In 2009, more Linux-powered desktops will sell then will Windows-powered ones. Sounds crazy doesn’t it? Think again.
What’s happened is that people don’t just want; they’re demanding that their computers boot-up Right Now. Vendors aren’t fools, so they’re delivering laptops and desktops that can boot-up really fast.
Of course, while most of the vendors would like to give their customers Windows, they can’t. Windows is no more capable than booting fast than John McCain is of winning the Olympic gold in the 100-meter dash. That’s where Linux comes in.
You see you can boot Linux up in a hurry if you do it from the hardware and thanks to a company called deviceVM and its fast-booting Linux, SplashTop. PC OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) like ASUS, Dell, HP and Lenovo, are all including SplashTop on their lines.
SplashTop, which can boot from either the firmware or the hard drive, is a lightweight modern Linux. The package includes a simple graphical desktop, Blackbox and a selection of popular network-aware applications. These include a Web browser, which is based on Firefox; Skype VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol); and an IM (instant message client).