| Novell to launch OpenSuSE at LinuxWorld |
Aug. 02, 2005
Novell is opening SuSE Linux to community-based development, sources say, with a model similar to Red Hat's recent move with Fedora. Novell will be launching a community-based Linux distribution, OpenSuSE, at next week's LinuxWorld in San Francisco, according to sources close to the company.
Following in the footsteps of Red Hat Inc. with its successful Fedora Project Linux distribution, Novell Inc. will be opening up its Linux development efforts with OpenSuSE, sources said.
A site, opensuse.org, has already been set up for the project by Novell under the name of Batman's alter ego, Bruce Wayne. The site, however, is not open for business yet.
Continuing in this humorous vein, sources said, the initiative's launch will go by the name of "The Lizard Blizzard" and SuSE's original "Geeko" lizard mascot will be reappearing at LinuxWorld.
More seriously, the true name of the deliverable distribution will be SuSE Linux, while the SuSE Linux Pro line will be rebranded to share the SuSE Linux name.
The possibility of Novell trying a community-based, open-source approach has been discussed before in the Linux community. Jason Perlow, an author and a systems architect with Unisys' open-source solutions practice, wrote in May's Linux Magazine, "It's pretty darn clear to me that to make mojo, SuSE Linux Professional needs to look deep into its roots and re-birth itself as a public, open-source project similar to Fedora."
Perlow argued that Novell's keeping its open-source technologies close to its vest had not served the company well. With an open, community-based approach, he said, "key SuSE/Ximian/Novell technologies such as Mono, Evolution, Red Carpet, NDS, ZENworks, and Hula [will come] to the fore, allowing even more extensive field testing within the community."
Citing the popularity of Thunderbird over Evolution, among others, Perlow further argued that the easier access is to a project for testing and development, the more developers will use and extend it.
Perlow's arguments may not have fallen on deaf ears. Certainly, it is possible that Novell may have been influenced by Red Hat Fedora's growing success.
In the Fedora community-based approach, the development cycle is driven not just by the company's engineers working on Linux, but by the larger open-source community. The result is a cutting-edge Linux for enthusiasts.
Once the code matures to the point where enterprises can use it, it is then locked down, given a final coat of polish and quality and assurance testing, and released as a commercial product with support.
In Red Hat's case, the final stage of each version of Fedora becomes the basis for RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux).
For Novell, according to sources, the SuSE Linux code will become the foundation for the next version of SLES (SuSE Linux Enterprise Server), the Linux component of OES (Open Enterprise Server) and NLD (Novell Linux Desktop), while the first version of SuSE Linux will consist of the Linux 2.6-based beta for SLES 10. This will be roughly equivalent to what would have been SuSE Linux Professional 9.5.
The expected distribution model isn't quite the same as Red Hat's, though; unlike Red Hat, which only makes Fedora available as a download and doesn't offer support for it, Novell will also sell SuSE Linux in a boxed retail version with manuals and paid technical support, sources said.
The full version will be freely available from the OpenSuSE site as both source code and in ISO download form. Sources said the dual approach was chosen because Novell wants SuSE Linux to be both worked on by the community and run by users who don't want to develop but do want a supported, cutting-edge Linux.
As with Red Hat and Fedora, Novell will initially be running the SuSE Linux show, but control will eventually be ceded to a steering board, sources said.
Novell executives declined to comment on this report. Bruce Lowry, director of public relations for Novell, did say that any potential changes in Novell's Linux development approach had nothing to do with announced European employee cuts.
"Novell's European financial performance has been disappointing and [the cutbacks are] part of the effort to turn this around," Lowry said. "This is in no way connected with SuSE engineering and development staff. It is directed at our redundant sales force. This move is designed to make Europe more profitable."
If you found this eWEEK.com article by Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols informative, be sure to check out eWEEK.com's Linux & Open Source Center for the latest open-source news, reviews, and analysis.
Related Stories:
(Click here for further information)
|
|
|
Approaching the Linux Desktop
The purpose of this paper is to help organizations evaluate the Linux desktop against their own enterprise needs and discover what benefits the Linux desktop might bring to their organizations.
Migrating To Linux: Application Challenges and Solutions
Several solutions exist to help organizations migrate in an orderly fashion from Windows to Linux desktops. This paper establishes the characteristics of an ideal cross-platform solution and reviews these alternatives in light of this ideal standard. The paper takes a closer look at the pros and cons of various solutions and outlines the business benefits that can be achieved.
Linux Advantages: Publicly Available Information on Linux Software
This paper offers a brief summary of readily-available Linux information to help businesses sort out this widely misunderstood operating system.
Top 5 Strategies for Managing Linux
Despite continuous evolution in the manageability of Linux, a 2006 survey cited manageability concerns as a top reason why organizations are hesitating to adopt Linux. Levanta believes Linux can be as manageable, if not more so, than other operating systems by following key strategies. These strategic recommendations were developed from experiences in numerous customer environments, both large and small.
Why Choose Novell for Linux?
This paper outlines the benefits of switching to the Linux platform and choosing Novell as a high-performance, enterprise solution.
Enterprise Linux Selection Guide
Considering moving your enterprise to the Linux operating system? Since there are so many similar versions, choosing the right one can be tough. This paper offers a clear process to help you make an informed decision and get the features, support, and cost that are right for your business and technical needs.
Overcoming Challenges in Managing Linux
Levanta has created a new administration model with innovative technology that breaks down the barriers to making the most of Linux systems. This paper will provide an in-depth look at the workings of Levanta’s product, the first Linux appliance of its kind.
SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 for Retail Businesses
Discover why major retailers have switched to SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop in the back office. SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 is a low-cost desktop that offers a complete set of productivity applications and interoperates seamlessly with the other Windows, Macintosh and UNIX desktops in your store.
Moving to a Linux Desktop
Migrating from Windows to Linux on the desktop can be a substantial undertaking because it has the potential for touching -- and perhaps disrupting -- every user in your organization. Unlike a data center (server and infrastructure) migration that is largely transparent to users, the cultural and administrative transitions and environment readiness required to support a Linux desktop migration are extensive.
Seven Good Reasons to Exchange Exchange
This paper describes seven compelling reasons why you should switch from Exchange to Scalix.
|
|
|
|
|
news feed
