate integration Friday between its new Silverlight browser plug-in technology for rich Internet applications and the Ruby on Rails Web framework.
This is not major news and it is hardly worth a front page. However, a reader sent us a pointer to the discussion in Slashdot. Here’s one small portion of it, which is the old eye-opener.
What I don’t get is, what happened to RubyCLR? This IronRuby has the same name as an old IronRuby. Microsoft hired RubyCLR developers and now is developing yet another IronRuby instead? Are they seriously starting over just to get it under a different license?!
New HP-Microsoft Live Search deal is all about Silverlight
Following the recent announcement of Live Search cashback, Microsoft has today disclosed a new deal with HP that is expected to give a slight boost to the usage of both Live Search and Silverlight in the US and Canada, starting in January 2009. The deal centers around a Silverlight-powered toolbar (not to be confused with the recently updated MSN Silverlight toolbar) that Microsoft is specifically developing for HP.
As we stressed in the past, Microsoft seems to be begging for yet another antitrust action against it, but the company has too much to lose if it does not pull such tricks and inherits control of the Web from the likes of Google, Firefox, and even Yahoo!
“Microsoft may have found a workaround, essentially pulling the same trick it was using back in Netscape Era.”The antitrust aspects of this may seem easy to dodge by not incorporating linkage at the core product which is Windows but by letting the OEMs do the job. Microsoft may have found a workaround, essentially pulling the same trick it was using back in Netscape Era. It’s a trick where the software company instructs the OEMs and makes demands — using EULAs — as to how to set up the PCs so as to exclude rivals.
As trivially observed in the leaked E-mails that you can find here, none of this strategy is new. Microsoft and H-P engage in some sort of an ‘anti-Google pact’ (like Novell versus Red Hatet al), similar to that from the exclusionary deals with Dell and Compaq at the time — ones that required that the OEM puts Internet Explorer on the PC and also makes it more easily accessible to the user (desktop shortcuts and the likes of them).
Acer has been devoured by H-P and the new risk is no longer Netscape, so only technology and the players swapped roles. There is more critical information about this over at Linux Journal.
Microsoft representatives are quoted claiming 40% of searchers use the default search installed for their system. If true, the HP deal will give Microsoft an immediate audience of millions for it’s search offerings, though the company has declined to speculate on the amount of additional traffic and revenue expected from the deal.
Who is to blame here? Microsoft or H-P? Therein lies the mastery of this trickery. It’s a case of paying for market share rather than earning some in return technical merits, or even advertising. It’s hard to point fingers, too. █
Nothing major to see here, so most watchers might as well move along
In general, not much has happened for Novell in the past week. The only major event, as we have shown earlier, is the release of the first RC of OpenSUSE 11.0. The financial results are another high note.
Here are some of the ‘leftover news’ that we haven’t yet shared.
NetWare
Some rather obscure product called Veri-Scribe has been released as version 1.2 and it supports Novell’s Netware.
Veri-Scribe II Version 1.2 is fully compatible with the Microsoft Windows(R) Vista(R) operating system, Novell(R) Netware(R), and supports compatibility with a wide variety of legacy audio interfaces.
We are still waiting for a decision on Novell-SCO to be made — a decision which the public knows nothing about. For background on the latest, see [1, 2].
In the mean time, here are a few of the latest developments at Novell, to the exclusion of GNU/Linux news which earlier posts covered [1, 2].
Windows/Novell
Novell gets sort of snubbed in Indian banks. Novell ought to get used to it if it relies on Microsoft for marketing.
Deepak Maheshwari, Director, Corporate Affairs, Microsoft India, shares his thoughts with Neeraj Gandhi, on the recently introduced Microsoft Platform Security and Audit Handbook 2008.
[...]
What about Linux keeping in mind Microsoft’s tie-up with Novell?
Presently we are focusing on these three Microsoft platforms only.
Microsoft is likely to continue phasing Novell out while Novell’s strategy is to rely on Microsoft. Not smart.
The school system currently uses Novell, which is an aging operating system. Novell also isn’t compatible with the Microsoft operating system that county government uses.
Rather than creating direct integration with specific packages, Gwava puts all of its data into an SQL Server format that can be integrated by a supplier or enterprise as part of a custom solution. Unlike its other products, however, which interact directly with Novell GroupWise, Gwava’s Retain for BES does not require GroupWise. ”
M+Extranet 3.5 is an efficient and cost-effective solution for collaborating with non-GroupWise users, and instantly publishing GroupWise content on a company intranet site, client extranet site, or student portal. Content can be published as an HTML page, RSS feed, blog or podcast without the need for expensive web authoring tools or content duplication.
