The VAR Guy

Launchpad, a Web application developed by Canonical for managing software development, was finally open-sourced last week.  But with a number of its other products remaining proprietary, what are Canonical’s real intentions towards living by the free-software ideology that drives projects like Ubuntu?

Over the last few years, various figures have been put forth as measures of Ubuntu’s desktop market share, with some sources contradicting themselves and most sources contradicting the other ones.  Below, we take a look at different attempts to put a number on Ubuntu’s popularity, and explore the various shortcomings and ambiguities involved in all of them.

One of the greatest problems hindering desktop Linux is its diversity.  With 800+ distributions, dozens of user interfaces and lots of different applications that do the same things, it’s no secret that the Linux world is convoluted for developers and users.  But if Mark Shuttleworth has his way, the free-software community might become a little saner.

Unlike proprietary platforms, Ubuntu allows end users to interact directly with developers through Launchpad’s bug-reporting system. In some cases, this approach allows bugs to be discovered and resolved quickly. In most situations, however, open bug tracking is a fiasco that Ubuntu would be better off without. Here’s why.

Hats off to the Ubuntu Podcast team for this video podcast with Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth. Solid conversation about the future of Ubuntu.

When Canonical this May launches an online training course for Ubuntu Server Edition, the virtual classroom will include a special guest speaker: Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth. Here’s the scoop, and how to attend if you’re interested.

Dear Mark: You’ve made Ubuntu the most popular Linux distribution on desktops. You’ve established a footprint on notebooks and netbooks. But a lot of people wonder why you’re marching Canonical — and Ubuntu — in new directions like the server. Don’t listen to your critics. Keep marching upward. Here’s why.

Unison Technologies is fulfilling its promise to offer free unified communications software on Ubuntu Server Edition. An announcement could emerge as soon as this week. I met Unison Chief Marketing Officer Rurik Bradbury a few weeks ago to learn about the company’s Ubuntu strategy. Here’s a recap.

When it comes to Netbook software, most pundits focus on Windows XP vs. Linux. But there’s mounting evidence Google Android could be the Next Big Thing on netbooks — potentially putting the squeeze on Windows and Ubuntu. Here’s the scoop.

Some people are scratching their heads over recent Windows 7-related comments attributed to Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth. But Shuttleworth’s words provide an important reminder that innovation and competition from Microsoft will help to propel Ubuntu and Linux forward. Skeptical? Read on.

The New York Times ran a story today about Ubuntu and its prospects for beating Microsoft.  Focusing on Mark Shuttleworth, the South African billionaire who founded the Ubuntu project and leads Canonical, the Times reporter concludes that the idea of Linux on every desktop remains a bit “quixotic,” and suggests that Ubuntu has only come so far thanks to Shuttleworth’s wealth.  I don’t think that’s true.

I’m starting to get a little concerned. Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth intends to vastly improve Ubuntu. You’ve likely heard that Shuttleworth wants to leapfrog Apple’s Mac OS X in terms of design, polish, etc. But is that really the right set of goals for Ubuntu? I’m not so sure. Here are three other goals I wish Shuttleworth, Canonical and the Ubuntu community would pursue.

One innovation is easy. But sustainable innovation — building lots of worthwhile new things again and again, even as you maintain your old products — is challenging. The VAR Guy wonders: Is open source the key to sustainable tech innovation? Is open source the best way to keep a maturing company feeling vibrant and young? Before you answer, consider some of these scenarios.

The VAR Guy is trying his best to attend both OSCON (July 21-25, Portland, Oregon) and LinuxWorld Expo (August 4-7, San Francisco). In particular, he wants to learn more about the emerging Ubuntu Linux community. But if he only had the time and money to attend one of the events, which should it be?

According to Mark Shuttleworth, CEO of Canonical, the company has been approached “by a number of OEM’s who want to sell netbooks (small, low-cost laptops with an emphasis on the web) based on Ubuntu.” That’s impressive. Here’s some more analysis on of the news.

The Ubuntu Live conference doesn’t kick off until July 21, but The VAR Guy is already booking his flight to the Portland, Oregon-based event. Here are five key trends our guest blogger expects to track at the event.

Generally speaking, The VAR Guy is a procrastinator — except when it comes to timely blogs. In fact, he’s already confirmed plans to blog live from Ubuntu Live 2008, scheduled for July 21 and 22 in Portland, Oregon. Here are five reasons you should care about the Ubuntu distribution of Linux, and the Ubuntu Live conference.

Yes, The VAR Guy is attending the 2007 UbuntuLive in Portland, Oregon. He’s already noticed several Ubuntu Linux trends that could potentially benefit solutions providers and their customers. So, it’s the perfect opportunity for a big countdown: 50 things you need to know about Ubuntu. Here are items 50-41, with more to follow soon…

Sure, Dell is new to the Ubuntu PC market. But plenty of smaller PC suppliers have long supported Ubuntu. One prime example: ZaReason Inc., a PC maker made up of volunteers. I reached out to Cathy Malmrose, CEO of ZaReason, to get a feel for the company’s customer base and market position, and to get her views on Ubuntu’s longer-term prospects. Here’s a look at our conversation as it occurred over email.