The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

Microsoft-Novell partnership hooks Dell

Open source and filed IP / live together in perfect har-mo-ny

Dell has become the first major player to show up to Microsoft and Novell's compatibility love-in.

The PC vendor joins a landmark alliance between the patent-protected and open source OS developers inked last November. The agreement will address what all three companies say is customer demand for greater interoperability and intellectual-property assurance between Windows and Linux.

Under the Microsoft-Novell pact, Microsoft began selling Novell's SuSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) coupons. The two companies also agreed to work on interoperability for SLES and Windows on virtualization, directories and file formats between Microsoft Office and Open Office.

Dell will now buy SLES coupons from Microsoft and establish a services and marketing program to migrate existing business Linux users to SuSE.

Since the start of the Microsoft-Novell agreement, more than 40,000 new certificates for three-year priority support subscriptions to SLES have been activated. However, the deal did raise the hackles of some in the Linux community. Microsoft insisted on an addendum of agreeing not to sue develops in the Linux open source community for patent infringement — despite Novell adamantly denying the existence of any such IP violations. ®

Latest Comments

dell better not go with it

There needs to be more anti trust suits against Microsoft. Like Intel with AMD, here is a great product that is at the level to give microsoft compitition and what do they do, buy into the compitation. Dell should forget about Novell and give customer the choice between Ubuntu Linux and Microsoft pain in the you know where os.

0
0
Anonymous Coward

Will this gain Dell more business than it loses?

I really have to wonder if Dell will come out ahead with this agreement. I was seriously considering purchasing a new laptop with Ubuntu if they offered an acceptable model even though I don't need it, but I am now reconsidering. I realize that Dell may be too dependent on Microsoft to be able to refuse the deal and may be getting more out of Microsoft than they are likely to lose through not selling as many Ubuntu systems (which also has the unfortunate side-effect of giving them an excuse to claim that there isn't truly a demand for pre-installed Linux systems), but I'd really like to see someone stand up and refuse to accept the deal until Microsoft lays its cards on the table and reveals what IP they own that they believe Linux infringes on. However, if there ever is a true showdown, I strongly suspect it will turn out to be a repeat of the SCO/IBM lawsuit where SCO failed to produce any significant evidence by the deadline imposed by the court (even though they are still refusing to admit that there is nothing there). As things stand, Microsoft is getting away with accusing the Linux community of committing a crime without providing enough details to allow the community to defend itself, and using their clout to collect extortion money from companies unwilling to stand up to them.

0
0

ubuntu-dell

google search now reveals the link

http://www.dell.com/ubuntu

0
0

RE: SuSe?

I'd picked up on this too (comment by Aubry Thonon), what's the deal here? Seem to recall the previous articles alleged (at least in part) Dell were going with Ubuntu because Michael Dell runs it on his laptop... I guess now he's dual-booting Vista and SuSe then? :o) I can't find anything on the Dell site about Ubuntu now.

Shame really, I've been running SuSe for a couple of months, guess I'll have to wipe it and find something else now it's tainted! The next Fedora is out soon...

0
0

Oh Well..........

I'm a complete Linux n00b - I played around with Mandrake/RedHat a few years back, but never really got the point.

I recently installed OpenSUSE on my laptop - the install was as easy as a windows install, and setting up my wifi card was also pretty painless. As far as an end user in concerned, SUSE is a pretty good distro - No fuss getting it running, and it does exactly what 99% of end users want - a no-fuss stable OS that doesn't require a degree in astro-physics to get running.

That said, I am a Netware system admin, and last week I installed Vista at home - Maybe I've been compromised................

0
0

More from The Register

Android is a mess and needs sprucing up, admits chief
Can Google really fix it? It isn't in control any more
New Lumia 925: This, loyalists, is the BIG ONE you've waited for
Nokia veep drills high-end master plan for El Reg
Android device? Ooohhhh, you mean a Samsung phone
Koreans nabbed nearly all the Q1 profits – more even than Google
Review: HP Pavilion 14 Chromebook
All roads lead to Chrome?
Borked your iDevice? Pay EVEN MORE to have it fixed by Applecare
Or scream at their hapless techies on their forums
Euro PC shipments plummet into bottomless pit of DOOOOM
11th quarter of decline, 20pc drop on last year - Gartner
MIT takes battery-powered robot cheetah for a gallop
Biomimetic big cat needs no power cord, just a walker