Mentioned last week was the following news, which Beta News gets to at the end. It seems like Beta News has found new affinity for Novell, especially because of Jacqueline Emigh. Bear in mind that Beta News is very Microsoft-oriented. It’s worth keeping track of which publications give positive/negative publicly to whom. It explains favouritism and prejudice.
Despite its well known interoperability deal with Microsoft, Novell still sees Redmond as the big competitor to catch in the groupware, collaboration, and messaging arenas, where the SuSE Linux distributor has just released the new, multiplatform Novell Open Workgroup Suite (NOWS) with Novell Teaming.
Novell’s Stephen Pollack to Present at SYS-CON’s Virtualization Conference & Expo, June 23-24, in New York City
We wrote about virtualisation at Novell some hours ago. Novell is with Microsoft and its affiliates. Even SYS-CON, especially with the presence of Maureen O’Gara, is not friend of FOSS. She’s describing ODF as “Microsoft-hostile” at the moment, revealing her bias immediately. Her recent attacks on Stallman are not to be forgotten and they make SYS-CON seem like a tabloid, not just an annoying publication that floods Google New using spamming techniques.
Hewlett-Packard Co. and Novell Inc. said Friday they will jointly offer migration services as part of an deal to migrate Hewlett-Packard identity center customers to Novell identity and security management products.
As part of an agreement between the companies, HP and Novell will jointly offer migration services, HP will resell Novell identity and security management solutions and Novell will license HP Identity Center technology.
More from the British press appeared almost a week later.
HP has exited the world of identity management and handed over its Identity Center customers to Novell as part of an exclusive alliance.
Remember what we wrote earlier on about the H-P relationship with Microsoft (and with Novell). Like Novell, H-P is another Microsoft pawn that promotes OOXML. It’s part of the cycle of nepotism and ‘protection’.
Joe Wagner, senior vice president and general manager of Systems and Resource Management at Novell, explains the security implications of all those popular portable storage devices.
Looking at his mailbox, a reader of ours found this in the Global Novell Newsletter of May 2008:
“Security Threats Straight Ahead!
“Jim Ebzery, Sr. [...] discusses the realities of online security dangers and [...] addresses compliance issues, insider threats, identity theft, and privacy violations. Read the entire article online now”
He then added: “I thought security was about making Operating Systems that were secure from clicking on an URL or opening an email attachment.”
Genovate, a leading high-end technology company, has today announced that they have become Novell’s first platinum partner in India.
Genovate provides Business applications, software solutions and consulting as well as the best-of-breed value-added educational programs and quality training services in the Asia-Pacific region.
Genovate has also entered into a tie-up with infrastructure software and services company Novell to provide training in India. Genovate, with the partnership, would target both individuals and universities, he added.
Novell’s Past People
Ray Noorda, a fierce enemy of Microsoft and one who could not trust Bill Gates or Steve Ballmer, is mentioned in this article about a donation/fund.
The largest limited partner in Canopy Ventures II is the family of legendary entrepreneur Ray Noorda, who founded Novell Inc. and was chief executive officer of the software company for 12 years until 1995.
The early-stage venture fund, which is backed by the Noorda family of Novell fame, is investing in life sciences for the first time, and also expanding its investment along the Wasatch Front.
“There are plenty of good opportunities in medical devices and pharmaceuticals, and there’s so much good technology and so many talented scientists affiliated with the University of Utah and BYU. Utah County was our backyard from the Novell days, but we’re now looking forward to branching out to northern Utah,” said Brandon Tidwell, another general partner with Canopy.
Since its establishment in 1995, Canopy has invested around $100 million in 13 technology companies in Utah, 10 of which are in Utah County. Canopy was founded by the late Ray Noorda, Novell’s founder and former CEO.
While I was working at Air New Zealand I assisted setting up a Novell network. I started thinking it was the way I wanted to go in terms of my career, so I bought my first computer and went from there. My first foray into IT was working in field sales in LA for a distributor of electronics called Hallmark Electronics. I started working with Kingston back then as they were one of the brands we had.
That’s all for this week, as far as good or innocent news are concerned. █
There are various new bits and pieces in SUSE Linux, but the main news item is about the release of the second Service Pack. We start with SLES and SLED.
