So Ubuntu 9.10 launched today, and it feels like a system meant for non-computer people now more than I've felt it be in the past 4 releases of using it. The Software Center or whatever it was called makes program installs so nice, no pop-up about post-installation man-db's and such.
While reading through comments about your generic "Lol linux sux win7 is better", I came across once again the comment of "If it's so great why is it only ~1% of computers?" Then the thought finally hit me, more than it did in the past year.
Go to Best Buy, Staples, etc. and look around at computers. What do they come loaded with? Windows. Walk down the street. What's that billboard for? Windows. Watch the TV. What's that a for? Windows (or Mac). See a pattern? The reason for all this time that Windows is the majority over Linux is because of marketing (and because you can't really market Linux because it's free).
Imagine if you flipped on the TV, and the first ad you see is for Ubuntu, Fedora, OpenSUSE, whatever it may be. Would you feel a little want to install it or use it? Maybe. Imagine you walk into Best Buy and every computer comes loaded with Fedora 11 or Ubuntu 9.10. Would you use it? Of course you would, because it's already there.
Those are the reasons why Linux use is so low. There is no multi-million dollar ad campaign behind. Best Buy isn't wanting to put it in the computers because there's no profit in it. They don't get money for it.
(tl;dr Windows is more popular because of large ad campaigns, Linux is free, and because your average Joe doesn't venture from the norm.)
No comments:
Post a Comment