| What flavor Linux do Dell users want? |
Mar. 13, 2007
In a new survey launched yesterday, Dell is asking its customers exactly what they want from a Linux desktop. Why? Because, it appears, they're going to make one.
Dell knows that the public does want Linux desktops. To date, however, Dell has made only small moves to deliver the goods. The new survey might mean that the company is taking the idea more seriously.
In this new desktop Linux survey, Dell begins by asking which models of Dell desktop and notebook systems customers prefer, where they're used, and what applications customers use on them. The point here isn't knowing if you prefer Mozilla, Firefox, Epiphany, or Konqueror. What Dell wants to know is, will you be using your Linux desktop for Web browsing? Office work? Video editing?
Dell's survey goes on to ask what level of Linux support people want from them. Would support from software vendors and the open-source community be enough, or do consumers want full-scale corporate support?
Finally, Dell asks customers which distributions they would most like to see. The choices are: Novell/SUSE, Red Hat, Fedora, openSUSE, and Ubuntu. Users also have the option of nominating their favorite Linux distribution that isn't on that list.
Does this mean that Dell actually will actually deliver a laptop or desktop for the consumer or SMB (small- to medium-sized business) audience?
It's hard to tell. In the Dell blog that introduces the Linux survey, Matt Domsch, Dell's Linux software architect, wrote: "We're crafting product offerings in response, but we'd like a little more direct feedback from you: your preferences, your desires. We recognize some people prefer notebooks over desktops, high-end models over value models, your favorite Linux distribution, telephone-based support over community-based support, and so on. We can't offer everything -- all systems, all distributions, all support options -- so we've crafted a survey to let you help us prioritize what we should deliver for you."
Even if Dell is just trying to narrow its focus toward a Linux development in the nebulous future, it's more than they've done so far. If you want to voice your opinions, get to the survey before it ends on March 23.
-- Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
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