Novell today announced the availability to customers worldwide of SUSE(R) Linux Enterprise 10 Service Pack 2 (SP2), containing enhancements in virtualization, management, hardware enablement and interoperability. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 SP2 is the only Xen-based virtualization solution with full support from Microsoft for Windows* Server 2008 and Windows Server 2003 guests and live migration of those guests across physical machines. Several improvements specific to SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 and SUSE Linux Enterprise Real Time 10 are also included in SP2. Novell further unveiled the Subscription Management Tool for SUSE Linux Enterprise, designed to help customers better manage their SUSE Linux Enterprise software updates.
Put simply, it’s a large maintenance release. The Service Pack was mentioned earlier in the week. Important questions were raised.
Novell and Red Hat announced upgrades of their Linux-based enterprise distros, featuring improved virtualization and hardware support. In addition, Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 10 SP2 adds a new subscription management tool, while Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 5.2 adds new security, clustering, desktop, and networking features.
Red Hat introduced its latest operating system update, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 5.2, which includes enhancements in virtualization capabilities, updates for user desktops, encryption and security improvements, while SUSE announced the availability of its Service Pack 2 for SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 operating systems.
That really was it. There were no hoops to jump through. No configuration headaches. No fuss, no muss. The ThinkPad R61 and SLED 10 SP1 just work.
Once it was on, the first thing I did was adjust the GNOME 2.12 desktop to my tastes. Since SLED 10 SP1 is a stable distribution meant for long-term business use it doesn’t have the latest software. Eventually, I’ll switch it out to another Linux, but for this review I wanted to see how the factory-installed Linux worked out.
The new Avamar software supports 64-bit Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and offers expanded client support for Microsoft SQL Server 2005; Vista; Native Netware client backup and restore (Netware V6.5); and Novell Storage Servers (NSS) volumes on Novell Open Enterprise Server (OES) SLES 10.
SAP, which is still very close to Microsoft (some suggested that Microsoft should acquire it rather than go for Yahoo!), gave Novell one of those symbolic rewards that are tossed around for mutual recognition and marketing purposes. Bear in mind that SAP’s Shai Agassi, who fortunately left the company, was a very vocal (and thus notorious) FOSS basher. The current CEO is not a fan either, unlike former managers who grew fond of it, over time.
Novell today announced it has received an SAP Pinnacle Award in the category “Technology: Co-Innovation for Core Business,” recognizing Novell as an SAP partner who has made significant contributions to SAP’s customer-focused ecosystem. Novell was honored specifically for work with SAP on SUSE(R) Linux Enterprise Server Priority Support for SAP as well as SUSE Linux Enterprise Server high availability and virtualization for SAP.
It shouldn’t be surprising that SAP goes for the ‘Microsoft-approved’ Linux. We wrote about the Microsoft-Intel-SAP-Novell axis before. It’s further augmented by relationships with OEMs, e.g. Dell and H-P. There’s a lot of ‘politics’ there.
SUSE Laptops
We encourage people not to buy laptops that have SUSE preloaded because there is no exemption from ‘Windows tax’. Microsoft collects royalties from Novell. In any event, since it’s Saturday, consider this review of the H-P laptop that comes with SUSE.
If 2007 was the year that Asus chose to introduce the small and affordable sub-notebook, then 2008 is the year that the concept has really begun to take off. Asus, predictably, has lead the way once again, with its updated Eee PC 900 putting right many of the issues raised by the original. Meanwhile, Intel has enthusiastically embraced the idea by launching its Centrino Atom platform for small, low-power, affordable notebooks and MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices). There are a few machines mooted to use Atom, most notably the impressive looking MSI Wind, but it appears it could be a while before we see Atom powered machines hitting retail.
The other version of Wind will use Novell’s SUSE Linux OS and cost $399.
Fortunately, not all laptops come with SUSE or Xandros. Plenty of choice remains. Watch this interesting new article which speaks about “Novell for desktops.”
The big shocker for Raburn? “I was surprised to see Novell for desktops,” he says. “I’m not sure I know anyone who would run it for their desktop. Certainly Windows and Red Hat win the category, but the Mac certainly deserves a solid third place and is increasingly part of corporate networks.”
Xandros
Some people, such as reviewers from Laptop Magazine, learn the hard way that «Linux is Not Windows». They try to treat Xandros on the Eee PC as though it’ll be DRM-compatible, as well as Windows compatible (Wine serving as a compatibility layer). Watch what happens.
I am a big fan of Xandros on the Eee PC, but I’ve always said it has its limitations, especially when it doesn’t give me access to my favorite Windows programs. But when my editor told me earlier this week about Wine HQ, I nearly freaked. Wine HQ enables a compatibility layer that allows Windows programs to run on a Linux OS.
