| Carmony dispels Linspire Linux myths |
Apr. 07, 2006
 Chances are that you think Linspire lets you run Windows applications, that you have to run it as root, and that it's really not quite a proper Linux. Wrong, wrong, and wrong. At LinuxWorld in Boston this week, CEO Kevin Carmony explained what Linspire Linux is, and isn't all about.
Carmony said that people are still getting these things wrong. Yes, in the beginning, Linspire had the goal of letting Linux users run Windows applications with WINE, but it dropped that theme years ago. As for requiring you to run as root, that was, Carmony said, only the case with an early alpha release that was never put in the public's hands.
As for not being a real Linux, that's nonsense, too. Linspire Five is a Debian-based Linux, and the company itself is a leading member of the DCC Alliance.
But Carmony does admit that Linspire is "something of a black sheep in Linux distributions."
That's because Linspire's goals aren't quite the same as other Linux desktop distributions. The company's sole focus is on a "consumer-friendly Linux that your grandma, sister, or brother can use."
Some people seem to think that Linux is a secret club, where you have to pay your dues before you can learn the secret handshake and run it. That's nonsense as far as Linspire is concerned.
Carmony said that Linspire is something like AOL was in the early days of the Internet. The true Internet experts wouldn't touch it, but if someone asked them how to get on the Internet in a hurry, they'd give them an AOL disk to get started. The "difference between AOL and Linspire is that with AOL, you were always stuck with training wheels, whereas all of Linux's goodness is available to Linspire users," Carmony said
All of Linux's power, however, isn't right there on the surface.
"Linspire gets a lot of flack for looking like Windows, but guess what, what most people know is Windows, and we want them to be comfortable,” Carmony said. "We used to have multiple desktops on the mainbar like everyone else, but guess what? When Windows users pressed the key, they saw their desktop disappear, and they assumed that they had just lost their desktop."
Another part where Linspire strays from most is that it includes all the third-party proprietary libraries and programs needed to run DVDs and the like with its distribution.
"We think not including those bits and telling our users where to get them instead is nonsense. Consumer desires trump philosophy. We have to give people this, or we can kiss consumers good-bye," said Carmony.
Linspire also doesn't rely on downloads, subscriptions, or box sales for its revenue. Instead, Linspire's bottom line relies upon two things. The first is sales of Linspire-equipped PCs.
"I don't care about how many people download Linspire or buy our boxes in the stores. What I care about is how many people bought a computer with Linspire on it," Carmony said.
After all, as Carmony pointed out, 98 percent of the world doesn't need to know how to download an iso image and burn a CD-ROM for their operating system.
"Who can blame them? It's not that users are dumb, it's that while many Linux users are busy working on Linux, most users are busy working as housewives or lawyers. It's not that they're dumb, it's that they don't have time to learn Linux the way we have," Carmony said.
The other part, the majority of Linspire's gross income, comes from its easy-to-use Click 'N' Run online software sales service. A small percentage of each sale adds up to more than half of the company's revenue.
All in all, Linspire remains perfectly sure that putting new-user consumers first, and making deals with more OEMs to get its operating systems on PCs, is the right way to get Linux into the hands of most people.
How well is this approach working?
Carmony said that Linspire was recently approached by a venture capitalist who wanted to invest in it, but they've pretty much decided to turn it down. Why? Because he expects the company to be profitable soon without any need for more investment, so there's no reason to dilute the company's value.
-- Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
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