Newsforge (http://newsforge.com/article.pl?sid=02/07/15/0147230&mode=thread&tid=23) notes that Mandrake Linux PCs finally went on sale at Walmart.com over the weekend. Prices range from $391 for a 900MHz Duron machine to $648 for a 2GHz Pentium 4 with CD-RW.

The machines are Microtel, which is also supplying Walmart with 'naked' PCs ("Perfect if you already have a licensed copy of Windows," says Walmart chirpily, undoing years of Redmond propaganda) and Lindows machines. The nearest spec naked PC to the 2GHz Mandrake one costs $599, so Mandrakesoft must be making some money out of the deal, while a similar Lindows machine is, er, $599.

Draw your own conclusions about that one, friends, but it'll be interesting to see how the respective offerings do at Walmart, or indeed if preinstalled Linux from a major consumer outlet will hit the spot. US customers can browse the range here, (http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product_listing.gsp?cat=102252&path=0%3A3944%3A3951%3A102252&dept=3944) while would-be UK customers will be unsurprised to learn that there's not a lot going on at Walmart subsidiary Asda.co.uk. ®