On Fri, Nov 28, 2003 at 11:18:19AM -0000, Stan Fraser wrote:
Which is why M$ will rule the world for some time to come. Tried Linux, various distros on different computers and on each one parts of the hardware has not been recognised etc. However it is cheap and lots of help is available so I remain a newbie/convert/user Regards Stan
This is improving with time though, and there will be a "tipping point" where all hardware will be supported in Linux. The tipping point being where perhaps 5-10% of computers are running Linux on the desktop and having hardware that is freely supported in Linux will be good for a hardware manufacturers business.
There is a very good book on this principle called "the tipping point, how little things can make a big difference" author is Malcolm Gladwell bookbrain search for it here http://makeashorterlink.com/?R2A5429A6 it is a really fantastic book, and I can recommend it to everyone on this list :) (oh and it isn't on computing by the way just in case you were wondering)
Also to be honest there is more Linux supported hardware out there than there is supported by Microsoft, just most home users don't have S/390s, PA-Risc, Sparc, Mips, ARM etc. etc. kit at home :) of course its the low end of the hardware/computing market that Linux is still having troubles with although I can't think of any type of peripheral that isn't supported in Linux, you may have to shop around to find exactly the right item that will work.
I have also found some hardware works better and is easier to install with Linux than in Windows so this does work both ways :)
Adam