'Moonlight' heads to beta

Microsoft and Novell said Tuesday that they are nearly ready with a beta version of Moonlight--a Firefox add-on that allows Silverlight content to play on Linux PCs.

The software is being announced as the companies tout the second anniversary of their peace deal.

Work on Moonlight began in May 2007 and an alpha version was shown a month later. Novell's Miguel De Icaza, who is heading the Moonlight effort, said on his blog last week that the beta version should be out within days.

The move helps Microsoft in its effort to position Silverlight as a rival to Adobe's Flash. Flash already runs on Linux and is installed on an overwhelming percentage of PCs. Both Flash and Silverlight also run on Macs.

Silverlight's biggest early win was Microsoft's deal with NBC that saw the technology used to power the video on NBCOlympics.com. Silverlight suffered a blow earlier this week when Major League Baseball said it was switching to a Flash-only player for the 2009 season.

In addition to the Moonlight announcement, Novell is releasing a management pack that plugs in to Microsoft's System Center product that will allow IT managers to more easily oversee mixed deployments of Suse Linux and Windows.

As for the broader work between the two companies, they now have more than 200 joint customers, said Susan Heystee, Novell's general manager global strategic alliances. That's up from fewer than 70 customers at the end of the first year.

"That really goes to the value proposition and the focus we've really had around interoperability," Heystee said. "Many of these companies are deploying Linux and windows in their data centers."

See also:
• MLB.com drops Silverlight for Adobe Flash
• Adobe bringing full-fledged Flash to phones

[3rdalbum]

I can comment on this post with authority; you see, I was the first end-user to install Moonlight on my computer. I'm sure I'll be the last as well. Linux users don't like Silverlight. Whether they fight it because of genuine concerns or because of FUD and Microsoft bashing, they'll fight it.

[db2not]

Well it isn't really up to linux users to like or dislike. As a linux user i would rather there was no microsoft period. However if i want to watch some video on the internet and it requires silverlight then I am happy that there would be a linux plugin. One of the reasons i kept vista on my laptop was because adobe's flash support isn't quite up to the job on linux.

[Ilgaz]

db2not would you ask yourself why you couldn't watch Olympics on your Linux PC? Or use netflix online renting? Watch MSNBC videos?
Mono project claims same things for years and yet we didn't see a single meaningful, popular dotnetfx application on Linux or OS X. dotnetfx is at 3.5 SP1 and mono can just support 2.x WITHOUT some critical parts.
This is just a trojan to make Linux users legally bound to MS terms and also claim multiplatform for clueless media site admins. Nothing else.

[Ilgaz]

In other words, soon to be chapter 11 company saved by Microsoft deal posts a trojan to Linux systems while Adobe Flash enjoys its gigantic, unbeatable market share thanks to true multiplatform strategy.
I am sure CNET wouldn't hire me as a story writer ;)

[deslock]

Calling Adobe a "true multiplatform strategy" is too rich. The same company that has ignored and crapped on Linux for years and only recently decides to update Flash on Linux when the Silverlight pressure mounts?

Thank goodness for competition or we'd still be running Flash 7.

[bsarte]

I can tell you that I am building an HTPC for my home to replace my POS Comcast DVR. One of the key features in my HTPC is the ability to watch Netflix Movies -- which requires Silverlight. So, no Silverlight means no MythTV... means I'm using Windows for my HTPC.

Were Moonlight offered earlier and more stable... maybe I'd have gone MythTV, but I'm not. Beyond that, I could not care less whether someone uses Flash, Silverlight or anything else....

[sal-magnone]

My guess:

From a business perspective the casual Linux user isn't a target here. Dedicated ("this is all I use")Linux on the desktop is a trival fraction of the buying market. Most people that run Linux on their own desktop are able and used to running Windows to get access to stuff they can't run on Linux.

This release is for businesses that want to utlize SL internally and need to integrate multiple platforms. I see that SL utilization at the enterprise level is growing rapidly in that Sharepoint sort of way - quietly and very rapidly.

Moreover, since most people either take their machines home or use their home machines for some sort of remote access, SL (Windows, Mac, Linux or whatever) will be installed because it'll have to be. No need to push it directly to users who don't want it. Most of them will be compelled to have an installation somewhere.