Windows Apps On A Linux DesktopWindows Apps On A Linux Desktop

The partnership disclosed Monday between Tarantella Inc. and CodeWeavers Inc. is expected to appeal to the growing number of companies looking to run Microsoft Windows applications from open-source Linux desktops. The pairing of Tarantella's Enterprise 3 access software with CodeWeavers' CrossOver Office Server Edition lets users access Microsoft Office apps via a Java-enabled Web browser without having to have Windows installed locally on their desktops.

Tarantella's Enterprise 3 software uses file caching, compression, and pruning to deliver data over the Internet, as well as private networks, says Guy Churchward, the company's director of strategic alliances. When Enterprise 3 detects that files are too large to flow through the public network without slowing down application performance, it automatically compresses files to keep the data flowing.

CrossOver Office is used primarily in IT environments where users prefer to work in Linux but are required to communicate using Windows applications to create documents and E-mails. Integration of Enterprise 3 with CrossOver Office will be done by the products' resellers, although Churchward says Tarantella and CodeWeavers are exploring tighter integration between their products.

Tarantella Enterprise 3, version 3.3, supports a number of Unix and Linux operating systems, including IBM AIX 5.1, Red Hat Linux 8, Sun Linux 5, Solaris 9, and United Linux 1.0. SuSE Linux, which is part of United Linux, uses CrossOver Office 1.3.1 to let users run both Windows and open-source desktop apps simultaneously. Churchward says Sun Linux users are also a target market for Tarantella and CodeWeavers. Sun's Mad Hatter Linux desktop is scheduled to ship later this year. Sun customers represent 80% of Tarantella's clients.