The VAR Guy

Healthy competition is good for technology companies — and good for their customers. But The VAR Guy is starting to wonder if Dell is too obsessed with Hewlett-Packard. Let him explain.

The grand experiment is over. Wal-Mart has locked Linux out of its stores. The retail giant has stopped selling Linux-based PCs — though Walmart.com will continue selling the so-called Green gPC from Everex, according to the Associated Press. What does this mean for the open source desktop movement in the consumer market? Here are some thoughts from The VAR Guy.

Forget viral marketing. It’s time for some guerrilla marketing at Dell. Sure, the company’s Direct2Dell and IdeaStorm Web sites generate considerable online chatter. But Dell’s feet on the street are also making noise. A case in point: Dell rolled out a “Partners Wanted” advertising campaign at HP’s big partner conference in Las Vegas last week. Now, Dell Chief Marketing Officer Mark Jarvis (pictured) is joining the fun.

Digium, one of Asterisk’s strongest proponents, plans to announce a global distribution partnership within two weeks, The VAR Guy has learned. The announcement, expected to be made at VoiceCon Orlando, could accelerate customer interest in open source PBXs and IP telephony systems.

Dozens of traditional IT companies — from Cisco Systems to Xerox — are generating PR coverage at this week’s huge HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) conference in Orlando. But so far, only a few savvy firms — such as IGEL Technology — are weaving open source messaging into this prominent vertical market event. Translation: The open source industry may miss yet another opportunity to prove its vertical market expertise.

A few years from now, open source pundits may consider February 2008 the tipping point for Linux laptops. Why is that? Glad you asked. The open source world is buzzing right now about Everex’s CloudBook, an “ultraportable” Linux laptop available from Wal-Mart and several leading Web sites. Officially, the tiny $399 laptop isn’t available until February 21. But it’s already generating big sales, according to several sources in the know. Simply put, CloudBook’s arrival is a defining moment — a critical milestone — for Linux on desktops and laptops.

The VAR Guy expects plenty of readers to flame him for the headline. Sure, Steve Jobs has owned the innovation spotlight in recent years. And Dell Inc. has never been known as a resource and development (R&D) center. But instead of making the easy moves, Michael Dell is making some challenging ones — pushing deep into the managed services and software-as-a-service (SaaS) industries. With a little luck and a lot of execution, The VAR Guy expects those moves to pay off handsomely by 2009 or so. Here’s why.

Some critics dismiss Asterisk as a “toy.” The open source VoIP platform, skeptics say, lacks a service and support network for big enterprise and university deployments. Apparently, the folks at Digium are aware of their critics. The Asterisk market leader has launched a new warranty program that could give skeptical partners and customers more faith in the open source PBX.

It’s one small step for Dell, and another great leap for Asterisk — the open source VoIP phone system. Dell plans to promote Fonality (a major Asterisk proponent) to small business customers seeking IP telephony systems. It’s a landmark development, folks, that benefits Dell in multiple markets (open source, VoIP, unified communications, and managed services). Here’s why.

Today was a big day for Dell’s channel effort. As expected, the company announced an aggressive strategy to engage and reward channel partners. But The VAR Guy is distracted by another report, claiming that Dell may be interested in buying Motorola’s handset business. Memo to Michael: Don’t do that. Here’s why.