mainly because it was the only option for awhile until MS started allowing XP on netbooks for cheap. Now Linux share is falling to where it would have been in the first place.
Linux on consumer PCs (including netbooks) still has a long slow ramp to climb, it won't be done in one major revolution. Unless Microsoft makes a big mistake (like Vista) it will continue to have the majority share for many years.
Finally the numbers don't always add up: I have six different x86 systems in my house, three of them are set up for dual-boot Windows/Ubuntu use, one is Windows-only and two are Ubuntu-only. How to you calculate "share" on a situation like that?
Linux losing ground on netbooks
Summary
Linux is losing ground on the netbook front, but there lies opportunity for it in smaller, dedicated Internet-enabled appliances, said an Ovum analyst.
Topics
Linux is losing ground on the netbook front, but there lies opportunity for it in smaller, dedicated Internet-enabled appliances, said an Ovum analyst.
Laurent Lachal, open source research director at the U.K.-based analyst firm, said in a research note, Linux is not doing as well in terms of market share, compared to when it made its debut on the netbook market.
Lachal said: "After a strong start, Linux netbooks have now been overtaken by Windows netbooks and Linux is lagging increasingly behind in terms of sales."
While the first netbooks came with Linux OSes, manufacturers started finding Windows-based devices more popular, with customers finding they could not get accustomed to the Linux interfaces.
In the Philippines, Asus dropped Linux on all of its Eee PC models in the country because Filipinos were not taking to the Linux OS well.
But Linux could find its market as an OS for smaller, handheld Internet-enabled appliances such as Apple iPod Touch, said Lachal. The iPod Touch is a device similar to the iPhone but without telephony capabilities.
Linux, having had more success and a longer history as a phone OS, may be more suitable for such devices, said Lachal.
He added that Linux-based Android could be better positioned in this segment, with "increasing support" from the developer and ISV (independent software vendor) communities.
Google's recent revenue-sharing announcement for the Android app market is also expected to help raise developer interest in the platform. The increased variety of apps may also make Android more attractive to consumers.
This article was originally published on ZDNet Asia.
Talkback Most Recent of 243 Talkback(s)
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Manny_Wacker18th Mar 2009 -
They DON'T calculate "share" like that....
What they really want to talk about is sales which for Linux makes no difference. I have run through two laptops that counted as Windows sales and will probably have more in the future but none of them will run Windows.
storm14k18th Mar 2009 -
Mmmm
I have one PC strictly on Ubuntu, one dual-boot Window Vista/Ubuntu, one Window XP and one Apple OSX. I use the dual-boot Window Vista/Ubuntu machine 95% of the time on Ubuntu. Mrs. uses OSX simply because that's what almost everyone at the College she works uses. Why is it that Window machines always slow down to the point that you need to re-install windows after sometime and that it never happen to Ubuntu. I wonder?
yschoo1@...18th Mar 2009 -
Normally Ubuntu Completely Fails And You Erase It
Before it slows down. Then you try one of the other hundered Linux variants, because after all, that's what you do when you're a Linux fan.
PMC-CON18th Mar 2009 -
What about ones that are wiped.......
My Dell XPS & Latitude came with 'Windows' and it never seen the light of day before it was wiped out with Logical Volumes running Centos/Fedora10.
These numbers are only what a bean counter can see and it is not the actual truth.
I do not use Windows, I use Open_Source for everything in the work_place and home.
Until there is an accurate 'true' percentile usage from all of the millions of users no one knows.
Christian_<><18th Mar 2009 -
Is it any different then the ones purchased
with Linux, then having Windows installed?
Overall, I would wonder that even in the PC desktop/laptop market, how many systems where purchased with Linux to save 30 dollars, then wiped and reinstalled with a copy of Windows that the buyer had already owned, or used from another system?
GuidingLight18th Mar 2009 -
And that happens how often?
Is it any different then the ones purchased with Linux, then having Windows installed?
Considering that buying Windows separately is MORE expensive then buying it pre-installs, even the typical drooling Windows droid isn't THAT stupid.
akulkis18th Mar 2009 -
Stole, You Mean
"Windows from Another Machine" is "Theft." What you normally see when you get in a blog with OSS guys, theft.PMC-CON18th Mar 2009 -
I suggest that the number of people who remove Windows and...
...install something else are inconsequential wrt the number of systems sold. It doesn't make sense for a significant number of people to buy a Windows version of a netbook, remove Windows, and install Linux when Linux versions of netbooks are available. I'm sure there are some but not enough to be of consequence.
ye18th Mar 2009 -
It appears to happen more than you may think...
I see many people talking about deals on Windows versions that aren't on Linux versions or the vendor doesn't offer the Linux version at all. I know the local stores I frequent don't offer the Linux version in stores or online.
So its either order it from Dell or HP or buy one on sale and load Linux on to it. The good thing is that you know the drivers are available for the hardware since there are Linux versions out there.
I say its win win in a sense. MS cuts the price on XP and subsidizes some of these netbooks. I get hardware at a cheaper price and I can install my OS of choice on it with ease.storm14k18th Mar 2009 -
They don't offer it because most people don't want it.
I know the local stores I frequent don't offer the Linux version in stores or online.
They used to until they noticed people were buying the Windows versions and decided stocking Linux versions, for the few people that wanted them, wasn't worth their time.
Like I said I'm sure there are some. But in comparison to the total number sold they're inconsequential. Otherwise stores would be stocking Linux versions too.ye18th Mar 2009 -
Thats funny...
People didn't want them but they were selling like hotcakes pre XP extension? Please...
They weren't in the local stores period. And when there were Linux PC's in Walmart they sold out.
The question however is what consequences are there for installing Linux over Windows that would lead you to say its inconsequential in the first place? The fact is that it appears to happen a decent amount of times. MS gets money for nothing and Vendors get more and more requests for Linux compatible software and drivers. Once again win win if you ask me.storm14k18th Mar 2009 -
Spin it any way you want. The argument being made is...
...a significant number of people are wiping Windows and installing Linux on their netbooks. I propose the number doing so is inconsequential otherwise more people would be buying the Linux version of these netbooks to begin with. And more businesses would be stocking them. The fact they're not tells me there is insufficient demand for them. Period.
ye18th Mar 2009 -
Spin what?
You didn't list the consequences...
Some people are buying what the are comfortable with. Some are buying Windows for the hardware spec advantage on some offerings and some are buying it because of deals on Window's versions that they don't see on the Linux versions. The last two are installing Linux once they get it plain and simple.
To the contrary the fact that Dell even started selling Ubuntu machines and slowly but surely has made it easier to configure a machine with Ubuntu....and the fact that HP was hiring Linux desktop developers and heavily customizing the desktop experience tells me there is enough demand for them to do so.storm14k18th Mar 2009 -
Big bad old Microsoft!
Didn't you know that Microsoft is so evil that every time somebody chooses to purchase one of their products, it is because they've been tricked or forced to do so? If Linux isn't the dominant desktop it's because Microsoft has used their "evil monopoly" powers to force their products on users. It has nothing to do with merit, the quality of Microsoft's product line, the deficiencies of Linux, or consumers simply preferring an environment they are familiar with and makes them productive.
Seriously, I wonder how many of these Linux-heads who constantly preach conspiracy are old enough to legally consume alcohol? I bet the percentage would be astonishing!
Tiggster18th Mar 2009
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