Red Hat CEO: Use Windows--It's Better

[Joshua]

You just can't make up this stuff. Matthew Szulik, CEO of Linux
maker Red Hat Linux, said this week that Windows is a better choice on
the desktop than--yes--Linux. "I would say that for the consumer
marketplace, Windows probably continues to be the right product line,"
Szulik said. "From the device-driver standpoint and perhaps some of
the other traditional functionality, for that classic consumer
purchaser, it is my view that [Linux] needs to mature a little bit
more." Szulik even discussed the horrors of what would happen if his
own father tried to purchase a computer running Linux. "We know
painfully well what happens," he said. "He will try to get it
installed and either [won't have] a positive experience or [will put]
a lot of pressure on ... support systems." But don't despair, Linux
lovers: Szulik says that Linux will be good enough for mainstream PC
desktops in a few years and is perfectly capable today for many
business scenarios. "We think that the enterprise desktop market place
is much more strategic and has buyers whose needs we can exceed," he
added.

[jase71]

No great shock, really. He's right. For the consumer market, mom, dad, grandma, and your boss, Windows is still the best option. Easy to buy software, easy to call your pc manufacturer for support, and easy to buy a "Dummies" book at Waldenbooks to learn it.

Linux is coming from the opposite end of the spectrum. The geeks, the hackers, the programmers... who favor flexibility and access that open source gets them, often at the expense of user-friendliness.

It's the same difference as you'll find between people who buy classic cars and tune 'em in the garage on the weekends, compared to those who buy a Toyota Camry and get their oil changed at the Quicky Lube.

Nothing wrong with either one... but the goals and expectations are completely different.