This article is more than 1 year old

Linuxcare opens Linux compatibility lab

Tech support vendor joins KeyLabs' standardisation efforts

Linux tech support provider Linuxcare has become the second vendor to offer a vendor-neutral certification programme for hardware and software designed to work with the open source OS.

Linuxcare LabsAccording to Linuxcare's CTO, David Sifry, the company's testing efforts, to be promoted under the Linuxcare Labs brand, will be vendor-independent. One of the company's key aims with the programme is to help prevent the fragmentation of the OS into different, potentially incompatible flavours, he said. That divergence has long been a feature of the Unix market, and its something Linux users are keen to avoid, particularly given the ease with which distributors and programmers can modify components of the operating system.

Linux advocates also want the OS to be taken more seriously within corporates, and certification is often seen as an important way of proving to finance directors that products and services should be given proper consideration. That's largely why KeyLabs, the company that maintains Sun's '100% Pure' Java certification programme on behalf of the developer, proposed standards for Linux hardware and software certification back in April, with the support of IBM and Linux distributor Caldera. Caldera is also backing Linuxcare's scheme.

KeyLabs' certification programme was launched earlier this month, primarily for hardware testing (at $1000 for a client, $1500 for a server or $2000 for both). Linuxcare Labs will begin testing hardware immediately, but software certification plus hardware and software benchmarking services will not be available until the third quarter, said Sifry. Like KeyLabs, the company will shortly open a device driver testing service. Prices had yet to be released as this story was posted. Linuxcare also promised to post details of its testing methodology, which supports the Linux Standards Base and Open Hardware Certification Platform initiatives, on its Web site later today. ®

See also

Linux Professional Institute to certify OS operatives

More about

TIP US OFF

Send us news


Other stories you might like