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    <title><![CDATA[Discussion on Wal-Mart's gPC romance ends: What does it mean for Linux? ]]></title>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455]]></link>
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    <language>en-us</language>
    <lastBuildDate>2013-05-19T01:31:07-07:00</lastBuildDate>
             

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        <title><![CDATA[Linux user training]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2669357]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[Please, it's not that difficult.Anyone can get a book from the library and PC's used to come shipped with weighty manuals.  Changing from XP to say Mandriva or Mint is no harder than changing to Vista - there are graphical tools for most things, they are are just in different places and look slightly different. Userbility is hardly an issue when Windows comes with hardly any programs, unless you equate simplicity with a lack of choice.Roy.]]></description>
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        <dc:creator><![CDATA[roy.evison@...]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2008 10:27:59 -0800</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[any comparison of Suse vs Mandriva?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2668926]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I make no secret that Mandriva is my desktop go-to distro. I should cut a VM for openSUSE and have a look for myself really but if you've tried both, any comment?]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2668926]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Neon Samurai]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Mon, 29 Dec 2008 12:16:00 -0800</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Some Linux is not ready for prime time]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2668803]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I have been focusing my practice for the last 5 years on Linux, there are many versions available, some good some not so, but you are correct, many version still make the computer a project rather that doing a project. I offten convert systems to openSuse linux, when the owners can not provide XP disks. Many different things happen after this, much possitive, much confusion, But i have found that with patience and training, many people are very happy with linux, with the large number of usable Office and Media apps, and relative protection form virus etc.. On the other hand some will pay the 129 to purchase a copy of XP/VISTA for the device, This is ussually caused by the person being unwilling to take the time to learn new names and concepts.... but my base of educated people is growing..... The main point is that without training LINUX will flop... alwaysBrian]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2668803]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[justlostintime@...]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:51:36 -0800</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[vmware workstation]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2477830]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I'm told VMware workstation now supports 3D GPU virtualization and can run most 3D intensive games with varying degrees of success. I'll be looking into that further when I'm back home to my own workstation.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2477830]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Neon Samurai]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Wed, 16 Apr 2008 19:05:31 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[OpenGL]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2477829]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[It was big on Windows platforms before DirectX stomped on most of it's competition. I hear OpenGL has actually evolved very well though DX is still the game developer's preference for whatever reason. Games written for OpenGL will port between platforms easily though I expect.Really, that is just the block buster games though. There is a huge selection of native games for Linux or BSD based OS that do not use DX. Some of them make use of the 3D GPU while some don't. If it's education and early interest your after then there are some great games you can look into. If it's being able to run Crysis because that's what all the cool kids at school run; Windows boot since you need DX10.One of the biggest challenges remains driver support for those high end gaming GPU though. That's changing so we'll see if the game developers follow the consumer demand since the hardware vendors seem to slowly show signs of change.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2477829]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Neon Samurai]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:57:57 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[we're all noobs]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2477827]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I'm a BSD noob but I plod along since one of my hobbies is exploring OS. Linux based OS happen to be what supports the majority of my needs these days but who knows what it will be next week. (edit): damn, another I already replied too.. sorry, wifi at the hotel is not as advertised and it's been almost a week since I've been in to check the forums. Vacation is going well though other than that; huray Florida weather!]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2477827]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Neon Samurai]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:31:36 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[DirectX counterpart...]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2474979]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct3D_vs._OpenGLOpenGL is what you're looking for and more than likely you've used it without knowing it as alot of game consoles utilize it.  There have even been a few popular pc titles to use it, though not very many.  There are tons of side scrolling arcade type games and kid games available for download at sourceforge.net available for free.  Lots of learning games for kids.  Tons of stuff like tux racer and other games that have puffins running around.  The major pc releases usually don't use it as their is more money in it (courtesy of nvidia and microsoft) if they go the directX route.  