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What does Linux not dominate? I can think of only a few categories: desktops, ATM machines, real time, SCADA. What are the remaining big sectors Linux doesn't

What does Linux not dominate? I can think of only a few categories: desktops, ATM machines, real time, SCADA. What are the remaining big sectors Linux doesn't yet dominate?

epochwolf 12y ago
Point of Sale machines, machine controllers, etc.
marcosdumay 12y ago
Desktop and laptop computers. Also CAD plataforms (that are a subset of the first, but an important subset).
legulere 12y ago
Real time computing, routers, sensors
- dublinben 12y ago
  More routers run linux than you'd think. There's very little reason to reinvent basic networking and routing components and a kernel, when all the common SoCs are supported by a free OS. For the small price of stashing a source code bundle somewhere on their website (if even!) companies can get most of what makes their product tick off the shelf.
  - evv 12y ago
    AFAIK, most routers use OpenBSD over Linux for security reasons.
    - dublinben 12y ago
      I guess I'm only considering commodity, consumer routers. I'm sure you're right at higher levels.
    - intorio 12y ago
      For licensing issues, actually.
    - bashinator 12y ago
      Juniper Networks' JunOS is a FreeBSD derivative.
    - kjs3 12y ago
      What significant networking vendor runs OpenBSD? And I don't mean the low-end, low-support, OpenBSD on an embedded board from China stuff (so, no, Soekris isn't a significant vendor in the router space). I can't think of a single business or enterprise class one that does. Cisco doesn't use it (IOS is home grown, IOS XR is QNX, NX-OS is Linux), Juniper uses FreeBSD, Arista uses Linux, HP uses (I think) Comware (linux), Intel & Broadcom are pushing Cumulus (linux) on their reference networking platforms, Dell/Force10 is NetBSD based (and older Dell is VXWorks, I think), Pretty sure Brocade is Linux, but they've also used VXWorks. Don't know what Hauwei uses (that wasn't stolen from Cisco, or course). Not that this is authoritative, but I've talked to a couple of execs at companies who were using OSS platforms for their networking devices (Nokia, Juniper, Force10, Arista) and all of them basically said OpenBSD wasn't a consideration because of the open hostility the people leading the project had towards commercial enterprises. No one was interested in betting the company with the threat of a "DARPA funding" moment hanging over them, much less someone who was more interested in dictating terms and making "statements" than cooperation on business relationships. [edit for punctuation]
      - noryungi 12y ago
        I believe the OpenBSD community of developpers is not too concerned with popularity or integration with vendor's hardware. They are more concerned with doing things right (or, some would say, doing things their own way). Nevertheless, there are some small companies selling things based on OpenBSD - even though, I'll admit, they are mostly companies started by OpenBSD developpers: http://www.openbsd.org/products.html http://www.openbsd.org/products.html You can also get some consulting & support: http://www.openbsd.org/support.html http://www.openbsd.org/support.html And, of course, there is always the strong possibility that some people are using OpenBSD while keeping it hush-hush and "under the radar" -- maybe even under the radar of their own management. Make of this what you will.
        kjs3 12y ago
        I would certainly say "doing their own way" rather than "doing it right", and I would never say "wrong", for most values of wrong. I'm merely pointing out to the OP that other than the "side projects" (e.g. SSH), there is for all practical purposes zero uptake of OpenBSD in the commercial networking space. Yeah, there are some very niche players and lots of DIY folks, but that's not what was being alleged.
ptfoobar 12y ago
RT is a matter of time (no pun intended). In fact hard real-time is already done using Linux and RT_PREEMPT is believed to go in the main tree soon.
nardi 12y ago
How has no one mentioned mobile? Smartphones/tablets? You know, the largest segment of general computation devices?
- gamegoblin 12y ago
  Android is based on the Linux kernel at least.
- azdle 12y ago
  > How has no one mentioned mobile? Because Linux does dominate mobile? Android is Linux and iOS is a *nux. (iOS is a BSD derivative.)
  - JoshTheGeek 12y ago
    BSD isn't Linux. Android uses the Linux kernel, but not iOS. I'm not sure which dominates, though
    - barbs 12y ago
      In numbers, I'm pretty sure Android dominated (can't remember the exact numbers but Google should reveal them for you). In revenue (app-sales etc) iOS dominates.
      - shmerl 12y ago
        > In revenue (app-sales etc) iOS dominates. Who made such research? I'm not sure if it's even possible to know exactly, unless all vendors who run their own stores publish sales statistics.
        TheSoftwareGuy 12y ago
        >unless all vendors who run their own stores publish sales statistics. They do, thats one of those things that companies that are traded publicly are required to do.
robotresearcher 12y ago
The profitable part of the cellphone business.
kiram9 12y ago
A lot of broadcast TV is all windows/mac. Even for things like playout servers, automation, and real time graphics engines mostly run on windows or mac.
pjc50 12y ago
Pretty much all end-user facing systems? (Android barely counts as Linux for reasons discussed in my other comment)
odonnellryan 12y ago
Small and medium sized business servers?

