In partnership with Hewlett-Packard, the movie studio dipped its toes into Linux waters with "Shrek," using some lower-end HP servers to speed up the brute-force "rendering" process under which skeletal images are fleshed out with detailed color and texture. In "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron," DreamWorks extended Linux use to the workstations that animators use to create the images in the first place. With "Sinbad," scheduled for release this week, HP Linux workstations and rendering servers were used 100 percent of the time, said Jeff Wood, director of product marketing for HP's personal workstation business.

The Linux connection continues to spread at the studio. DreamWorks is using HP x4000 workstations running Linux to create "Shrek 2," Wood said, and is now adding the newer xw8000s as well. Another new DreamWorks movie, "Shark Slayer," uses xw8000 systems as well, Wood said.

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