Not that I'm complaining mind you...I've yet to see any openGL stuff that rivals the graphics in cutting edge games Like Crysis, COD4 and Bioshock.Just showing you the alternative...]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2474979]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Forum Surfer]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Sun, 13 Apr 2008 07:03:43 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[plenty of games]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2474976]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[There are tons of decent games native to Linux, especially for the very young, and &quot;learning&quot; games involving math, spelling, chemistry, etc.Not talking about WOW or other popular stuff. But a few companies do port a some of those. (on line multi player...) Not being a gamer myself I don't know exactly what. I have seen &quot;second life&quot; available in my Mandriva repositories. I understand that's quite popular.And though I've never had much luck with it, I have a lot of people tell me they run XP in a VM and it runs like you'd expect. You can run anything like that.I do encourage folks to give the young-uns a Linux box for starters. They don't know anything, so whatever you give them becomes &quot;the standard.&quot; Bonus in that they're unable to load spamware, spyware, crapware, viruses, etc.A couple of very low income children up the street were given a laptop that wouldn't run, it had win2K on it but overheated in about 5 minutes and knocked itself out cold.On a hunch I ran a thin Linux live CD (Slax) and it ran cool enough to stay alive. So I installed it, at least they can do homework, browse etc. (more than with any windows, actually, without spending more $$$)One day they bumped into me and asked why their friends could install/run whatever, but they couldn't. (some clientware to play card games on line) I showed them they had tons of card games on board, showed them on line games they COULD play, but most important explained the dangers of those scripts running on a windows machine, and that Linux was actually doing them a favor by not exposing them to the potential to fall victim to cross site scripting and other mayhem.To be honest... they didn't seem too appreciative. Hopefully some day they will be. Like when their Linux is still running like new two years from now, and all their friends' Vista has gotten so horrifically crapped up they gave up and bought a new system with win7. (another 4 minutes of fuel for Billy's yacht)]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2474976]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[catseverywhere@...]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Sun, 13 Apr 2008 05:49:12 -0700</pubDate>
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    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[el chupacabra v. Linux]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2474962]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[Quite a few people mentioned having a separate boot for Windows for their gaming. Part of the architecture that allows so much gaming to be made specifically for Windows compatibility is DirectX. Is there any open equivalent of the DirectX package that companies can use for developing games compatible with just about any Linux system?Part of the reason I'm interested in gaming on Linux still is that gaming is one of the earliest ways children get into Computers today. It's between that and writing papers for class for the top spot.Of course, if their parents aren't even aware of Linux, getting it onto the kids' computers would be tough.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2474962]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[desolation0@...]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Sun, 13 Apr 2008 00:54:34 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Dumphrey]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471998]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I agree, Open Office does everything I'll ever need it to do.  A few of my clients are law firms.  Those guys are like neighbors...one guy gets something the other guy has to one up him so it's good for me.  My problem is they pass an 07 word document back and forth editing, commenting and the like.  Every single change has to be monitored.  So if the orignal document is Office 07, they stick with that...if it's WordPerfect (or wordimperfect to some) it stays in that format.  I tried showing hem translators but they don't like them.  Personally I don't either if I need to edit the doc and send it back to someone who's using 07.I find it amazing office 07 is taking off.  The feel is so much different and looks nothing like old versions...yet people buy it in droves.  Personally I'd see that as the perfect time to switch to another cheaper (or better yet free!) office suite...especially with the incompatibility issues with older office versions.  How the h3ll do they sell it?!In the end I could really care less, lol...I just give the customer what they want so they all thier monies belong to me.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471998]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Forum Surfer]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Tue, 08 Apr 2008 18:29:58 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Forum Surfer =)]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471726]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[Amen on the Office on Mac, its pure junk.  OOo will be 1000% more stable.  Enterage...ick...I think your right about MS not doing the same level of work on the Mac version as opposed to the PC version, but then Im prone to tinfoil hat moments.OOo should have full MS open document support soon though... currently is available in the form of several translator plugins, and the Novell OOo has it built in of course...But, many people know and like Office.  There is a reason its almost 1/2 of MS's revenue.Me, Im lucky in that OOo does it for me just fine =)]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471726]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dumphrey]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Tue, 08 Apr 2008 11:21:30 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Thanks for the head up there Catseverywhere\Neon]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471718]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[LinuxMCE is definitely worth looking into LinuxMint is a Ubuntu derivitive, and comes with full MP3 and dvd playback out of the box in the full version.  