Could a resurgent Novell beat Microsoft to the .NET?

NewsFactor Network writes: “Deployment of .NET isn’t expected for another 12 to 24 months, and when it does become available businesses will need to upgrade their hardware and software in order to use it. But in February, Novell is launching a competing suite of networking software that promises to offer similar flexibility, called ZENworks Up — and it will not require buying new hardware, sticking to a single platform, or adopting a certain suite of applications. Businesses can even run Windows and Microsoft Office from it if they so choose.”