IBM Gives Linux PowerPC Boost Edward F. Moltzen February 08, 1999, Issue: 828 Armonk, N.Y. -- IBM Corp. plans to initiate a companywide effort that should next month lead up to full-blown support of the Linux operating system. A cross-divisional working group within IBM, examining the computer giant's response to the growing market acceptance of Linux, has pushed the company into making several key decisions, said sources who had been briefed. Those decisions will lead to a series of unveilings on March 1, the sources said. First, IBM plans to unveil wide-ranging support for Linux throughout its product lines. The company also plans to preload versions of Linux, initially on low-end versions of its RS/6000 systems. These bundles will be focused primarily on the education and Web-serving solutions markets. Armonk-based IBM is talking with a range of independent software vendors, including LinuxPPC Inc. and Red Hat Software Inc., about cooperative efforts to put the freeware onto IBM hardware, sources said. The moves, and other key decisions, are expected to be unveiled on or before the LinuxWorld trade show next month, said a source who had been briefed. Robert Ramos, RS/6000 product manager for Champion Computer Corp., Boca Raton, Fla., one of IBM's largest North American midrange distributors, said Champion already configures some systems with the open-source-code operating system, and described the performance of those systems as "smoking." "The last six months or so is when things have really come to life," Ramos said. Linux now competes head-to-head with Windows NT, and the fact that the next release of NT, Windows 2000, is delayed "plays into the favor of the Linux community," he said. Linux began to draw interest in accounts where an NT investment of $10,000 to implement is compared to a free investment in Linux, along with improved support, Ramos said, adding that he had not heard, officially, about the specifics of IBM's plans. "The momentum and excitement is there," Ramos said. "If you don't ride the wave, you're going to be left out." IBM is talking with LinuxPPC about different cooperative efforts, said Jason Haas, marketing director at the Madison, Wis. start-up that provides versions of Linux ported to the PowerPC processor platform. "They've spoken with us about working on a demo model of the RS/6000 running Linux in their booth at LinuxWorld," Haas said. LinuxPPC has ported a version of Linux to the PowerPC processor platform, he said. While IBM has dabbled with Linux-and even offers a version of its DB2 Universal Database for the operating system-it has, on the surface, been tepid in its support, analysts said. IBM subsidiary Lotus Development Corp. has promised a Linux version of Notes/Domino. IBM declined for several weeks to return phone calls while its working group continued hammering out a companywide strategy. One spokeswoman, though, last week said IBM for years has said it would support a variety of operating systems. A recent survey inside the company showed that 90 percent of IBM accounts use at least three different operating systems, she said. Pricing and market pressures, however, have put IBM in the position where it will make a bold, supportive statement of Linux next month, industry experts said. Competitor Compaq Computer Corp. last week said it would offer a series of midrange servers based on the Alpha processor. Systems with Unix-based operating systems will be $19,900, while those with Linux will be $15,000. Those servers will compete with IBM's RS/6000. Copyright ® 1999 CMP Media Inc. From MAILER-DAEMON@cs.depaul.edu Tue Feb 9 14:18:14 1999