Oracle and SUN Archive

This is part 2 of a 3 part interview series with Jonathan Schwartz, EVP of Sun Software. In part 1, Mr. Schwartz talked about how Sun is expanding its software business. In this segment, he talks about why Sun isn't worried about Linux.

MadPenguin features a review of Xandros Desktop accompanied by screenshots.

Sun looks to spice up its product lines with new "Enchilada" servers, a storage management component for its N1 Data Platform and collaboration software that includes its own instant messenger. Can CEO Scot McNealy chart his company out of the shadows?

From the review: "As a linux user for the past three years, I have used a lot of distributions, and read many different reviews. Most of those reviews spend a lot of time on the installation, and give details of which versions of the gcc compiler, kernel, xfree86, KDE, and Gnome are included. This is not one of those reviews. This is the kind of review I wish I'd had when I was still looking for just the right distro. This is the review that says "Here is your linux distribution. Just install it, and your stuff will work."'

In part one in a series of chats with key members of the Xandros team, DesktopLinux.com gives you an insider's view of the Xandros project philosophy and architecture. Oleg Noskov, Xandros software development manager, talks about domain authentication -- one of the essential keys to integrating with, and eventually migrating from, existing Windows networking infrastructures.

In a major strategy shift, Sun will stop offering its own customized version of Linux and will instead turn to several other standard Linux distributions.

Although it's among the market leaders in the low-end server business, Sun Microsystems Inc. has in recent years been known much more for its success at the high end. In this interview with Computer World, Neil Knox, executive vice president of Sun's volume systems product group, talked about his company's recent blade-server product launch, its emerging throughput computing strategy and Linux.

"Xandros Desktop is a Linux distribution aimed squarely at the desktop user. It is based on Corel Linux which itself was based on Debian. Corel sold its Linux distribution to Xandros when it decided to stop marketing it. Xandros has delivered a pleasing experience for the newcomer, both in terms of performance and visual appeal." Sam Varghese reviews Xandros Desktop.

F*ckedCompany reports that "rumor has it Xandros is on life support... word is some employees haven't been paid in over two months". However, OSNews reader Dennis Baptista was able to get information directly from Xandros about the future products that Xandros is preparing: "There are two versions of the Xandros server product - a deployment server (Xandros Networks Enterprise) and a general purpose server. The deployment server is targeted towards the fall time frame while the general purpose will follow after that." Support Xandros here.

Recently, Sun Microsystems Inc. hosted its annual analyst conference in San Francisco. The company faces high-end competition from IBM Global Services and low-end competition from companies including Dell Computer Corp. offering clustered systems running the Linux operating system. While not dismissive of the threats posed by the competition, Sun President Scott McNealy in a one-hour interview with eWEEK Editor-in-Chief Eric Lundquist and Labs Director John Taschek contended that the company is poised to capitalize on the research and development efforts launched over the past several years.

Sun Microsystems will build its entire collection of software into a single, gigantic version of its Solaris operating system and release updates once a quarter, Sun's top software executive said Tuesday.

"Sun Microsystems will use processors from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) in future blade servers that it first announced on Feb. 10. Sun will use Athlon XP-M processors, originally developed for mobile computing, running at 1.2GHz or 1.4GHz." Read more at InfoWorld.

With Java, StarOffice, Solaris and Linux all on the verge of major breakthroughs (or busts), Sun Executive Vice President Jonathan Schwartz has a lot on his mind. Since shifting over from his role as Sun's Chief Strategy Officer last July, Schwartz has been revving up the Sun software engine, which had lost ground in several critical areas, including development tools, application servers and dealing with Linux. In a dinner conversation that carried over to a subsequent e-mail exchange, eWEEK's John Taschek asked Schwartz about the threat of Linux and how Sun will cope with Dell as a competitor.

"When Sun Microsystems got started in 1982, companies such as Wang and Data General dominated the hardware business. In less than a decade, this upstart Unix outfit was a billion-dollar-plus phenom while the once-mighty minicomputer makers had been consigned to irrelevance." Read the commentary on ZDNews and a comment a few days ago, explaining Sun's Linux strategy, which is different of what IBM, DELL or HP does with Linux. Also, another Sun article says that Java servers feel the open source heat.