IBM to trumpet iSeries Linux software

IBM, the loudest backer of the Linux operating system, plans to announce Monday that its business partners added more than 300 software packages in 2003 that run on a foundation of Big Blue's WebSphere e-commerce software and its iSeries midrange servers. Among the new software packages is S2 Systems' OpeN/2 software for processing electronic payment transactions.

IBM's iSeries systems, which use the same Power processors as its pSeries Unix line, are best known for running the OS/400 operating system. Adding the ability to run Linux expands the potential pool of software considerably because a wide variety of open-source projects can be easily adapted for the server. However, many customers require that software be certified and supported and not just available.