These codecs are not &quot;legal&quot; in the US to the best of my knowledge unless you pay for them =\Lindvd is available from some german group, and Fluendo will sell you a linux dvd decoder as well.  Worth it to support the media development on linux imo.Neon, thanks for links to the driver site.  Its good to know about.  ATM I have everything working either native or with ndiswrapper.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471718]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dumphrey]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Tue, 08 Apr 2008 11:12:45 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[followup on drivers; The Linux Driver Project]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471673]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[This turned up in this mornings news reading and seemed worth coming back to post.Contact teh Linux Driver Project, give them specs and save your resources for designing more hardware while opening up your consumer based extensively.http://www.osnews.com/story/19595/Linux_Driver_Project_April_Status_Report]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471673]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Neon Samurai]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Tue, 08 Apr 2008 10:33:41 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[missing codecs]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471462]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I forgot to mention Linux Mint:http://linuxmint.com/I got as far as the live install before the pterodactyl crowed at quitting time Monday. The promise is the codecs are all in place and properly configured. We'll see...Not sure about licensing with this one, though. I noticed the US mirrors said &quot;partial&quot; whereas all the others around the globe said &quot;full.&quot; I'll be reading the license tomorrow.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471462]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[catseverywhere@...]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Tue, 08 Apr 2008 07:28:22 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Hey Dumphrey...]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471458]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[Have you seen this?http://www.linuxmce.org/It even provides a network boot image so your windows machine can boot to an mce client when you want to relax. I'm setting one of these up in the lab tomorrow for testing.Thank goodness I'm my own boss, I can justify this sort of thing. I have been trending toward more individual, personal computer work, and away from the small business LANs I've set up/maintained.The latter just click away flawlessly, not generating much work. That's what happens when you put Linux in charge of everything. And with the economy as it is I'm not seeing too much &quot;investment&quot; in infrastructure. There are a few private individuals that I've set up with rather advanced systems, but more often I'm reinstalling their gunked up windows.So if I can get down with MCE it'll actually be a profitable venture, another product to offer, and one I'm sure a lot of people would be excited about.How's that for rationalizing playing with a multimedia system?]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2471458]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[catseverywhere@...]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Tue, 08 Apr 2008 07:20:33 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Dumphrey]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470882]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[Funny you should mention office.  It's my biggest concern regarding my side job supporting small businesses.  They all want to be able to work with office xp/03/07 documents, corel and occasionally oo.  Again, that limits the choice I can give them because of office 07.  I've seen office on a mac in action, and it isn't pretty.  You'd almost think Microsoft made sure it wouldn't be stable on a Mac when it comes to advanded document editing.  So I pretty much sell them office 07 and install oo configured to work primarily as a correl translator.  If that doesn't work to their liking they usually buy corel from me, too.  I could spend some time instructing them on how to use some translators and advanced features of oo but that's time consuming.  I'd rather charge them more money so they can do it their way!  Plus I tried &quot;gently forcing&quot; oo ince on a customer by going back and explaining features here and there.  Over time I got less and less business from that guy, and I noticed on one trip oo was uninstalled and corel was there.  Lesson learned!  You may think you're doing them a favor and saving them money, but it's their decision!And yes, Apple has and is blowing their chance.  Alltough they seem to be perfectly content being a niche company.  They have products that are visually more attractive to the average person (and I can't honestly say the air and iphone aren't sexy as h3ll!).  Combine that with their wonderful os and you have a great product.  But, the prices drive most away and the inability to install whatever I want on the iphone keeps me away.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470882]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Forum Surfer]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:40:01 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Forum Surfer]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470809]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I can see where your coming from and why.  One idea to consider is that software on the shelves will be going the way of the DoDo over time (I give it 5 years), so any serious competitor needs to be able to provide software installs over the internet, much like Steam does for games.  This will be an extension of the &quot;web&quot; desktop and software as a service.But, you are right, MS does need viable, retail competition from someone.  Anyone...  Imagine life if only RC Cola sodas were available...For me the big kicker is not games, or office apps (I actually prefer OOo, and Gimp does 1000% more then I personally need) but multimedia playback.  Even the venerable Mplayer and Xine, they just do not cut it from the UI perspective.  