Time for mainstream Linux!

After reading more on Dell's IdeaStorm about Dell's proposed actions to offer pre-installed Linux on more of their desktops and laptops, it came to me that if there are any CIOs out there who are NOT experimenting with Linux based operating systems and OpenOffice 2.0 (or other web based applications like Zoho), they're crazy.

Eliminating the Microsoft "tax" is the next big cost savings opportunity for your IT department. Not only does their software cost more and more as a percentage of the cost of a PC or laptop, the forced upgrade support costs are completely none value adding (IMO).

Many companies must now support at least two operating systems (assuming they're running Microsoft exclusively) as PCs and laptops "refresh". And anyone who has gone through this learning curve knows the pain; applications that don't quite work the same way (or at all) under the new O/S. Then there's the learning curve of the employees (and your IT department!).

Even those intrepid souls who try to keep standard by upgrading older machines are faced with the possibility of having to upgrade memory, video cards etc or face deteriorating performance. Our end users don't need to be put through this! The whole exercise is simply non value adding for most companies.

So perhaps the time has come for the great Linux and OpenOffice experiment. What have you got to lose?