Walmart dumping Linux computers

[danbuter]

Linux PCs a bust at Wal-Mart : Christopher Null : Yahoo! Tech

This kinda sucks, but it doesn't surprise me.

[dxqcanada]

I think that just throwing a cheap PC on the market with a "different" OS is not the best idea.
Most consumers are afraid of the unknown ... and especially when it comes to High Tech items such as computers.

The gOS is actuall a cool OS for basic computing.
I had tried it out in a VM and was very impressed by it.

I think exposure is the key.

To a Windows consumer the word Linux means "techno geek".

If workstations running gOS were introduced in all Public Libraries ... there would be a different viewpoint to Linux.

[schwim]

It's not just the untested OS, it's the fact that it's Wal-Mart. If they're not selling four billion of them a week, it's a failure. The gOS crew probably thought it was a godsend being inducted into Wally World, but they should have just tried to sell via a large online venue, like Tiger Direct or something of the sort.

thanks,
json

[fingal]

I agree that for a lot of people 'Linux' still equates to 'techno geek'. Oddly the word 'Linux' seems to be like a brand with no image (for Windows users I mean). However, I sometimes find people mentioning Ubuntu, and that seems to have a different image. It's as though some distros have a brand identity separate from the idea of Linux/free software...

I'm not saying this is good or bad, just that 'free software', 'open source' etc. don't always carry much weight to a Windows user. 'Easy to install', 'low cost' and 'cool' do seem to make an impression.

Many PC users like the idea of using MSN, the web, and (more for older users) email. I was interested to note that a few people on here hadn't heard of Bebo for example - Younger computer users are likely to have heard of that, and now I'm on about people < 25.

All these ideas come from my chat room habit. What I'm seeing is a small influx of new users who carry with them some IT knowledge, and - at the same time - a certain amount of popularity. They seem to have a broader range of tech. knowledge than just Windows. I'm not sure if this is just my personal impression, or part of a wider trend!

I don't suppose Walmart cares about these things: just money/fast turnover.

[bidi]

I've read quite a few articles about this, and all of them have the most sensationalist titles possible: "Walmart to stop selling Linux PCs", etc. That's just plain untrue! Walmart will, in fact, still sell these Linux PCs, just not in stores. Am I the only one that doesn't see the big deal here? The PC didn't fail to sell, as a matter of fact a Walmart spokesperson said in one of the articles I read these sold really well, but only online. You can still get the PCs from walmart.com. I don't see the shame in that seeing as a lot of technology companies only sell online (Newegg comes to mind).

[cousinlucky]

Linuxforum members know that I know next to nothing about computers or Linux but when people find out that I am using Linux they automatically assume that I am some kind of computer whiz. Even the people at Novell, which makes Suse, assumes that anyone using Suse already knows just about everything there is to know about computers.

Any store that has anything on its shelves that is not selling removes that item from their shelves. Here on Staten Island the local paper ran a story this week about the computer repair shops here strongly advising people, especially businesses, to stay away from Vista.

They are claiming that even the new Vista service pack is full of flaws.

Although most people use computers they will not accept anything but what they already know and that is windows.

The fact that Wal-Mart tried selling a computer without windows is , in itself, a sign that the Gates Gang is losing their stranglehold on vendors as well as consumers.

[schwim]

Yeah, the MS empire will topple before I get to eat my fruit loops in the morning.

The sad reality is that as long as we have the linux distros being supported and touted as the greatest things since sliced bread by fanatics whose sole drive is defeating the Evil Empire, we will always be considered dorks. Nobody really wants to use software that's voted #1 by every Star Wars and D&D fan in the world.

Who in the hell cares if MS numbers dwindle? As long as I get to use it, I could care less what everyone else uses.

thanks,
json

[MikeTbob]

Doesn't bother me one bit, I think the majority of Walmart consumers have no business buying Linux computers, as a matter of fact, I bet the ones who did buy it were left wondering what the hell they just bought, when they got it home.

[jayd512]

Doesn't bother me one bit, I think the majority of Walmart consumers have no business buying Linux computers, as a matter of fact, I bet the ones who did buy it were left wondering what the hell they just bought, when they got it home.

LOL... I didn't wanna get into that! Not sure how many people here shop at Wally World!

Wait a minute...I shop at Wal-Mart!!!

What are ya getting at, Mike?

[MikeTbob]

LOL... I didn't wanna get into that! Not sure how many people here shop at Wally World!

Wait a minute...I shop at Wal-Mart!!!

What are ya getting at, Mike?

HEH, Relax Jayd, my family shops there too sometimes. Notice I said the Majority of Walmart consumers. Us Linux freaks might make up .1 percent of those consumers.