Asustek’s commitment to GNU/Linux is no surprise. It uses that same Xandros derivative to create a desktop solution called EBox.
The Ebox will certainly run the Eee PC’s Xandros version of Linux, and come bundled with the same line-up of applications.
The look of the Ebox is at odds with the design of a slimline home desktop PC that Asus demo’d at the CeBit show in March this year. That model, the “Digital Home System EP20″, was, however, said to run the Eee PC’s Linux OS.
What you ought to find most ironic is that Microsoft’s «Crippleware Program» [1, 2] (Windows XP for as little as $18 apiece) does not apply to anything other than low-cost and muchly-crippled laptops. How will it respond to this? Taxation of Xandros? This is an important one to watch. █
Novell’s GNU/Linux business may not be flourishing, but there are some deals and contracts which we ought to at least keep track of.
SAP
SAP, Novell, H-P and IBM found themselves sort of falling in love, with the exception of H-P and IBM that are competing fiercely (also against Sun Microsystems).
SAP, as part of its effort to lure more midsize business customers, will introduce appliance-like systems pre-loaded with its ERP software, a database, and a Linux operating system, running on hardware from Hewlett-Packard or IBM.
The press release about SUSE and H-P for SAP’s service is here.
Reliable and Affordable SAP(R) Business All-in-One Solution with SAP(R) MaxDB(TM) Database and SUSE Linux Enterprise from Novell to Be Preconfigured, Pretested and Preinstalled on HP Systems
Six solutions highlight integration of Novell’s identity and security products with SAP solution-based environments, enabling customers to further maximize their investments
HP’s bold entry into the mini notebook market comes in the form of the 2133 Mini-Note PC, a 9-inch laptop with a tailored look and magnesium alloy chassis that starts at $599 for Windows (or $499 for Linux) and tops out at $749 with extras including Bluetooth, a Webcam, a 7,200 rpm hard drive, and 2GB of RAM.
NASA
It is rather sad to find even the United States Government now relies on some Microsoft ‘Linux tax’, but what can you do?
NASA ditches Itanic for new Xeon-based SGI giant
[...]
The two organizations announced today that SGI will build a whopping 20,480-core system for NASA Ames in Mountain View, California. The giant will run on four-core versions of Intel’s Xeon chip and should reach peak performance of 245 Teraflops, which would make it one of the fastest computers in the world. The system, centered around SGI’s Altix ICE hardware, will also boast – gulp – 20,800 GB of memory and 450TB of storage.
The computer will also be water-cooled and run Suse Linux.
Voltaire
A couple of press releases from Voltaire shout about SUSE and Novell. Here is the first one:
First InfiniBand Provider to Offer Enterprise-Class Support for OFED on Multivendor Hardware
[...]
Novell is the first customer to take advantage of the new offering.
“As more customers select SUSE Linux Enterprise for their high-bandwidth and low-latency computing needs, we’re seeing increased adoption of InfiniBand – particularly in financial services and manufacturing,” said Moiz Kohari, vice president of engineering for Novell. “It was important for Novell to provide a complete support offering to these customers, and we selected Voltaire based on its leadership in delivering end-to-end InfiniBand support.”
New Videos
Remember Novell’s ‘own’ version of OpenOffice.org? We criticised this whole idea of Novell Edition in the past, even just a few days ago. Nevertheless, here comes a video demo of it.
The Oggs took a while to produce for our readers’ convenience (and more importantly their freedom). Convenient it is not to us (very time-consuming), but freedom comes at a cost.
Here are a couple more Novell videos that have just been added to YouTube.
Dumping Windows? Then Microsoft will dump virtually gratis copies.
This one has been circulating for the past few hours (also sent to Groklaw and added by now). The articles really speak for themselves and they all originate from (or cite) IDG. Although it is not related to Novell, it sure relates to anti-consumer — and probably anti-competitive too — moves from Microsoft. One issues we have been tracking in this Web site is Microsoft’s ‘dumping crusade’ against GNU/Linux (see links at the very bottom).
The latest is this:
Microsoft to limit capabilities of cheap laptops
[...]
Microsoft plans to offer PC makers steep discounts on Windows XP Home Edition to encourage them to use that OS instead of Linux on ultra low-cost PCs (ULPCs). To be eligible, however, the PC vendors that make ULPCs must limit screen sizes to 10.2 inches and hard drives to 80G bytes, and they cannot offer touch-screen PCs.
