Xen leads Novell's turnaround effort in Linux

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The Novell sales force is "raring to go"...

... but the expert commentators are still in their stalls, quietly apprehensive.

This article had a bigger contrast than most between ZDNet's wild cheerleading for all things Linux and the reactions of outsiders quoted.

Examples:

Novell intends to catch Red Hat, but the quoted analyst is hesitant to agree:

Quote:
But it will take more than just good technology make inroads against Linux market leader Red Hat, said Ideas International analyst Tony Iams. "Products have never been a problem for Novell. It's been on marketing and execution," he said.
End Quote

He noticed.



Then Novell has made some progress, except in the part of the business that makes money.

Quote:
But Novell still is in catch-up mode for the mainstream Linux market, machines that ship in high volume: "They haven't managed to get the mindshare in the volume space, which has been a problem," [IDC Analyst Al] Gillen said.
End quote.

Yes, not having people notice your products is a problem.
Another thoughtful rationale.


And Xen is a product in progress. IBM is using it, but knows it's not a substantial sales point yet.

Quote:
Xen will be remain in the prototype stage at customer sites for about the next year, and early adopters should start using it the year after that, [Dan] Fry [who oversees IBM's Linux Technology Center] predicted. That means Novell's half-year lead over Red Hat likely won't give it a major benefit.
"I don't think it's a significant advantage," Frye said.
End Quote.

Admittedly, that's a competitor, but one which is expecting to use Xen to advantage.


Then Novell has paid a great deal of attention to creating a fancy interface. Which will not be of interest to the intended market.

Quote:
Despite their affinity for the command line, many Linux enthusiasts are also eager for a fancy user interface. But generally, such effects are something of a mismatch for the corporate market Novell is trying to reach with SLES 10, said Ovum Summit analyst Dwight Davis.
End quote.

Users may be more appreciative, but buyers can't be users.


The same analyst considered whether the inclusion of a specially improved version of Open Office would be an advantage, and decided that it would not. People like Microsoft Office far too well.

Quote:
"The inertia of the market, which has been comfortable with Microsoft's Office suite, if not necessarily with the pricing for it, is pretty significant," he said.
Ebd quote.

The problem is, people like Office. And, I'll add, though the price may be an irritant, it's obviously considered acceptable.



So, a ZDNet article which makes enthusiastic comments and then refutes them immediately. This time the reporter didn't wait for posters to do that job.

Good, thorough work, ZDNet. Meant seriously.


Novell?

No good news there, but that's as much conventional wisdom as some of the reasons for opinions given by the analysts quoted. And conventional wisdom can drive or drive away sales.

Posted by: Anton Philidor   Posted on: 07/14/06 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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