Summary: The elusive fight for the desktop crown no longer the only route to breaking the illegal monopoly

Microsoft is trying to enter the market of portable devices, alas without success. Apple tried this years ago and had limited success (it is losing to Linux/Android now). What these two companies have in common is that they both recognise that the desktop is not enough.

One GNU/Linux pundit alleged [1] that we should aspire to dominate the desktop with GNU/Linux. He is right and there are many others who still try to encourage others to switch to GNU/Linux. My experience with this is different. Judging from the experience of my wife, the way to go about is to first get them hooked on Android (smartphones/tablets) which makes them less sceptical or hostile towards Linux (the wife never resisted, she has a Computer Science degree and can cope). Later on they welcome GNU/Linux on the desktop and laptop. Windows is seen as one of many, not the only option, and this is generally why I view advocacy of Linux on mobile devices as constructive. Microsoft suffers badly from this and Apple too, to a lesser degree. ⬆

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