Sun Microsystems has been marketing Solaris, one of the main Unix derivatives, for about twenty years. So why, then, would they market a Linux distribution? Let’s take a look at what it is they’re offering and what it’s uses are to shed some light on the “why”. Read the rest of the review at PCBurn.
PCBurn Review: Sun Java Desktop 2003
About The Author
Eugenia Loli
Ex-programmer, ex-editor in chief at OSNews.com, now a visual artist/filmmaker.
Follow me on Twitter @EugeniaLoli
Why even bother reviewing it if you know that the new version will be out soon?
Oh and why do they never really compare it to SUSE? Where is the value add? From the reviews of JDS I have seen no reason to choose it over SUSE for these reasons:
1. SUSE comes with more packages. Dont complain about too many options, if you don’t want options, then just choose a basic install which does not include multiples of programs.
2. JDS costs more. (granted this isn’t true right now, but it will be once the new version comes out)
3. JDS has a more restrictive EULA than SUSE. JDS doesn’t allow me to use it on more than one machine, whereas SUSE does. (of course I get no support for the extra machines, but that is a given)
4. I prefer KDE to GNOME. SUSE still gives you the choice of GNOME though which isn’t the case with JDS (no KDE).
So with SUSE I get more choice (If I want) and it costs less, plus they made it and are not just rebranding someone elses work.
I used to have alot of hope for this distro to replace many windows installations around the world, but we all know who Sun is all cozy with now…
As it’s SuSE with StarOffice and Java preloaded, I didn’t see much need to compare the two. The value add’s mainly in the fact that it’s from Sun. And on their end of things, it lets them offer customers an end-to-end Sun solution which might be valuable to some people. Pretty much what I pointed out at the end there.
Oh, and we’ll probably take a look at the new version too. One of the reason’s I wanted review this one was to make a good contrast.
Ahh. See how far they have come since the first version? I guess that makes sense.
Also, SUSE ships with java, but I’m not sure if it’s installed by default. As for coming from Sun, SUSE is now owned by Novell so I would see this being another reason to choose it over JDS. I suppose if you have other Sun hardware/software, it might be nice to go with all Sun, but that just seems like a disaster waiting to happen. Kinda like putting all your eggs in one basket.
And just for future reference, it’s SUSE now. (i know I’m a grammar Nazi, but hey, it *is* easier to type)
Yes, java ships and works by default. There are java apps including. And the reviewer is dead on about the nvidia drivers; they are a mess. If you use a nividia card and intend to use JDS, be very careful.
ehh it`s on the menu under extra I think- sometime since I used it, but it is there
Sun Microsystems is dying. Most people in the know think it will not make it to 2010.
Wall St. is switching to Linux and other offerings such as AIX, HP-UX or even Windows. Engeneers who were making SPARC and mainframe like hi-throughput chip were laid off. Who hired them? AMD, Intel and nVidia. Company hiring technical talent is healthy sign. CPU development shop laying off 600 of their best designers is not.
No sane CTO is going to invest any serious money into a Sun based solution.
That’s why Sun is trying to find new sources of revenue. But it seems that it’s going to repeat Digital’s demise.
Engeneers who were making SPARC and mainframe like hi-throughput chip were laid off. Who hired them? AMD, Intel and nVidia. Company hiring technical talent is healthy sign. CPU development shop laying off 600 of their best designers is not.
UltraSparc V/ millenium was not a high throughput chip, that is why it was cancelled in leiu of throughput chips. Sun is a systems company who also make thier own CPUs, not a specific cpu development company.
How did you get the 600 number and that they were the best engineers?
I have no problem with the rest of your post, just correcting a few factual errors.
JDS will not be powered by linux for long ;-). It will move to Solarix x86 only. It’s just a matter how fast sun can get drivers for solaris x86 ready.
> Sun Microsystems is dying. Most people in the know think it will not make it to 2010.
Sun is far from dying, in fact in terms of its product line it is in far better position than ever. Sun has got more groundbreaking technologies in store than any other tech company out there bar none, just look at JES, JDS, Solaris 10, Identity Management efforts, StarOffice, throughput computing, Orion, etc. It is the mass hysteria from idiots like [email protected] amplified by other clueless idiots that spoils the company’s image and drags it down. Sun will most likely recover unless they do something utterly stupid. It looks like their software side of things is doing much better (JES, JDS) and the hardware/systems side of things will most likely pickup with the release of Solaris 10 and Niagra chips. Opteron based systems will also provide the necessary boost.
First, I want to tell Raptor where I got my info.
As one could imagine, information like this could only come from high enough within Sun Microsystems.
Numbers are indeed accurate, as it the fact the people went to AMD, Intel and nVidia.
Intel and AMD already have very engineers. Because CISC is just more difficult to design and because Sun is not in the CPU business for very long. Plus Sun is fabless and everyone else has to understand production.
Regarding Sun being strong as ever. It is loosing money, that’s a sign of weakness to me. They don’t have a strategy. [Or they do, but it changes every few months.] Throughput computing initiative is at least half dead. Opteron systems do not give Sun any edge. The whole idea is to aquire more customers. If Sun switches to AMD64, they simply become another player in crowded low margin market. A healthy enterprise does not fire good people for $30 Million when they have billions in cash. StarOffice is facing a tough competition from OpenOffice. Java is making much money either. Last, but not least the Wall Street is turning away from it.
