Comments on: Wal-Mart dumps Linux. Much ado about...Microsoft

Wal-Mart may well have dumped its Linux-based PCs because of their success, not failure.

[cellojazz]

Well that seals the deal for me. No chance I'll buy a cloudbook from wallmart now. That is just so ridiculous, and disappointing. Well - maybe we can get some linux computers now in Target - now that would be perfect - best of both worlds - anti Sam but still a discount retailer.

[jlwallen]

honestly - this is a simple matter of wal mart employees not having the slightest clue about operating systems. think about it - you have a customer that comes in and says "what is that linux thing there?" the employee says "no i don't." customer then sees the windows PC for a little more and asks the same question but gets a different response (to the tune of "oh yeah, everyone uses that.")

but you also have to remember another thing - if walmart can't keep something in stock (as in the distributer can't get them to the stores fast enough they don't see any reason to restock them.

[john55440]

99% of people have no interest in Desktop Linux. Get over it.

It has nothing to do with any grand Microsoft-Wal-Mart conspiracy.

[DoBoy]

I think cluelessness on Wal Mart employees is part of the problem, BUT I also think it shows how Linux is lacking in some aspects, particularly ease-of-use for end users when things break.

Like it or not, anything that's built HAS TO 1. be able to interact with Microsoft users (ie. share document formats), and 2. be as usable as Microsoft products due to Microsoft's 90+% market share.

Apple (finally) saw the light and now allows OS X users to use Boot Camp or Parallels to cover the gaps in its software offerings (like no OS X-native Visio or Project, for starters). Now, folks are willing to pay the premium prices for Apple's hardware and (I think) superior user experience. Superior user experience meaning 1. drag-and-drop software/hardware installations and 2. nearly bulletproof reliability.

Likewise, Linux is well on its way in terms of making it more usable out of the box and supporting files across platforms, but as it stands today, Linux OSes STILL require too much user command-line "intervention" to install or fix things and too much reliance on precious few Linux experts in "the community" for support.

I don't mind tinkering and working with user groups, etc. for support, but I wouldn't subject relatives that aren't very tech savvy to it. Many Wal Mart customers looking to purchase computers don't want to buy a PC that they're going to have to use a bunch of "work arounds" and command-line modifications to make it work. They'll get a PC running WinXP/Vista instead and be done with it.

[FutureGuy]

Ohh shut up!!!
"But maybe the decision was much more personal. There is a strong executive tie between Microsoft and Wal-Mart." Really?? Wal-Mart is all about making money and this is the second time it gave Linux a fair shot unlike any any other major retailer, so that alone should rule out the "ties" argument. Chances are that a majority of customers must have returned it after realizing that their favorite apps/games wouldn't work, have trouble getting around with the unfamilier UI and most of there hardware wouldn't run. Wal-mart lost money, they gave it the boot. Or may be MS secretly brought Wal-mart to get them to stop selling this great product, you decide what makes more sense.

[pcGirl]

It is Wal-mart's fault because they did not teach their employees on how to sell the product. As a matter of fact hit any Wal=mart and see how many of their employees know how to sell a product. Wal-mart sells good on products that already have a good reputation.

[ksmorga]

Oh, please! This sounds like another big business conspiracy theory! Yes there is always networking in business and yes that does influence decisions. However, sales and profits have to remain the bottom line. If you have looked at Wal-Mart?s financials you can tell that is what drives their decisions. The fact is that if you have a customer who is interested in a Linux system they are not looking for it at Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart is not an electronics store. Customers that are buying electronics at Wal-Mart are doing so to get the lowest price and for convenience. They either already know what they want and are coming to Wal-Mart to get the lowest price or have no idea what they want and just want something simple to use at a low price. Wal-Mart is a nation wide chain with stores in small communities and large cities. They are in low tech areas as well as high tech areas. To get a low price they buy in large quantities. To buy in large quantities you need to be able to sell that product to a large variety of customers. Linux is a niche product. Wal-Mart tests many items every year so I don?t think it is a slam against Linux that they chose not to roll this out to the nation. If they had dropped them from 2000 stores that might be different, that is more than just a test.

[developIT]

Why do Linux zealots always finds a way to blame Microsoft for every misfortune their beloved OS encounters. Get over it. Most people are intelligent enough to know that many applications they use in Windows won't work in Linux. It's that simple...Who wants to bother writing a driver for a device that's plug-and -play in Windows?

[ZiggyFishIT]

@developIT: I wouldn't expect you to under (since it looks like you don't use Linux), Linux requires a different way of thinking, And becuase this is 'different', people will always try to stick to the same thing (weather it's good for them or not).

As for the article, it is clear that Microsoft had something to do with it. I haven't heard of anything wrong with these systems.

[odubtaig]

I don't understand what part of SOLD OUT y'all are missing?

Not an issue getting them of the shelves people. Read article, then reply.

[chewdon]

Linux is just not there yet. I ordered and EEEPC for one of my customers and decided to try it out because I heard that it was very user friendly. After an hour of trying to connect to a wireless network unsuccessfully I gave up on it. It seems that Linux should at least be able to handle a standard wireless connection without having to bring up a terminal window. Now it looks like I will have to install Windows because Linux can not do basic things like connect to the internet. I hope that someday I will be able to recommend an alternative OS to my customers, but for now its just Windows or Mac.

[rarchimedes]

With all the speculation here, no one has indicated that there were excessive returns or any particular problems with the linux PC's at all, only that they have consistently sold out. Now, I am sure that there is manufacturing capacity around the globe to produce enough such units to keep them on the shelves. And, I have never had any problem hooking linux up to the internet. Wireless units used to be a problem, but are less so at the moment. Since as far as I know, these were desktop units, there would be little reason for them to hook up wirelessly. Now if you are buying special gear to hook this thing up, you are defeating the whole purpose of the unit. There are lists of compatible equipment, so if you buy something that is not compatible, you aren't too bright. In any case, you would not be part of the target market for this box. If you use something in a different manner than it was designed for, then the problem is yours, not the OS or the box. The Wal-Mart gPC was meant to be used by people who need to do basic functions like accessing the internet, doing email, instant messaging, basic documents, and so on. If you are trying to make a cheap addon to your home network to be used in ways not contemplated in the design of the box, you are likely to have some problems, regardless of what OS is on a box. I have had wireless problems with all sorts of PC's running Microsoft of almost any flavor, and Intel ships a standard set of applications with Intel motherboard/processor combos, about half of which will cripple your PC if you install them. To put a blunt point on it, such problems in inexpensive PC's are not limited to those that run linux. Try doing much of anything that you care about on Vista Basic. Because of my business, I am largely a user of XP on my machines, but I play with various flavors of linux. Many of them are actually easier to use than most XP boxes, and that is when booted from a CD. Certainly, they are cleaner and more useful than Vista of any flavor. Almost nobody in the commercial world is really fond of Vista, and most are holding off for whatever will replace it, even after SP1. On the other side Microsoft has apparently made a hit with most people on Server 2008, and if they tie functionality in it closely enough to Vista, they may actually get a few more Vista sales, but that remains to be seen. So, outside of tying, for the basic user, I can see no problem with cheap linux boxes. The OLPC is a wonder, light years ahead of any Windows PC for wireless and almost anything else. So, this appears to be another one of those cases where corporate relationships had more to do with a decision than the interests of the customer. Since Wal-Mart isn't known for being particularly sensitive to customer wishes, that is not surprising.