SuSECEO joins "alternative Linux" in Microsoft Windows

Article title: SuSECEO joins another Linux to fight against Microsoft Windows. Linux is a technology channel of the IT lab in China. Includes basic categories such as desktop applications, Linux system management, kernel research, embedded systems, and open source.
Richard Seibt was once responsible for the ibm OS/2 Business and defeated in the battle with Microsoft.
　　
　　
　　
　　
A joke in history, now Seibt again and face Microsoft's Windows-but this time he managed SuSE, and the company's operating system has been a headache for Microsoft.
　　
In the spring of last year, SuSE won the competition with Microsoft and was adopted by the hacker black market. No matter how the world comments on the choice of the hacker black market, it is a good news for supporters of the open source code.
　　
Seibt is still fresh in its memories of the pain points of its first contest with Microsoft, and has not yet announced any preparations for this victory. Despite a sensation in the open source code group in the SCO-IBM lawsuit, he still clearly saw the various powerful challenges facing Linux.
　　
Seibt, who has been in charge of IBM's German company and has worked for IBM for many years, joined SuSE in lunar January. Recently, he was interviewed exclusively by CNET News.com and made a detailed presentation on the future of open source software and his plans to expand the company's business in the United States.
　　
Q?
　　
A: It is completely correct. When a Consulting report predicted that the city would adopt a Linux system, Steve Ballmer could no longer afford it. he decided to fly from Switzerland to Munich to lobby the mayor.
　　
Do you think the national political factors play a role in the decision of a German open source software company?
　　
I met with various political figures and I was surprised by their general understanding of open source code and Linux... they finally reached an agreement: select open source code. Therefore, I don't think there are many political factors.
　　
However, as a German company, you have no harm.
　　
This is not the case. In fact, they did not get the expected results from dealing with Microsoft several years ago, not because we are a German company.
　　
It is of great significance to make decisions on the black market from Microsoft to Linux. More importantly, Ballmer decided to fly to the city-which could be the biggest mistake he made in his life. I like history and the Philosopher's philosophy. Gandhi once said: "First they ignore you, then laugh at you, and finally oppose you-and you win ". This is an accurate portrayal of the challengers who are close at the moment but ignored.
　　
In the international Linux competition, do you think that Microsoft, as an American company, will become an influence factor? In other words, Microsoft is a representative of America's high-tech forces. they are not doing well in some countries due to recent events.
　　
No. City and enterprise decisions are based on technologies, costs, and services they can provide. I think it is meaningless to say "we buy American goods or we buy German goods. Microsoft may look for a reason, but IBM has no indication that German IT companies or individuals are opposed to IBM because they are German. I believe in this.
　　
Do you think that the current EU survey on Microsoft has contributed to the popularization of Linux in Europe?
　　
I don't think enterprises will make decisions because of the European Union or other similar actions. Their decisions are based on factors such as technology and cost of ownership.
You have to believe that Microsoft will take some actions to prevent replay of events similar to Munich. If they clear all the obstacles, how will you deal with them?
　　
Microsoft has strong capital and a huge monopoly profit. Therefore, whatever they do, once determined, they will inevitably be implemented-but this will undermine their existing business model and drive down the stock price.
　　
From a customer's point of view, the Munich Agreement is meaningful... Microsoft will begin to agree on a new price at a price lower than 90% of the price. This is incredible. Lowering the previous high price means that all customers will expect the same thing to happen. Their other response would be: "Why did I pay ?" This will lead to disappointment, loss of trust, and damage to customer relationships.
　　
We did not discuss the SCO case and SuSE position. Will you invest in anti-litigation funds initiated by RedHat, or will your cross-license agreement with SCO be sufficient to constitute protection?
　　
We have a cooperation development agreement with SCO... part of the contract is a cross-license agreement. Our lawyers say we are protected by law.
　　
But do you think that if we are a member of the source code open group, we should stand up, rather than saying "we have a cross-license agreement and we are safe "?
　　
No. We agree with redhat, and we did the same thing in Germany a few weeks ago. We went to court with the German Linux Association. The court does not allow SCO to notify the public or its customers as part of Linux and belong to SCO's intellectual property rights. If they do this, they will be fined 10 thousand euros each.
　　
What do you think of IBM's counterclaim? Do you think the GPL license is sufficient to withstand the trial?
　　
I fully believe it will succeed... the case itself will show that this license is strong enough.
