Some people just like Linux because it's better. And while they are convinced that Open Source software is superior, they're not beyond taking advantage of what they call the benefits of closed-source software.

As we approach the holidays, Dennis E. Powell is preparing

a list and checking it twice a wish list of applications and

hardware that would benefit the Linux world.

The failure of Java to evoke more than relatively mild interest in the Linux community is the complex result of both philosophical and technical differences between the Java and Linux communities and technologies. The philosophical differences revolve around the terms open source and free. Java is neither, all claims to the contrary. Linux, at least in theory, is both.

Adobe hews close to commercial sensibilities. The Linux community--and, particularly, the "Free Beer" portion of the Linux community--would have decried these. Until the Linux community grows up a little, you're not going to see other established application-software vendors rush to market with Linux versions.

Corel has never seemed to grasp where the Linux market was, is, or is going. When the company first came out with a distribution, it concentrated on a desktop play and ignored Linux's strengths in the server and Internet space.

"I ended up with no evidence that any of the Linux companies that are publicly traded is turning a nickel's profit. The non-public companies I've talked with are facing hard times as well. One or two are just about out of money, with not much coming in."

Two trends in particular will converge over the next year or so to push Linux towards critical mass in its march toward world domination: major Linux deployments and increased VAR/ISV support. The question IT managers ask will shift from "can Linux do it?" to "how can we get Linux to do it here?"

Microsoft's interoperability has always been geared toward migration, so why not take a cue from that and make migration to linux as painless as possible? Then the small to medium sized companies can look to migrate without first having an individual that it capable of administrating both Windows NT and Linux.

Conventional wisdom says that Linux still isn't quite ready for prime time. Yet I reckon that magic moment is drawing closer by the day. Much closer. Judging by my recent experiences, I'd say that by this time next year Linux will rival Microsoft Windows as a viable mainstream desktop operating system.

Linux isn't close to establishing a monopoly, although it's clear that Linux is becoming a such a serious player in the server field that it threatens to seize some meaningful revenue from Microsoft.