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We'll have to wait and see how it plays out. Being "open" hasn't propelled Linux over Windows. And it should be noted that most people aren't using Android in

by mdasen 17y ago

We'll have to wait and see how it plays out. Being "open" hasn't propelled Linux over Windows. And it should be noted that most people aren't using Android in a way that's more open than the iPhone - people get their programs from the Android Market, OS updates are provided by the handset manufacturer/carrier, etc. In some ways, the iPhone is more freeing since one doesn't have to worry about the carrier or device manufacturer abandoning it for OS updates - as my roommate looks forward to a 6 month wait for an update to his HTC Hero which is now two versions behind! I think what it really comes down to is who provides the best experience. Freedom is part of that experience - can you use the device how you want. Part of that is open-ness, but part of that is having something that works right. No one would say that anti-virus software enhances the user experience in its own right, but millions use it because it prevents something worse. Likewise, restrictions on what you can install can have two sides. It's a balancing act. Whether Android or the iPhone will get it right is debatable, but I think it's definitely a balancing act.

grandalf 17y ago
Linux has grown way faster than windows over the past 10 years... Check again in another 5 years.
- pierrefar 17y ago
  Not on the desktop. On the server is where it's kicking ass.
- evgen 17y ago
  It is easy to show fast "growth" when you are starting from what is effectively a zero percent usage. Microsoft will ship more copies of Windows 7 this month than there are people who have ever run a non-embedded Linux over the entirety of it's existence. The first ten percent or so of growth is easy, the rest is much harder.
  - SamAtt 17y ago
    Especially when you're gaining at the expense of a dying competitor. I don't claim to know how much Linux will grow in the future but there's no doubt it's growth over the last 5 years has had a lot to do with Sun collapsing and companies moving away from Solaris. That's a market that's all but dried up at this point.
- houseabsolute 17y ago
  Windows is shrinking -- losing significant amounts of market share to Apple. It's not hard to grow faster than something that is shrinking. And for the record, I cannot find any data which would suggest that Linux is growing at more than a fifth the rate of its closed-and-growing competitor, Mac OS X.
davidw 17y ago
Being "open enough" made Windows more popular than Macintosh, which is probably a fairer comparison in some ways. Linux didn't even really get started in terms of 'desktop' stuff until around 2000. Also, Linux is way more popular in the server world than Windows.
- theBobMcCormick 17y ago
  Agreed. The comparison between Windows and Mac seems much closer to the Android/iPhone situation than comparisons between Windows and Linux. In fact the parallels to the early days of Windows/Mac seem pretty striking. Much like the iPhone, the Mac came out first and was stunning it redefined how people thought of not just the market, but their relationship to the device and the potentials of the device. Much like the iPhone, you could only get MacOS on Mac hardware (although to be fair, Apple did have a few brief, tepid flirtations with licensed clones). In the end though, even though the Mac remained technologically superior for a long time, and had a superior UI.... well forever apparently, it still wasn't able to hold market dominance against the vast army of PC manufacturers pushing Windows. Of course, the story wasn't entirely sad for Apple, as they continued to enjoy a profitable nitch with much higher profit margins than most of the PC clone manufacturers. :-) I'd say if anything, the difference today is that Apple is facing much stiffer competition from Android than it faced from early versions of Windows. I don't know how many of you are old enough to have used Windows 3.0 and the equivalent time period MacOS, but the differences were fucking amazing. MacOS wasn't just prettier, it was better in every conceivable way! Whereas, IMHO, the iPhone OS and Android are quite close, each having some advantages over the other.
flogic 17y ago
I think user experience wise Apple is good enough to be the winner but user experience probably isn't the deciding factor. Eventually phone manufacturers will commoditize smart phones. Those phones will need an OS preferably a common one. Rim, Apple, and Palm don't seem poised to share. Therefore they probably won't win. Now we just need to wait for the players to realize and accept this is the likely end game.

by mdasen 17y ago

grandalf 17y ago

Linux has grown way faster than windows over the past 10 years... Check again in another 5 years.

pierrefar 17y ago
Not on the desktop. On the server is where it's kicking ass.
evgen 17y ago
It is easy to show fast "growth" when you are starting from what is effectively a zero percent usage. Microsoft will ship more copies of Windows 7 this month than there are people who have ever run a non-embedded Linux over the entirety of it's existence. The first ten percent or so of growth is easy, the rest is much harder.
- SamAtt 17y ago
  Especially when you're gaining at the expense of a dying competitor. I don't claim to know how much Linux will grow in the future but there's no doubt it's growth over the last 5 years has had a lot to do with Sun collapsing and companies moving away from Solaris. That's a market that's all but dried up at this point.
houseabsolute 17y ago
Windows is shrinking -- losing significant amounts of market share to Apple. It's not hard to grow faster than something that is shrinking. And for the record, I cannot find any data which would suggest that Linux is growing at more than a fifth the rate of its closed-and-growing competitor, Mac OS X.

davidw 17y ago

Being "open enough" made Windows more popular than Macintosh, which is probably a fairer comparison in some ways. Linux didn't even really get started in terms of 'desktop' stuff until around 2000. Also, Linux is way more popular in the server world than Windows.

theBobMcCormick 17y ago
Agreed. The comparison between Windows and Mac seems much closer to the Android/iPhone situation than comparisons between Windows and Linux. In fact the parallels to the early days of Windows/Mac seem pretty striking. Much like the iPhone, the Mac came out first and was stunning it redefined how people thought of not just the market, but their relationship to the device and the potentials of the device. Much like the iPhone, you could only get MacOS on Mac hardware (although to be fair, Apple did have a few brief, tepid flirtations with licensed clones). In the end though, even though the Mac remained technologically superior for a long time, and had a superior UI.... well forever apparently, it still wasn't able to hold market dominance against the vast army of PC manufacturers pushing Windows. Of course, the story wasn't entirely sad for Apple, as they continued to enjoy a profitable nitch with much higher profit margins than most of the PC clone manufacturers. :-) I'd say if anything, the difference today is that Apple is facing much stiffer competition from Android than it faced from early versions of Windows. I don't know how many of you are old enough to have used Windows 3.0 and the equivalent time period MacOS, but the differences were fucking amazing. MacOS wasn't just prettier, it was better in every conceivable way! Whereas, IMHO, the iPhone OS and Android are quite close, each having some advantages over the other.

flogic 17y ago

I think user experience wise Apple is good enough to be the winner but user experience probably isn't the deciding factor. Eventually phone manufacturers will commoditize smart phones. Those phones will need an OS preferably a common one. Rim, Apple, and Palm don't seem poised to share. Therefore they probably won't win. Now we just need to wait for the players to realize and accept this is the likely end game.