they work, work well, but they have clunky controls.  I COULD use them if i had to, but a fully remote controlled ZoomPlayer  works just as well, if not better at times, and is smooth as silk for daily use (not including custom filter chains here...also not including configuration of codecs to allow playback, just the method of choosing, selecting, fast forwarding etc).]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470809]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dumphrey]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:24:01 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Dumphrey]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470791]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[I do want an alternative to Windows.  The licenseing stuff at work drives me crazy.  And alternatives only help to make each product better if nothing else.  I just don't consider Linux an alternative until I can go to the local retail store and pick up a copy of some specific software to suit whatever need may arise...or linux drivers are included on the latest/greatest product's included driver cd.  I think the online community aspect of Linux is absolutely wonderful, but they simply need to back ONE to get into the marketplace competitively.  No need to dump the other products...just back one unified version commercially.  Look at Vista...it's reception is less than favorable yet it will still be more dominant than another OS that is more stable and secure for some time to come.  It's infuriating since Microsoft is practically opening the door for someone to step up and de-throne them.  You can almost hear the greedy execs saying that &quot;No one is going to buy something different because all your manufacturers are belong to us noobs.&quot;  I thought maybe Apple was going in the right direction with the move to Intel, but no...OSx still isn't supported on anything other than a mac.  I may never move away from Windows.  Not because I'm a huge fan or I think it's the best out there, but because I depend on the Microsoft platform at work on the enterprise level and in my off hours networking small businesses.  I need to be able to remote into these sites and fix them quickly if need to be, without as little hassle as neccessary.  I try to keep all these small business as identical as possible...windows server for back end, xp on the front, tardis to keep everyone time sync'ed, the same time clock programs and reporting programs...blah blah blah.   My customers won't buy Mac because of the price (can't say I blame them) and they think there's some mysterious learning curve with Linux regardless of what I tell them.  They all ask for windows platforms so I give it to them...enough said, another happy customer throwing money at me.  I just want someone to step up and play on Microsoft's level so we have some marketplace competitveness where Microsoft maybe only has 40-60% of the US market.  If that happens everyone would benefit tremendously and just MAYBE drive down prices overall.I agree, Linux would support 95% of my needs and I actually love using openSuSE 10.3, but I want it all on one box because I'm lazy and that's the way most of the non-technical public wants it.  If the box can't do it all, trivial 5% included then I need to look at something else...most of the people giving me their hard earned dollars feel the same.  Maybe then big money making software manufaturer's (ESRI, MapInfo, AutoDesk, Adobe and the like) will make their products Linux friendly...further opening my options for enterprise use.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470791]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Forum Surfer]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:04:03 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Forum Surfer]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470771]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[The only aspect that Linux asks you to cater to linux is maybe in terms of games.  Most popular games now days do not yet run natively on Linux (exceptions are the Games from ID), but the ones that do, run better.  After reading your posts, I really do not see why you are complaining about Windows.  You do not seem to want a Windows Alternative, but a Windows Clone.  An alternative is juts that, a different choice.  An alternative to driving to work is riding my bike.  a clone of driving my car is driving my wife's car.  See the difference?Though I have to admit, my analogies suck...Like you, I keep a Windows machine for gaming, but I use a Linux box for web tasks.  And if the streamZap remote has the correct features and usability, I will be moving all my media playback to that machine as well (currently running BeyondTV BeyondMedia and firefly RF remote on XP).  Sigh, I would love to move the tv card back to a myth system, but Myth is so clunky and non-responsive compared to Beyind TV =(  But, I do try it every year or so to see if its &quot;finally time to switch&quot; for me.So to counter my own arguments.....Yeah linux can do everything I want, it just may not do them well enough for me yet.  (hello Inimatrix...port Zoom Player to linux please.)  But We keep hoping and trying.  Release by release, year by year, it all gets better.]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470771]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dumphrey]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Mon, 07 Apr 2008 11:09:07 -0700</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[true.. it is a much younger market than automotives]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470710]]></link>
        <description><![CDATA[When you buy a car, you know what dad drove, you ask your friends who are gearhead types, you ask your dealer and you do your research. Buying a computer needs much of the same research but the lack of research is not caused by the software platform.Advertising is a limitation since Linux based OS tent do just go in stuff and work rather than be the selling point. I think that's a big reason there is such honest grass roots support from loudmouths like myself. ]]></description>
        <guid><![CDATA[http://www.techrepublic.com/forum/discussions/102-257455-2470710]]></guid>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[Neon Samurai]]></dc:creator>
        <pubDate>Mon, 07 Apr 2008 10:02:24 -0700</pubDate>
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