A lot has been said this week about Walmart pulling the Everex gPC and Cloudbook from their stores. Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols has a interesting article on desktoplinux.com regarding his views.
What it boils down to is the people who typically shop at WalMart are probably not even capable of determining what OS their computer is running. All they know is they bought the computer and then bought Quicken and couldn’t get it to run on the gPC.
Linux distros like gOS and Ubuntu aren’t doing enough to educate people by telling them that Linux is another OS, and that they can do all the same things they can do with Windows, Quicken and Microsoft Office, however they won’t be using those programs. They’ll be using Linux, GnuCash and OpenOffice.org and it’s all FREE.
As for gOS, it’s very easy to use and very easy to figure out for new users. So the software design and ease of setup is there, but joe sixpack just wants to run what his friends do and it’s likely not Linux.
What do you think? Have you tried Linux? Tell me what you think. Do you think new users can use Linux? I think they can, but the issue of compatibility will stop them. Linux companies and the rest of the industry needs to push Microsoft to make OOXML the standard file format for Word, Excel, Powerpoint…etc. Until file interchange can be made seamless, everyone will want the defacto standard, which is Microsoft Office. People don’t know that unless your doing something complex, you can write Word files and Excel files on Open Office and send them to each other with no problems. I just got through almost an entire quarter writing papers in Open Office and I didn’t have a single file that was unreadable by my instructor.
So, I implore the readers of Gear Diary to at least try the Ubuntu Live CD for 5 minutes before commenting. It just might surprise you!
Sorry if this is a duplicate…
I found the stat I was looking for at http://marketshare.hitslink.com/report.aspx?qprid=8
…where they claim Linux’ market share is 0.65%.
Joel, almost everything can be measured and usually is by someone. I’d even hazard a guess that there are far more stat geeks than computer geeks. 😉
I think people just get comfortable with what they’ve been using, because they have it exactly how they want it (even if they aren’t always happy with it) and they get scared to try something new.
But over time, whether it is a shiny new piece of hardware or a friend who will patiently guide them, there can be little events which will bring people out of heir comfort zones, and allow them to try something new.
The best part is when they have an a-ha moment with that something new, and you see the makings of a new convert. 🙂
Found my stat…Linux’ market share is 0.65%. Explains for me why WalMart made their decision. But I still understand/respect your loyalty to the penguin… the main thing is, you found something you enjoy using. That’s what really counts in the end.
Thanks for the discussion, enjoyed it. Gotta go to work.
BTW, I’m a first-time user on this board…tried twice to post this stat comment with a link to the source, marketshare.hitlink, but it didn’t post… sorry if they show up later!
Exactly! 😀 I LOVE seeing that moment! The same goes for anything in technology really. Some people see me and my MP3 player and ask me tons of questions. Then later, they go and by what I’ve been using.
I had that experience with my wife and Firefox. Once I showed her how to use tabbed browsing, she was hooked!
@n0doz – sometimes items with links get held for moderation – I’ll go ahead and approve it if it shows up, as some might like to see the sources you cited. Welcome to Gear Diary, we are happy to hear from you! 🙂
n0doz,
Hey thanks for joining in.
Walmart’s still selling Linux machines, just not in the brick and mortar stores.
Be very careful when counting market share numbers. This article over on Oreillynet.com says that sometimes Windows servers and desktops get counted as a Windows sale. The PC originally may have had Windows on it, but we will turn the machine on long enough to open the CD tray, pop a Linux disk in and install Linux before Windows ever booted. That machine should be counted as a Linux box, but was counted as a Windows machine at the time of the sale. Market share numbers with Linux especially is incredibly hard to measure with any accuracy.
…and that apparent lack of accuracy is (IMHO, of course) precisely why mass marketers have such a hard time justifying bringing an item like Linux to market. BTW, I think the lack of accurate figures pertains more to single users like Joel; the use of Linux in professional applications should likely be easily determined.
We know there are devotees of the OS other than business and industry but how do you explain that to your investors or board of directors, especially when those folks are used to using hard data to back up their decisions? Oh, well…at least there’s still the online option. That’s actually a pretty good deal at WalMart – they’ll deliver an online order to your local store, so it’s almost like having it right there anyway.
And thank you for the welcome, Judie… I’m a fan since your Gadgeteer days.
“I’m a fan since your Gadgeteer days.”
Awesome! It is always nice to see “old” readers here. 😀
I’m a old reader too! 😉 Sometimes we end up workin for ya! 😉
Too true, Joel. 😆 But not working for me…working with me. 🙂