What does Linux not dominate? I can think of only a few categories: desktops, ATM machines, real time, SCADA. What are the remaining big sectors Linux doesn't yet dominate?

epochwolf 12y ago

Point of Sale machines, machine controllers, etc.

marcosdumay 12y ago

Desktop and laptop computers. Also CAD plataforms (that are a subset of the first, but an important subset).

legulere 12y ago

Real time computing, routers, sensors

dublinben 12y ago
More routers run linux than you'd think. There's very little reason to reinvent basic networking and routing components and a kernel, when all the common SoCs are supported by a free OS. For the small price of stashing a source code bundle somewhere on their website (if even!) companies can get most of what makes their product tick off the shelf.
- evv 12y ago
  AFAIK, most routers use OpenBSD over Linux for security reasons.
  - dublinben 12y ago
    I guess I'm only considering commodity, consumer routers. I'm sure you're right at higher levels.
  - intorio 12y ago
    For licensing issues, actually.
  - bashinator 12y ago
    Juniper Networks' JunOS is a FreeBSD derivative.
  - kjs3 12y ago
    What significant networking vendor runs OpenBSD? And I don't mean the low-end, low-support, OpenBSD on an embedded board from China stuff (so, no, Soekris isn't a significant vendor in the router space). I can't think of a single business or enterprise class one that does. Cisco doesn't use it (IOS is home grown, IOS XR is QNX, NX-OS is Linux), Juniper uses FreeBSD, Arista uses Linux, HP uses (I think) Comware (linux), Intel & Broadcom are pushing Cumulus (linux) on their reference networking platforms, Dell/Force10 is NetBSD based (and older Dell is VXWorks, I think), Pretty sure Brocade is Linux, but they've also used VXWorks. Don't know what Hauwei uses (that wasn't stolen from Cisco, or course). Not that this is authoritative, but I've talked to a couple of execs at companies who were using OSS platforms for their networking devices (Nokia, Juniper, Force10, Arista) and all of them basically said OpenBSD wasn't a consideration because of the open hostility the people leading the project had towards commercial enterprises. No one was interested in betting the company with the threat of a "DARPA funding" moment hanging over them, much less someone who was more interested in dictating terms and making "statements" than cooperation on business relationships. [edit for punctuation]
    - noryungi 12y ago
      I believe the OpenBSD community of developpers is not too concerned with popularity or integration with vendor's hardware. They are more concerned with doing things right (or, some would say, doing things their own way). Nevertheless, there are some small companies selling things based on OpenBSD - even though, I'll admit, they are mostly companies started by OpenBSD developpers: http://www.openbsd.org/products.html http://www.openbsd.org/products.html You can also get some consulting & support: http://www.openbsd.org/support.html http://www.openbsd.org/support.html And, of course, there is always the strong possibility that some people are using OpenBSD while keeping it hush-hush and "under the radar" -- maybe even under the radar of their own management. Make of this what you will.
      - kjs3 12y ago
        I would certainly say "doing their own way" rather than "doing it right", and I would never say "wrong", for most values of wrong. I'm merely pointing out to the OP that other than the "side projects" (e.g. SSH), there is for all practical purposes zero uptake of OpenBSD in the commercial networking space. Yeah, there are some very niche players and lots of DIY folks, but that's not what was being alleged.

ptfoobar 12y ago

RT is a matter of time (no pun intended). In fact hard real-time is already done using Linux and RT_PREEMPT is believed to go in the main tree soon.

nardi 12y ago

How has no one mentioned mobile? Smartphones/tablets? You know, the largest segment of general computation devices?

gamegoblin 12y ago
Android is based on the Linux kernel at least.
azdle 12y ago
> How has no one mentioned mobile? Because Linux does dominate mobile? Android is Linux and iOS is a *nux. (iOS is a BSD derivative.)
- JoshTheGeek 12y ago
  BSD isn't Linux. Android uses the Linux kernel, but not iOS. I'm not sure which dominates, though
  - barbs 12y ago
    In numbers, I'm pretty sure Android dominated (can't remember the exact numbers but Google should reveal them for you). In revenue (app-sales etc) iOS dominates.
    - shmerl 12y ago
      > In revenue (app-sales etc) iOS dominates. Who made such research? I'm not sure if it's even possible to know exactly, unless all vendors who run their own stores publish sales statistics.
      - TheSoftwareGuy 12y ago
        >unless all vendors who run their own stores publish sales statistics. They do, thats one of those things that companies that are traded publicly are required to do.

robotresearcher 12y ago

The profitable part of the cellphone business.

kiram9 12y ago

A lot of broadcast TV is all windows/mac. Even for things like playout servers, automation, and real time graphics engines mostly run on windows or mac.

pjc50 12y ago

Pretty much all end-user facing systems? (Android barely counts as Linux for reasons discussed in my other comment)

odonnellryan 12y ago

Small and medium sized business servers?