　　
Have you ever worried about software patents? Do you think this will cause problems to the open source code group?
　　
My point is: we need GPL instead of software patents.
　　
If Microsoft is completely replaced in the desktop system, the biggest problem is the Office software package. Do you think OpenOffice needs further improvement? Do you invest in R & D?
　　
I think OpenOffice or StarOffice functions of Sun do not need to be changed too much. I have been using StarOffice for 10 years and have never made any mistakes. It may require some assistance, but I believe the open source code group will be well-developed.
　　
Do you think SuSE does not need to invest any resources? Is it good enough?
　　
I don't think so at this point. On the contrary, Sun ensures that Mad Hatter has all required functions. Imagine that 44 thousand of employees are using StarOffice at Sun.
　　
SuSE technology is at the core of the Mad Hatter project (a Sun project designed to provide enterprises with low-cost Linux servers that are easy to manage ). Do you get paid every time Sun uses these table systems?
　　
We have made an appointment without disclosing the contract details.
　　
You have been in charge of IBM German. one of your tasks is to promote OS/2. In view of this failure in Microsoft's experience, will history repeat on your current Linux system?
　　
There are some similarities. Our staff are fully loyal to Linux and open source code-as well as OS/2. From a technical point of view, this product is very different. OS/2 uses different kernels on the client and server respectively, which brings a lot of trouble to the customer. I think OS/2 is a new operating system, while Linux is a Unix-based operating system even though the source code is open. Many of these applications are available and have a set of technologies for adoption. We do not have the issue of locating like OS/2-OS/2 is better than Windows at the beginning. Linux is a high-end operating system, so there is a world of difference between the two.
　　
From the desktop perspective, the two are similar. The customer will say, "We are using Microsoft's Office ". Similarly, we can say that there is StarOffice to compete. However, we are discussing the browser-based architecture and the thin client. The same is true for the competition from Microsoft.
　　
Do you think Sun, IBM, and HP are tied to you online, and in a sense they intend to launch their respective Linux versions? They provide their own services and support, so why don't they get rid of you as a man-in-the-middle? -- Or buy them?
　　
I don't think this will happen. They are familiar with history (Unix market ). If HP releases its own version, IBM will do the same. This will lead to endless releases and countless differences-and this is not what the industry expects.
　　
But there are not only SuSE and RedHat companies to choose from.
　　
But what exactly does the choice mean? For example, in hardware, they want to compete from PC to server; they do not see the role of the operating system. If they develop their own version, it will increase the cost to ensure their product identity.
　　
However, if they remove Unix, it will mean a larger space to accommodate more Linux versions. Everything is open source code, and everything is transparent.
　　
If you ask them, the answer is to support two versions.
　　
RedHat said its ultimate goal was to popularize Unix systems, especially on servers running the server of the reduced-level processor, but Windows. Do you agree?
　　
We agree. However, a large number of customers have migrated data from Windows servers to clients. Large enterprises think it is time to change. When I joined SuSE six months ago, I fully believed that we didn't need to focus on the desktop system, but I changed my mind just because of the customer's needs.
　　
Both red hat and SuSE are fighting for open source code. We all agree that we have a common enemy-not others are Microsoft.
　　
When talking about the competition with redhat companies, how many of them are ahead of the competition?
　　
We are rooted in Europe, and their soil is in the United States. RedHat moved to the public and received a lot of media attention. As Europe lags behind the US for 12 to 18 months from the financial market perspective, we have lost our IPO. Otherwise, we should be able to share the market.
　　
Do you still share the same opinion in the next two years?
　　
I believe this will not happen.
　　
What is the biggest difference between you and RedHat?
　　
The biggest difference I think comes from technology. We have a common code library, which means that customers can use SuSE Enterprise Servers on all platforms from desktop machines to zSeries and even larger servers with only one set of knowledge. The maintenance work is completed by tools such as YAST installed. This is the difference.
　　
The second is reliability, performance, and stability. This is a change. sometimes we lead, and sometimes they lead. However, both RedHat and SuSE are fighting for open source code. we agree that we have a common enemy-not others are Microsoft. From this point on, we are fighting side by side.
　　
You have an advantage in Europe, and the Red Hat is prevalent in the United States. Will there be close cooperation in the future? Or in about five years?
　　
I don't know if this will happen within five years. This is not necessary today, because the market is large enough to accommodate two major players.