Comments on: Can Novell 4.0 Catch On With Partners?

By: Nitesh Bharadia

Nitesh Bharadia — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 14:02:07 +0000

Hi,
Firstly, I am on the Novell EMEA Partner Advisory board and have been for about 8 months now. I worked for Novell Consulting until 1996 and formed my own Company at that time (NetAssist/b2Lateral). We were a part of the original Novell Partner community from that point. We were also a Microsoft Partner as well. We saw the decline of the Novell Partner system as Novell went to a more direct model in the past and were ‘on our own’ with regards to sales and profit making with little or no real help from Novell. It should be pointed that we had little or no help from Microsoft as well. I worked for Microsoft Consulting as well and so know both companies well!
Microsoft has remained the same throughout our 12 years in the way they have helpded and competed against partners. But Novell has changed from a Partner led company until 1998 to a ‘direct’ company until 2007. I have seen positive changes in late 2007 and now in 2008 to believe enough in the New Novell Partner model that I have invested £/$ into my company.
Most informed people will agree that Novell technologies are amongst the best and that marketing is what Novell don’t do well. There is no way the Novell (or any other company) can compete with MS when it comes to Marketing. So it is ALSO up to us as Novell partners to market Novell to the client base. I have met Pat recently and have belief in what Novell are doing. Also, I don’t agree that Ron Hovsepian ‘sold out’ to Microsoft, I think Novell did a very wise Marketing move with that and have helped remove one of the many ‘blocks’ Novell partners come across.
I know in my business (going for 12 profitable years now)- we make more money from Novell technology than we do from Microsoft or VMware from a % point of view.
I encourage any IT shop or business who wants to make money to investigate the Novell Partner channel options to see if they are for you.

I have not been paid or encouraged by Novell to write this article. I have written it because I have realised that marketing of Novell (and other ‘underdogs’ – no offense) is a part of my job as a Independant IT Consulting outfit.

By: jones

jones — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 05:25:58 +0000

Bring back Netware and we’ll talk Pat.

By: Richard Steven Hack

Richard Steven Hack — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 22:16:44 +0000

The “sell out to Microsoft” bit is nonsense. I predicted at the time that the net effect on Linux and OSS would be zero – and that’s exactly what happened.

Nobody cares. Microsoft got nothing out of it except a little FUD.

I run openSUSE on my main machine and it’s better than the (X)buntus significantly.

It’s good that Novell is managing to stay in business and increase its business and build up a cash reserve to keep it in business. We need at least two large companies behind Linux, not just Red Hat – and companies that treat OSS as the core part of their business, not just an adjunct to their other commercial products and services, such as IBM and Oracle.

By: Charles Hixson

Charles Hixson — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 20:54:50 +0000

Well respected? Hovespan is the bozo who immediately sold out to Microsoft. I could put it more gently, be he doesn’t deserve it.

Since that instant I have not recommended any Novell product for any purpose. And I won’t until I see clear and certain evidence that no lasting harm has been done to any company (except Novell, about whose futures I no longer care). Just “You can’t show any harm yet.” won’t cause me to say a word in their favor. And I’m not even going to consider any technical offering they make, because it may well be poisoned.

By: Tom

Tom — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 13:45:41 +0000

Nice to see Novell actually telling the media about its strategy for a change. I used to write about the company and always seemed to get a ‘no comment’ or vanilla interview from them. Are there any stats out there indicating how suse linux is selling/performing vs. red hat?