Linux Mag: 2008 is the Year!
While I might argue that “the year of the Linux desktop” has been a recurring annual event several years running, lots of people like to predict that each year will be the one.
Linux Magazine makes a strong argument for 2008 in Joe Brockmeier’s “Is 2008 the Year of the Linux Desktop?”
Cheap and popular new hardware options are the key:
“I’m talking about the Asus EEE PC and the Everex Green gPC. Both systems are, by today’s standards, cheap, underpowered, and limited in function. They also play to Linux’s strengths by being cheap, underpowered, and limited in function. Despite limited horsepower, both systems are more than adequate for performing basic desktop functions (email, Web browsing, running OpenOffice.org, etc.) and offer stripped-down interfaces that are less confusing for new users.
“They’re also, as of this writing, both sold out. The gPC has been selling through Wal-Mart, and sold out in just a matter of days. The EEE PC was sold through a number of online retailers, and also sold out in just a few days. I’m sure both systems were in limited supply, but there’s clearly pent-up demand.”
Following the path outlined by Clayton Christensen in The Innovator’s Dilemma, open source will disrupt the market from below and push Windows and Office up the ladder until they are nothing more than niche products. Linux will take the majority share of the market.