Open source software is software that is freely available. It is called open source because the source code is open to change to anyone that wants to add something on or change it.

The rise of open source mostly came as a result of the Internet and broadband adoption. Now programmers from around the world can unite and collaborate at building software. The problem for Microsoft is that this software often competes with its own products.

Most of Microsoft's product line can now be replaced with open source applications free of charge that actually are good enough or better than Microsoft's own products.

Firefox is now one of the most popular web browsers on the market. As Internet Explorer became dated, Firefox picked up the slack and built a browser with more features and more plugins that Internet Explorer ever had. Then after Firefox became popular, Microsoft finally decided to update its browser. The product manager publicly snubbed tabbed browsing as something Microsoft was not interested in. However, when IE was released they included tabbed browsing.

Outlook Express and now Outlook can be replaced with Mozilla Thunderbird  or Evolution which offers similar features for free.

Microsoft Office, once a huge money maker for Microsoft can be replaced for free with Open Office. The office suite is almost identical to Microsoft Office with a writing program, spreadsheet, database, and presentation product.

This leads us to Microsoft's main product, the OS. Microsoft Windows has long been the OS of choice around the world.  Whether or not the OS is the biggest money maker for Microsoft isn't the point. It is a strategic product that allows Microsoft to sell other products competitively. Now it is in jeopardy from Linux in particular a Linux company called Ubuntu.

Linux is a free, open source operating system that has been around for a while now. Linux, unlike Windows has typically been too technical and hard to use by most average users. However, recently Ubuntu came on the scene and has established a presence like no other Linux distribution.

See some video comparisons between Ubuntu and Windows Vista:

It is one of the fastest growing Linux distributions and like most of the others is free also. It is by far the easiest to use Linux distribution yet. It offers a pretty GUI interface similar to Windows Vista or XP.

In some cases it is as plug n play friendly as Windows XP and after installation, everything works as it should. However, usually there are hardware problems and software drivers need to be installed manually. This typically involves cutting and pasting some commands into the terminal then everything works fine. Ubuntu has a strong community of people that offer help free of charge via the forum and chat rooms.

Ubuntu is still not up to the ease of use of Windows Vista or even Windows XP but this is mostly due to hardware vendors not providing software drivers. However, this should change as more people start playing around with Linux and large industry players pressure companies into providing drivers for Linux. Also, large vendors such as Dell have started selling consumer computers with Ubuntu in them. Michael Dell has also stated that he wants better drivers for Linux. Those that provide it will get Dell's business and those who don't won't get the business.

Software is still a bit of an obstacle with Ubuntu and Linux in general. Programs written for Windows used to only work in Windows. Now, you can run Windows programs in Linux using a program called Wine or another program called CrossOver Linux. Crossover Linux even allows you to install Windows applications directly in Linux. Some of the most popular programs such as Photoshop, Quicken and other applications can now be run in Linux.

Yet another option Linux users have is to use a virtualization product such as VMware to run Windows within Linux. Then the applications can be run from a window within Linux. There is also the option of running Linux from within Windows using virtualization as well.

Many people may not even need to run Windows applications because Ubuntu has a list of applications that generally fill the needs of most people. Browsing the web is very easy in Linux and without problems.

Ubuntu unlike Windows has a package updating program that updates all Ubuntu supported software on your system. With Microsoft, the update service is for Microsoft only products. When there is a new version or security update for a particular application on your Ubuntu system, the updates can be done with one click. So this means no more manually updating one program at a time. This takes community involvement and working with other software providers, a weakness of Microsoft.

In addition, Linux has been more secure than Windows with regard to viruses and spyware. Most of today's spyware and viruses are written for Windows so Linux rarely has these problems. Compare this to $90 + per hr that some Windows users pay to professionals to remove spyware/viruses and Ubuntu starts to look really good.

Now is not the time for Microsoft to raise prices or to upset its users. Keeping the herd happy and using Microsoft's OS is what is in Microsoft's best interest. Recently, Windows Vista has been causing some people technical issues; some have even went back to XP. There are also issues with Windows Vista rebooting after an update and talk that the anti-piracy protection in Vista is too much of a nuisance. Apparently, removing or changing hardware in your computer can trigger Vista to go into a limited access mode which may mean you have to call Microsoft and tell them what you are doing with your computer. Many people feel this is a nuisance and/or a violation of privacy.

Then there is the business of Microsoft trying to get rid of Linux by using strong arm tactics such as threatening Linux by claiming that it violates its patents. Such tactics tend to upset people enough so that many have decided to try Linux out and even switch all together.

This biggest threat is probably people that are still using Windows XP. Within the next five years many of these people will upgrade to a new OS. In this time companies like Ubuntu are likely to make improvements in the OS. So many may decide to switch to Ubuntu if Microsoft doesn't keep the herd content.

This means the Microsoft monopoly is in jeopardy. Once market share decreases, there will be serious problems. Microsoft has to stay one step ahead of Linux with not just improvements but by being good to customers as well.

---

Average user rating