Engineers Pack Informal Confab, Press OS as a PC Alternative -- Grass-roots Linux Campaign Gathers Steam by Craig Matsumoto E.E. Times, July 20, 1998 Santa Clara, Calif. - The T-shirt read, "In a world without fences, who needs Gates?" Granted, it was a Java T-shirt. But it was an obvious choice to wear to a Linux rally, where engineers were plotting to take back computing from the clutches of Microsoft and where a vision of world domination, once an inside joke, began to resonate with possibility. A packed house of more than 1,000 Linux fans came to shower praise and complaints on some of the software's leading architects here last week, and to rub shoulders with Linux creator Linus Torvalds. News good and bad about the progress of the OS came to light at this Linux Woodstock-actually an informal panel titled "The Future of Linux"-mounted by software consultants Taos Mountain, here, and the Silicon Valley Linux Users' Group. Once a hobbyists' toy, Linux has grown through user support into a viable OS for technical users. And if the Linux community has its way, it's about to hurtle into mainstream businesses and even consumer apps. Linux' appeal comes from both its open nature and quasi-ownership by Torvalds. The source code is available free, and all changes must be shared as well, per terms of the Linux license. That's kept the OS in a constant evolution, as tweaks, fixes and add-ons are proposed nonstop across the Internet. "It's the open-source phenomenon" that draws engineers, said Ian Kluft, a software engineer and active member of the users' group. "If people want a change, they can submit [it] rather than wait for a vendor." But to keep Linux from falling into Unix's multilingual trap, Torvalds has maintained strict control over its kernel. He decides which suggested changes are added, thus speeding the process significantly. On top of that, many engineers are simply frustrated with the paralytic effects of Microsoft's Windows. For salvation, they're turning to Linux, which is usable on a PC. "I was very reluctant to switch to Windows and a PC," said Terry Riley, who writes Web software out of his home. "I went from a Mac to Unix to avoid doing that." Riley adding that he expects to shift to Linux before long. Since part of Linux' charm lies in its availability on PCs, supporters were anxious to hear from Intel. Panelist Sunil Saxena, a principal engineer with Intel's Unix lab, pledged his company's support for Linux and asked for help from the software's supporters. The advent of the 64-bit Merced processor should be a particular boon, because Linux already handles 64-bit processing on the Digital Equipment Corp. Alpha chip. "Linux already has all the things it needs to run on Merced," said Torvalds. Applications will run immediately, while other software vendors struggle to ramp up to 64-bit computing. Intel also wants to work with developers, Saxena said, to help Linux exploit processor features such as MMX, fast system calls and 36-bit physical addressing. Certainly, Linux has its problems. Several specific issues within the kernel were discussed, and more than a few users were worried that Microsoft's marketing efforts could still bury Linux' chances of breaking into mainstream corporate use. But most of the discussion was aimed at a common goal: expanding Linux' reach. The Linux creed of "world domination"-a joke that Torvalds uses in his signature file-has become a dead-serious slogan for the faithful, whose numbers rank between 5 million and 10 million, a figure that more than doubles every 12 months. The panelists, most of whom make their living off Linux, said that as one of only two OSes whose market share is growing, Linux is headed for the top spot among Unix variants and stands a chance of infiltrating the consumer market before long. Still, they were realistic about the OS's chances, emphasizing that applications are the key. Corporate executives often don't hear about Linux' advantages. The EDA industry, in particular, is swelling with users who would love Linux tools but whose wishes go unheard. "In our field, they don't want to use NT. They want to use Linux," said audience member Mike Page, Web master for Exemplar Logic Inc. (Fremont, Calif.). Panelist Larry Augustin, president of Linux workstation vendor VA Research Inc., noted that design engineers' cries for Linux are getting lost somewhere in the chain from their managers to EDA salespeople to EDA executives. Augustin cited the Linux-vs.-NT panel at the recent Design Automation Conference. "The specific purpose of the panel was to convince Cadence, Synopsys, etc. that their tools should be running on Linux," he said. "Every [audience member] raised their hands and said, 'We want your CAD tools on Linux.' The people from Cadence and Synopsys were floored." Augustin called for engineers to approach software vendors as directly as possible, aiming for the upper corporate ranks with Linux International's help. In fact, panelist Jeremy Allison, software developer with Samba, pointed out that Linux has already crept into widespread corporate use through servers, where it's invisible to users. For example, Cisco Systems Inc. employees use Linux without realizing it, since the company uses a Linux-based print server provided by Samba. For the corporate environment, one advantage is that Linux can be tailored; any C programmer can tweak it to fit specialized needs. All it takes is a pledge to make the changes publicly available. But no issue scares off corporate buyers faster than support, panelists said. People may mock Microsoft's tech-support line, but the company runs one; Linux doesn't. Nevertheless, office applications are working their way into Linux. Corel Corp., which had hoped to compete with the Microsoft Office suite, is instead porting WordPerfect and other programs to Linux. CorelDraw is also being ported, which Allison suggested would open the door to porting Adobe's Photoshop as well. For home users, he said, Linux' crash resistance might be a selling point. Linux lacks a standard GUI, but panelists didn't see that as a weakness. It's an alien concept to consumers, but Linux doesn't care which of several GUIs runs. Intel's Saxena said Linux appears well-suited for Web servers and e-commerce. Panelists also thought Internet appliances would be ground for the OS, because, like servers, their software isn't visible to end users. Copyright (c) 1998 CMP Media Inc.