lakestevensdental wrote: > You appear to be ignoring the power of numbers. Nokia's netbook, > bundled with Windows will sell far more units with than without. The > larger quantity sold with Windows will allow Nokia to produce sell their > netbook for less than otherwise, perhaps more than $25 less. Besides, > having to manage a smallish inventory for a Windowless version would be > a hassle (expense) for Nokia and sellers. So get over the $25 cost of > Windows. If you want an Ubuntu netbook, just install it when you get it. > The "hassle" you speak of comes from dealing with an 800 pound gorilla that has historically only been reigned in by the Commission of the European Communities. The US Dept of Justice lawsuit only taught Microsoft to continue to buy whatever mind share they want so long as they don't get caught doing it. It ultimately comes down to end users having a productive dialogue with their vendors. DELL has a website (ideastorm.com) for just such a thing. Also, there are plenty of resources out there for promoting Linux and open source software in general. In summary, the most successful tactics I've used and heard about over the years are quite simple; don't be a jerk. DELL welcomes customer feedback about their experimentation with Linux devices. Some of it's distilled in the quotes below but there is plenty more information in the source article and elsewhere. -Gary "Speaking at OpenSource World, ... Todd Finch, Dell senior product marketing manager, said the number of Linux returns are approximately the same as those for Windows netbooks. ... Dell sells three machines running the Ubuntu Linux distro: the Atom-based Mini 10v, which can be classed as a netbook, plus the Inspiron 15n and XPS M1330n that run Core 2 Duo chips. ... Where consumers have returned machines, Finch said, it wasn't because of technical problems but because they'd bought a low-priced machine expecting Windows and opened it to find a different interface. Consumers had responded to the low price, he said - the Mini 10v retails for $299 online. 'Now we are trying to be a little more explicit in our advertising,' Finch said. 'We are not seeing any technical reasons for why they are returning Linux machines so...we don't see a significant difference between the return rate for Windows versus the rate for Linux. We've been quite pleased with the stability and technical soundness of the Linux machines.' ... Microsoft is famous for having locked down the retail channel by providing retailers with cash and marketing resources to enable everything from endorsements of Windows on PCs to stocking and positioning of product in the stores and on shelves." http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2009/08/12/dell_reality_linux_windows_netbooks _______________________________________________ maemo-users mailing list maemo-users@xxxxxxxxx https://lists.maemo.org/mailman/listinfo/maemo-users