Now, none technical issue. You called me an idiot. That’s not nice. Who are you and what do you know besides calling people idiots. Do you even know which Sun products are making or loosing money? Have you seen the Q4s? You need to be more polite.
First, I want to tell Raptor where I got my info.
As one could imagine, information like this could only come from high enough within Sun Microsystems.
Numbers are indeed accurate, as it the fact the people went to AMD, Intel and nVidia.
Intel and AMD already have very engineers.
Really you have contacts high in the Sun hierachy!!! I find that hard to believe.
I can believe that people went to AMD, Intel and nVidia, but the numbers don’t sound right.
Because CISC is just more difficult to design and because Sun is not in the CPU business for very long. Plus Sun is fabless and everyone else has to understand production.
Nope CISC is not more difficult to design nowadays, Most of todays Cisc cpus translate instructions to RISC like ops. Most of the opteron pipline is RISC.
Throughput computing initiative is at least half dead. Opteron systems do not give Sun any edge. The whole idea is to aquire more customers. If Sun switches to AMD64, they simply become another player in crowded low margin market.
Funny I thought throughput computing was just started, how can it be half dead, it is just starting. May you should tell that to IBM, intel and AMD. They are investing in mulitcore, multithreaded designs after all. Your cpu design expertise and prophetic knowledge of architecture would help all the CPU vendors by preventing a big mistake from being made in the computing industry. Throughtput computing is half dead, really.
A healthy enterprise does not fire good people for $30 Million when they have billions in cash. StarOffice is facing a tough competition from OpenOffice. Java is making much money either. Last, but not least the Wall Street is turning away from it.
Maybe you think IBM, Cisco, intel are not healthy as well, all the companies have done massive layoffs, many times the amount Sun has so far in three layoffs, while having billions in cash.
Have you seen the Q4s?
pardon my ignorance but what are Q4s.
haha… just like bsd and apple
> A healthy enterprise does not fire good people for $30 Million when they have billions in cash.
What $30M are you talking about? Sun is planning to reduce the workforce by about 3300 employees, which is by the way mostly aimed at reducing the proportion of managers to the actual workforce (a good thing), do you imply that a Sun employee is making less than $10,000 a year? When IBM was cutting jobs left and right Sun actually tried to retain its employees as long as possible, may be if they laid off the same number a little earlier the losses could have bee lower.
> Last, but not least the Wall Street is turning away from it.
Who cares what Wall Street is thinking? Wall Street can see only two colors: red and black; the bean counters will be very quick to change sides when Sun in back in black. And this is not the first time when Wall Streed actually written off Sun. Back in mid-90’s when other “Unix” companies (IBM, HP, SGI, Compaq, etc.) got scared shitless of MS and Itel the Wall Street wanted Sun to drop Sparc and Solaris and bend over for Wintel domination. As a result IBM/HP/Compaq gang left the Unix market for Sun’s taking just in time for the DotCom cornicopia. And then Wall Street was quick to declare Sun one of the four horsemen of Internet along with Oracle, EMC, and Cisco… Sorry, but the Wall Street croud is very short-sighted and their opinion is not a measure of a long-term success of the company.
> Opteron systems do not give Sun any edge.
Sun has an extremely good business case with Solaris on Opteron and it will become even better when Solaris 10 becomes available. Being able to offer the same or even better performance than Linux at a lower price and doing it more securely on the same hardware is indeed a very strong selling point. Solaris 10 most definitely will be a big sell.
> Throughput computing initiative is at least half dead.
LOL. Just recently Sun singlehandedly doubled the performance of its enterprise machines with USIV and customers can do the same to their existing machines through upgrades. I would love if IBM and HP could offer the same.
it’s quite funny for me,
for everytime there’s any news about Sun,
most of the people is trying to be a financial analyst
(if not fortune teller)
this is a world of instant-MBA !!
Sun announced over 3 years ago that their overall strategy involved moving to providing low cost corporate desktops. They initially tinkered with the idea of generic workstations where the employee would sit down to work at any available machine in like mini-cubicles. The machines would be Linux based desktops. This was discussed years ago. The JDS is the result of this strategy. It was apparent then that they intended on moving away from high end server production in favor of this strategy due to Unix being displaced by Linux. Sun is not dying, and their layoffs were expected as they changed from a hardware/software company to a software company. They just got a 2 billion doller court settlement from Microsoft and the Linux crowd doesn’t see this as a plus. Turbo Linux announced that they would be lisencing Microsoft technology and no one screamed sell out, but Sun wins a court case against their largest enemy and everyone screams sellout. Sun is just trying to stay in business. There is no evil Microsoft conspiracy to use Sun to eradicate Linux.
There is no evil Microsoft conspiracy to use Sun to eradicate Linux.
Yes, but isn’t it surprising to the absurd, how some Linux pundits will say that Sun is not in cahoots with MS. And yet, no company pushes Linux on the desktop (which is EXACTLY where it hurts Microsoft) as Sun does! And these people have the nerve to say that Sun is cooperating with MS to crush Linux!