The program is outlined in confidential documents that Microsoft sent to PC makers last month, and which were obtained by IDG News Service. The goal apparently is to limit the hardware capabilities of ULPCs so that they don’t eat into the market for mainstream PCs running Windows Vista, something both Microsoft and the PC vendors would want to avoid.
[...]
Microsoft notes that the OSes under consideration for the devices include Windows and Linux. Some PC makers have expressed a preference for Linux because it helps them keep down the cost of the devices.
[...]
By offering Windows XP Home Edition at bargain prices, Microsoft hopes to secure its place in the ULPC market and reduce the use of Linux, according to an official at one PC maker, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to discuss the program.
“[Low-cost PC makers] have made some good inroads with open-source, and Microsoft wants to put a stop to it,” the official said.
The official did not seem opposed to the program. It should stimulate more competition between Windows and Linux in the ULPC market, and it could invigorate sales because consumers who want an easy-to-use PC are likely to prefer Windows, the official said.
What we might be seeing here is a case of spec-fixing, price-fixing, collusion, and anti-competitive practices. For further explanation refer back to previous posts that dissect and explain similar incidents (appended to the bottom of this post).
A reader has sent us another relevant article on this. It speaks even more directly and bluntly about GNU/Linux as Microsoft’s threat in mind.
Microsoft U-turn to stop Linux dominating ultra low cost PCs
[...]
By offering Windows XP Home Edition at bargain prices, Microsoft hopes to secure its place in the ULPC market and reduce the use of Linux, according to an official at one PC maker, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorised to discuss the programme.
Mind the fairly juvenile-yet-honest comments added to the article above. Additionally, from USENET (half an hour ago):
From: Richard Rasker < spamtrap@linetec.nl>
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.advocacy
Subject: Microsoft pushes crippleware to defeat Linux
Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 16:52:46 +0200
I hoped that the recent stream of lightweight Linux laptops wold mark the
beginning of a liberated computer market, with real competition, leading to
ever more powerful machines for lower prices, and more consumer choice.
But apparrently Redmond not only wants to claim what it thinks should be its
share of the market, but now it seems they also want to dictate what those
machines should be capable of — as in: cheap Windows infected laptops must
also be severely crippled in the hardware department, no doubt in order to
keep their Vista crapware sales up.
So what will happen? If enough manufacturers give in to the bastards from
Redmond, pretty soon the only cheap laptops built will be the ones
complying with Microsoft’s crippling standards — and together with the
huge discount Microsoft gives on their crapware, they will make certain
that cheap, powerful Linux laptops are pushed from the market even faster
than they appeared.
This is yet another very clear example where our convicted monopolist once
again tries abuse its dominant position for the sole purpose of maintaining
that position — once again screwing customers and the market alike.
OK, over to you, Windolts, to explain that artificially crippled Windows
preloaded machines under Microsoft’s control are better for consumers than
far more powerful Linux machines for the same price.
Surprisingly, no-one seems to have told Microsoft that it is not good marketing strategy to treat your customers as if they are stupid. Which is exactly what the company is doing with the release in Africa of the stripped-down operating system it calls Windows XP Starter Edition.
Microsoft South Africa launched Windows XP Starter Edition (XPSE) into the African market last week with very little fanfare and market hype.
Which is not surprising considering how the product was received by other media on its intial launch in 2004. Known for its straight talking, The Register labelled XPSE “crippleware”. Analysts Gartner said the product had “good intent, poor execution”.
Imposition of development limits is something Microsoft is truly find of, not to mention EULAs that forbid benchmarking and Novell-like deals with an implicit non-compete clause.
Other recent posts you are strongly encouraged to read are about Intel's and Microsoft's sabotage of the GNU/Linux-based OLPC and the collusion fiasco which involves the Microsoft ‘holy trinity’, including companies like Intel and Hewlett-Packard. It’s about Windows Vista, so it’s recent. What we see here is by no means ethical, not as much as greedy. It’s a case of companies conspiring against customers by limiting choice, fixing prices, reducing feature sets, etc.
Twice very recently we wrote about the Eee PC incident from Australia [1, 2], so Microsoft’s tactics are already proving effective. Perhaps. A reliable source in the UK told us that Asustek receives considerable discounts from Microsoft for the Eee PC, so the leaked plan that’s unveiled above may have already taken effect, quietly. █
The opinion about Vista isn’t particularly flattering either, but the author has, on numerous times in the past couple of years, expressed satisfaction with Ubuntu GNU/Linux.
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