[ltp] T40 / Pentium M and Linux

[Atul Chitnis]

On Thu, 27 Mar 2003, Steve Barr wrote:

> Can you imagine the support calls?
> "I'm having a problem with my ThinkPad model mumblemumble."
> "Did you install an OS?"
> "Yes."
> "I'm sorry sir, that's not a supported configuration."

That is a fairly crappy staement. I am from Bangalore, and if you work for 
IBM, you probably know how big Linux is in IBM India, Bangalore. Every 
second engineer I know there toting a Thinkpad runs either Linux alone or 
dualboot Linux and Windows. In fact I bought my T30 based on the 
popularity of this model with IBM engineers (I have a lot of friends 
there). The Thinkpad support division, that has had to deal with me since 
1997, is *very* Linux savvy (the page someone asked me about? That was 
given to me by the Thinkpad service person), and in the past 5 years, I 
have been extremely happy with both the service as well as their overall 
competence in Linux.

Not supporting Linux officially on Thinkpads has *nothing* to do with 
support issues, believe me. It is a pure marketing call, and yes, 
Microsoft's influence is the biggest factor of them all.

and it is a stance IBM will have to grow up from ASAP - someone up there 
in IBM marketing needs to understand that us "Linux 
renegades/non-conformists" just happen to have a major market share 
already, and unless IBM marketing dudes stop looking under the bed to see 
if there is a Micros^H^H^H^H^H^HMonster there and start doing what they 
are being paid for (which is *SELL MACHINES*), IBM risks being laughed out 
of the sandpit for its attitude.

> Whatever.  Don't forget a lot of us use Linux because it
> better meets our needs, not because of some "political"
> stance.

Yeah. That would be roughly about *all* of us. Funny - I dont know if you 
realise how condescending that remark comes across.

> For a time IBM did sell ThinkPads with Linux installed, but
> unlike with servers, I guess not enough people bought them
> for IBM to justify the additional testing, documentation,
> support, etc. expense.  If you want to flame anyone, try
> the Linux community.

Serious crappola. As someone who actually tried to buy some of these
Caldera-Linux pre-installed TPs when they were shyly introduced, I can
tell you that it wasnt the Linux community at fault at all - it was IBM.

I have reams of email between me and IBM to prove this - I wonder whether 
someone from IBM would like to challenge me on this? The one statement 
that stood out was in one of the final notes I got, which said that IBM 
does not consider the Linux market a big one and hence cannot market these 
Thinkpads in places where they are difficult to support - this is at the 
*same* time when IBM established its Linux Competency Center in Bangalore, 
staffed by some 200 people!

Don't blame the Linux community for fumbling the ball here.

Bah, Steve, bah! That note of yours was *way* off the mark! I wonder what 
Sandeep Menon would say if he saw this? Despite the disclaimer, your note 
did come across as an official IBM statement! It would have been wiser to 
say nothing!

Atul

-- 
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Atul Chitnis       | achitnis@exocore.com
Exocore Consulting | http://www.exocore.com
Bangalore, India   | +91 (80) 344-0397
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