Re:Return of the Mac (2005)
by randallsquared on Tuesday November 01, 2016 @07:05PM
(#12850935)
> Dell should be making sure Ubuntu works
But why? Imagine a sea change such that 30% of new desktop Dell machines are used under Linux by 2020. How would that benefit Dell? They appear to have passed on (or mostly passed on) the savings of not buying a Windows license to their customers in the past. Hardware manufacturers making Linux drivers work flawlessly is to be lauded and hoped for, but the current desktop Linux market isn't high enough for it to be anything other than a pet project or PR exercise: spending the cash to make drivers work perfectly on Linux doesn't seem likely to do much to improve sales or lower costs, costs money, and for many drivers would even help competitors to the extent that they use the same components.
But why? Imagine a sea change such that 30% of new desktop Dell machines are used under Linux by 2020. How would that benefit Dell? They appear to have passed on (or mostly passed on) the savings of not buying a Windows license to their customers in the past. Hardware manufacturers making Linux drivers work flawlessly is to be lauded and hoped for, but the current desktop Linux market isn't high enough for it to be anything other than a pet project or PR exercise: spending the cash to make drivers work perfectly on Linux doesn't seem likely to do much to improve sales or lower costs, costs money, and for many drivers would even help competitors to the extent that they use the same components.