Each of the case studies is about moving to SuSE Linux
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| tracyanne Jul 31, 2008 7:52 PM EDT |
either from heterogeneous (Windows + some other Linux) or from Windows. The case studies read like an ad for SuSE, other than that it's good. |
| tuxchick Aug 01, 2008 7:50 AM EDT |
Intuit has long been firmly locked in Windows' shackles, so this seems a pretty big deal. Of course the cynical part of me is still looking for the catch :) |
| rijelkentaurus Aug 01, 2008 7:56 AM EDT |
The catch is simple...they'll make a program to run on Linux, but it will be nice and proprietary and lock your data into their program. And then they stop the Linux version and try to force people back to Windows. If you don't own the data, you don't really have choice regardless of how many OSes they start to support. |
| tuxchick Aug 01, 2008 8:29 AM EDT |
Data file formats in all financial and accounting applications are all over the map, both FOSS and proprietary. Intuit's QIF format is a sort-of lowest-common denominator, but it has a number of deficiencies that make it not the best choice, and Intuit stopped supporting it several years ago. So the real lowest-common denominator is a delimited text file, and they have their difficulties too. Gnucash uses some kind of XML thingy, so I suppose a person could write a parser for different situations, but overall it's very hard to move from one application to another. |
| hkwint Aug 01, 2008 8:30 AM EDT |
I'd say the announcement is not much more than apart from 'MS Windows' Intuit will support 'MS Linux' too. |
| dumper4311 Aug 01, 2008 10:00 AM EDT |
Stupid and paranoid 'MS Linux' conspiracy comments aside, platform is irrelevant in this case. As has been pointed out above, it's nearly impossible to move from one APPLICATION to another without consistent and open data standards, or at least solid interoperability with closed standards. Intuit hasn't even begun to cover this on the client side (not in their best financial interest to do so they figure), and the F/OSS options are no better at providing interoperability (read: just as guilty). Even if you convince some SOHO user to "convert" to your favorite F/OSS financial package, they're on their own from that point forward. Their only hope is that they can convert their accountant to F/OSS also, and there's no chance of that happening unless he can convince all his clients to go that way as well. It's not a matter of whether you can get your data out of one and into the other solution - it's a matter of how much time, pain, and effort it will take. I think it was tracyanne on the recent Alfresco vs. Sharepoint discussion who mentioned interoperability - so where's the equivalent QuickBooks killer in the F/OSS world? I wish Alfresco the best, and hope some enterprising OSS star figures out the massive potential market QuickBooks is sitting on. Such competition could only help us all - open and proprietary users alike. |
| hkwint Aug 01, 2008 10:49 AM EDT |
Quoting:Stupid and paranoid 'MS Linux' conspiracy comments aside That's not stupid. If you buy Suse, you buy the right to 'use the intellectual property of Mircosoft' too. Therefore, you implicitly agree 'intellectual property' exists in the first place, in the second place you agree there is Microsoft IP in Novell, and in the third place you agree you have to pay Microsoft for it. That's paying Microsoft to use Linux. Also, Microsoft distributed a lot of Suse Linux. Than why is it stupid to call it MS Linux? |
| dumper4311 Aug 01, 2008 11:17 AM EDT |
@hkwint:
>Than why is it stupid to call it MS Linux? Let me count the ways: >you implicitly agree 'intellectual property' exists in the first place Legally it does, welcome to the real world. If you don't like that fact (I don't either in many respects), work to change the laws. Closing your eyes and chanting "no, no, no" won't help, neither will rampant paranoia. Nobody's persecuting you with their IP. >in the second place you agree there is Microsoft IP in Novell See, this is where the stupid part comes in. Nobody claims that except MS themselves, and they're not saying it about Novell, but Linux as a whole. Way to perpetuate the MS lie. Good job. >and in the third place you agree you have to pay Microsoft for it Basic math is a valuable skill, I'd strongly recommend checking into it. Novell received a healthy net gain from MS on this mostly inconsequential deal. It's MS that's paying for it. >Also, Microsoft distributed a lot of Suse Linux. Net gain: Linux. I don't see that as a loss, by any measure. The fact that you do indicates a serious perspective problem at best. This is a tired discussion, if you're really interested in it, please review the analysis of more informed sources - I won't waste any more of either of our time on it. I would be very interested to know if you have something to contribute on the interoperability subject. I see this as a very serious hangup for a lot of people who have real world requirements that are currently being ignored by our "community". Anyone with a workable solution on that right now would be my personal hero. |
| dinotrac Aug 01, 2008 11:48 AM EDT |
>Therefore, you implicitly agree 'intellectual property' exists in the first place So, I guess you agree with me that you should never buy a Windows computer, because you have to agree that intellecutal property exists in order to do that. |
| tuxchick Aug 01, 2008 11:50 AM EDT |
Getting back to the actual article, it's a big deal for Intuit to even consider this at all. We're seeing a lot of cracks in the Redmond fortress, and it's all because of FOSS. Even Apple's increasing success owes a lot to FOSS. |
| tracyanne Aug 01, 2008 3:01 PM EDT |
I guess it would be good if the EU, they seem to be the only government interested, made some sort of requirement that accounting software must be interoperable. |
| tuxtom Aug 02, 2008 10:56 AM EDT |
Quoting:Stupid and paranoid 'MS Linux' conspiracy comments asideCall me stupid and paranoid all you want, but I've been predicting "MS Linux" for quite some time. It's nothing less than perfectly natural. What's good for the goose...'er, penguin...is good for the...well, Redmond. Quoting:We're seeing a lot of cracks in the Redmond fortressAnd those cracks are called "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" cracks. FOSS doesn't mean a marketplace without fierce competition and players viewed by some as unscrupulous. |
| dumper4311 Aug 02, 2008 3:57 PM EDT |
@tuxtom: I wasn't actually calling anyone in particular stupid or paranoid, just the idea that MS or anyone else can crush, subvert, or poison "the movement" with such tactics. I trust the open source development model, open standards, and the licenses that protect such code (mostly), to do their jobs. Unscrupulous goes with the territory - in any industry. But the whole chicken little act over such things is only harmful to our own community (such as it is) and potential users. |
| tuxtom Aug 02, 2008 5:56 PM EDT |
@dumper4311, I'm afraid Microsoft having even the tiniest wedge of the FOSS pie would crush, subvert, and poison "the movement". I, for one, don't reside in such a fragile subset of the FOSS community. As far as I'm concerned it's not a movement, it's arrived. It's not an agenda, it's a job. I actually welcome MS Linux. That is the Ultimate Victory. It is also a very lucrative economic engine for people like us for the rest of our lives. |
| jdixon Aug 03, 2008 6:50 AM EDT |
> ...but I've been predicting "MS Linux" for quite some time. MS-BSD is more likely, especially given Apple's successful proof of concept. |
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