Desktop Linux a vehicle for pirating Windows
PCs running Linux are growing in popularity in part because they can be loaded with a pirated copy of Windows, according to a study from analyst Gartner. The consulting firm issued a report on Wednesday stating that about 40 percent of Linux PCs will be modified to run an illegal copy of Windows, a bait-and-switch maneuver that lowers the cost of obtaining a Windows PC.
*blink* - You've got to be kidding me? *boggle*
Although Gartner's motives are probably suspect, why don't you believe this
*could* be true? Although you and I are both linux geeks, consider the
position of joe computer user :
He's buying a PC from Dell, filling out the order form, and there's a radio box: Linux (+$0) or Windows XP Professional (+$100). Now, he KNOWS he can just get a dodgy copy of windows from his mate, so why is he going to pay $100 "for nothing"? So he selects "linux", but he doesn't really mean that, he just means "not the $100 bill".
Some made up numbers: for home PCs, suppose linux has 2% market share, and windows has 98%. It only takes ~2% of those windows users to do the cheap option, and then half of the machines "sold with linux" are subsequently rebuild as windows machines.
LLyric