Linux To Break Into Different MarketsLinux To Break Into Different Markets

Red Hat's advanced server Linux operating system will run on workstations as well as servers beginning next year. The goal is to appeal to more industries, including telecom and retail. First up: greater compatibility with the video drivers needed by users of electronic-design automation and digital-content-creation apps.

By next summer, Red Hat will provide support for crucial telco-grade Linux applications. The vendor will also add point-of-sale and high-performance computing features to Advanced Server. Pricing hasn't been set.

One of Red Hat's immediate goals is to give users a flexible, open-source operating system that runs on Intel platforms and doesn't lock buyers into expensive contracts, chairman and CEO Matthew Szulik says. "The next big challenge," he says, "is dropping the cost of managing Linux-based systems." Red Hat hasn't said how the new features will affect pricing.

The company also acknowledges that the key to ultimately displacing entrenched Microsoft and Unix operating systems will be the support of software vendors that write apps that can easily be deployed on Linux. "You've got to get the independent software vendors on board. That's where Apple and Novell went wrong," says Laura DiDio, a senior Yankee Group analyst.

To keep costs down, customers must have more than one or two applications in a given category to choose from, DiDio says. Regarding Red Hat's vertical market strategy, she says, "A lot of carriers today are looking to upgrade their infrastructures, so Red Hat's plans make sense. The time is right."