The best news Linux could ever receive: LinuxWorld's a bust
LinuxWorld 2008?
(Credit: National Park Service)There was a time when LinuxWorld was one of--if not the-- hottest technology conferences around. This show used to be jammed. The curious would hang on the latest pronouncement from Linus Torvalds. Jon Maddog Hall would hold court on why Linux was headed for "world domination" and if we were really lucky, Eric (Cathedral and the Bazaar) Raymond might muse about how Linux was as American as, well, handgun ownership.
But the real attraction was the novelty of a technology that was just then starting to intrigue the mainstream. The fact that it was considered too eccentric for "really serious" computing applications made it all the more fun. (It was free for Pete's sake. How does that square with serious corporate computing?)
Stretch your legs
(Credit: CNET News)That now seems like ancient history. The roster of keynotes during this week's LinuxWorld conference reads like a Who's Who of the Establishment with the likes of IBM, McKesson and Merrill Lynch, among others, taking turns behind the lectern.
No disrespect to the speakers, but we're not exactly talking about technology rebels. When big companies send their Linux pitchmen to this sort of event, what's really left to talk about? Mostly maintenance issues and a few other (to be sure, important) details which attend the progress of any standard. Relevant? Yes. Earth-shattering? No.
The relatively sparse turnout reflects that change in perception. Some parts of the floor at San Francisco's cavernous Moscone convention center were so thinly populated that you could have run a pickup game of Frisbee football without risk of smacking into bystanders. Ubuntu's booth was the big exception to that generalization--and it was packing them in without needing to toss away any tchotchkes!
Watching the scene from a less crowded vantage point, Cluster Resources President Michael Jackson found an inverse correlation between the dwindling number of people attending LinuxWorld and the spread of Linux into the mainstream.
"The more mature the technology, the less relevant the show," he said. "This is just the medium that people used. Now, you can go to the Web or to your local retailer."
I think he's on target. Red Hat and Novell, which hold their own user conferences, likely siphoned away some would-be LinuxWorld traffic. But Jackson's hinting at a more convincing explanation, which is the success story surrounding Linux. Advocates no longer need to explain why they're not card-carrying loons. Business gets it. Only the most antediluvian data center managers would still hold their nose when an associate brings up the subject of Linux or open source. And they likely won't last long in their current jobs, either.
Charles Cooper has covered technology and business for more than 25 years. Before joining CNET News, he worked at the Associated Press, Computer & Software News, Computer Shopper, PC Week, and ZDNet. E-mail Charlie. 
How the mighty have fallen. It used to be having Linux / *nix skills were a positive thing on your resume. Now... yeah. A shame how the industry has turned.
Part of the problem with the reputation of *nix is that everyone is a sysadmin or believes they are. Nobody is willing to be just a tech. It's a case of too many chiefs with huge egos and not enough indians around to simply do the work without self importance.
nix skills are still the most sought-after outside of your cocoon in the SeaTac area. Also, we have quite a few techs here, as opposed to admins. You probably would have a hard time since your employer/paycheck source doesn't use *nix much (MSFT isn't big on that, after all), but maybe you can get your head out and look around a bit before making silly pronouncements?
GAS PRICES?
It's too expensive to go around the block anymore, let alone to a big conference where you spend most of your time (and gas) looking for a parking space...
In other news, Auto trade shows this year have been reporting much lower numbers in attendance than in previous years. By this reporter's logic, that means that GM, Ford, and Toyota are highly successful. Pay no attention to the numerous other reports stating that all three are experiencing massive losses, laying off thousands of workers and closing aseembly plants. This means they are doing very well indeed! So well that they could go bankrupt at this pace.
Right. Go ahead and pull the other one- it's got bells on.
Ahemm..... not
Is it the year of linux yet???
Funny, that...
It's fairly obvious by anyone with more than half a brain that the opinion of the author is out of whack with reality.
Hey guys, it's not the time to get lazy. There is a ******** to do still and there will always be.
If that is the case, Apple must not be churning out mature technology. Ever heard of a little conference called "MacWorld"? ;-)
Again, we can all lose our logic at times, but we are ignoring facts like WarpKat mentions: The ENTIRE country is hitting a downfall in the credit sector, traditional stable government-backed housing funds like Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac are failing, general news of Fed interest rate and oil speculation adjustments and high unemployment all play into overall market adjustments. When a stock drops, sometimes it has NOTHING to do with that company or 'sector', but variables like the entire financial market adjusting, and not the idea that people do not like Apple.
So saying X+Y=2 (where we say X is ALWAYS 1, and Y is ALWAYS 1), is limited in understanding the entire playing field.
Frankly, there is a LOT of movement in the Linux business direction, Charles. There're a lot of complaints that Vista is a complex upgrade for enterprises. What does Vista offer? More interesting graphics and a better (IPv6) network stack. What is required to exploit this? ALL NEW corporate networking gear, and machine upgrades for everyone to get 2GB's of RAM in every machine, with a possible GPU card. For what purpose? To spend more money? Just to write a Word doc?
Enter Linux- Options to install distros that have less overhead, can revive an existing system, be virus free and work with MS Office files without these other expensive Vista upgrades.
@WarpKat Right on! Gas and plane tickets are more difficult to justify, especially when EVERYTHING is going up in price.
Charles Cooper: Have you EVER tried to upgrade an XP machine to SP2? How about a Vista machine to Vista SP1? I think you need more experience technology before you and your editors publish anything worthy of print.
- by benjaminstraight August 7, 2008 2:49 PM PDT
- Linux used to rock.
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