In a speech at New York University's Stern School of Business, Richard Stallman defended the GPL against attacks from Microsoft minions. He took a few shots at Caldera, calling it "parasite" on the free-software movement. Stallman addressed everything from the distinctions between open source and GNU/Linux to his take on how Microsoft might be best broken up by the government, in the aftermath of the Department of Justice antitrust trial.

Dell Computer and other industry giants may be pessimistic about Linux's chances on the desktop, but HP executive and Linux veteran Bruce Perens believes the open source OS will still triumph in the end.

Linux on the desktop is dead. What a crock! How analysts can make such conclusions

based on the fact that two companies had trouble selling it is beyond me. Linux

didn't achieve its server success by relying on the success of its co-players. Why should

anyone believe that the desktop should be any different? It was only a couple of years ago

that these same analysts said Linux couldn't achieve a foothold in the server market,

and look where we are now. Rome was not built in a day, nor was Microsoft. While Linux

Apple has seemingly jumped on the Linux/OSS bandwagon twice. Each time they were

applauded for their efforts by those communities who were glad to have such a big name

tech company seemingly embrace them. But were these moves of real substance or merely

PR fodder? What is the real truth behind Apple's open source initiatives?

"We need to be doing things differently. Linux needs to be a different experience, not a familiar one with a better kernel. People understand that Linux is free in many ways compared to Windows, but they need more than the financial incentive to switch. They need a new place to work, and a new outlook on things. When this starts happening, Linux will begin to take its place on the desktop," says Doug Dingus.

"OK, it's official: Linux on the desktop is dead. Oh, sure, the corpse is still kicking around a little,

and there's some debate about whether the patient is officially dead. But all we're waiting

for now is the official death certificate from the coroner. The recent death of Eazel, as well as

Corel's inability to practically give away the desktop-oriented Corel Linux, are two strong

indications that there isn't an acceptable rate of return on Linux desktop development.

Instead of lamenting the past its time to recognize the amazing accomplishment of Linux's

This article, written by a former foreign aid worker, addresses the issues surrounding bringing technology to developing nations as its starting point and moves on to discuss the specific usefulness of Linux in these instances. The author's decidedly lucid about the perils of promoting technology for its own sake. For people who've ever wondered what the story was behind vim's "help uganda" command, there's something interesting, too.

Open Source advocates are often embarrassed at the suggestion that their

favorite type of software may be a socialistic phenomenon. Though they protest, many secretly fear it may be true. The sharing aspect

of Open Source, its emphasis on community and its availability free of

charge certainly sound like some form of Socialism. And Open Source

doesn't lend itself easily to commercial exploitation. Is it anti-capitalist,

then?

Do we buy Linux distributions because of what the distributors have done to

Linux, or do we buy them to get a fairly standard Linux with particular

installation tools and documentation? Dennis E. Powell argues for the latter,

and explains why he believes that the less distributions do to Linux itself, the

better it will be for users, for Linux, and for the distributions themselves.

"What Microsoft needs is a way to continue expanding its business in the server operating

system market while reducing its costs. And that is precisely the solution I have to offer.

Microsoft needs to bring out a Linux distribution of its own. It’s the ideal way to slash

expenses and boost profitability. Windows NT is an expensive dud. Microsoft should

jump onto the open-source bandwagon with both feet. The stockholders will be dancing

in the streets,"says J D Hildebrand.