Linux Appliance Software Adds Wi-Fi, May 06, 2003

The company is adding support for basic 802.11b infrastructure functions to the Red Hat Linux-based NetMAX Professional 4.03 -- meaning the Internet appliances powered by it will also work as access points.

But so far there are few such devices available in the U.S. market, and even those that run Linux do not have a logo or a public-relations machine to trumpet the fact. The depth to which Linux has penetrated this market, therefore, is something of a mystery. However, the evidence that does exist suggests consumer-electronics companies are taking advantage of the open-source platform to change some fundamental dynamics of their business.

"SCO is vigorously investigating the source of the attack and the identity of the perpetrators," said company spokesman Blake Stowell. "This attack came within 48 hours of IBM's response to SCO's lawsuit against IBM alleging intellectual property infringement. Given this close proximity in time, we are carefully examining whether a link exists between SCO's legal action and some of the Linux community who are hostile toward SCO for asserting its legal rights."

Linux is driving the open source movement in the commercial world. All of the open source users in Ovum's survey have some computers running Linux, and most use open source web servers. Fifty per cent use open source products in their software development activities, while only a few use open source e-mail database and office products.

.. a most welcome change is afoot--a way to avoid or minimize all these issues--and it's showing up first in a special class of small- and zero-footprint Linux distributions.

While open source technology hasn't exactly conquered state governments everywhere, it's begun to make inroads in quite a few, including Iowa, Utah, Rhode Island, and Hawaii. Now Louisiana is jumping on the open source bandwagon, too.

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