I don't think that is the real solution. It won't make any difference if we can boost the 1.4 % eGenesi GNU/Linux gamers to 2.8% by buying a game we don't care for. 2.8% is still zilch. It's just throwing money in the pit. This can be applied to all "I don't need it, but we want support" sales.
The real problem with GNU/Linux is that it has a large installed base, but no "market share". With all the people (legally) downloading their stuff and not buying their distribution, GNU/Linux doesn't reach significant market share. GNU/Linux Desktop sales are abysmall, so the PHB's see a "number of those Leehnoohks users" smaller than the number of sheep on mars and thus decide not to support this unused fringe thing. There is no money in it anyways.
Our problem is that we try to tackle this as an end of pipe problem. Buy GNU/Linux apps and support will rise. Alas, that reasoning contains a flaw. We cannot increase support by buying commercial GNU/Linux applications, because the number of those are too small to register on the radar and when bought, they are far, far outnumbered by sales of their Windows counterparts. Even if we bought commercial stuff we don't like or need, we could only increase sales to zilch + 1.
To really boost support for GNU/Linux, we should buy our distributions. Everyone using GNU/Linux needs his/her flavour of distro and when bought it would really increase the general marketshare. This is a better option than artificially inflating the microscopic GNU/Linux commercial app market with bogus purchasing.
Ofcourse people could say that buying a distribution is also artificially increasing marketshare, because the proliferous freeloading options in the GNU/Linux makes buying unnecesary. Could be totally valid, but this reasoning is decreasing GNU/Linux' marketshare and as a consequence the support commercial companies are willing to give to it. Never buying your favourite distro is IMNSHO leeching on your own commercial GNU/Linux support. One sale a year and you've registered as a "valid" GNU/Linux user. At least in terminology of marketshare.
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Artificially inflating the market?
Posted by: Ronald Trip on June 24, 2004 04:12 PMThe real problem with GNU/Linux is that it has a large installed base, but no "market share". With all the people (legally) downloading their stuff and not buying their distribution, GNU/Linux doesn't reach significant market share. GNU/Linux Desktop sales are abysmall, so the PHB's see a "number of those Leehnoohks users" smaller than the number of sheep on mars and thus decide not to support this unused fringe thing. There is no money in it anyways.
Our problem is that we try to tackle this as an end of pipe problem. Buy GNU/Linux apps and support will rise. Alas, that reasoning contains a flaw. We cannot increase support by buying commercial GNU/Linux applications, because the number of those are too small to register on the radar and when bought, they are far, far outnumbered by sales of their Windows counterparts. Even if we bought commercial stuff we don't like or need, we could only increase sales to zilch + 1.
To really boost support for GNU/Linux, we should buy our distributions. Everyone using GNU/Linux needs his/her flavour of distro and when bought it would really increase the general marketshare. This is a better option than artificially inflating the microscopic GNU/Linux commercial app market with bogus purchasing.
Ofcourse people could say that buying a distribution is also artificially increasing marketshare, because the proliferous freeloading options in the GNU/Linux makes buying unnecesary. Could be totally valid, but this reasoning is decreasing GNU/Linux' marketshare and as a consequence the support commercial companies are willing to give to it. Never buying your favourite distro is IMNSHO leeching on your own commercial GNU/Linux support. One sale a year and you've registered as a "valid" GNU/Linux user. At least in terminology of marketshare.
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