HP decides to ditch Linux in favor of Windows on netbooks

February 11, 2009 8 Comments

HP has announced that it will stop selling any more netbooks pre-loaded with the Linux OS in UK, due to consumer demand for the beefier, and infinitely more user-friendly Windows XP. All new HP netbooks starting from the HP Mini 1000 will have Windows XP (or some other form of Windows) out of the box, with no official support for Linux from HP. This in itself isn’t entirely surprising. Linux kicked off to a good start with the rise of netbooks a few months back, but slowly consumers started to demand the old desktop OS that was Windows XP on their new portable computing machines. With this, HP adds yet another nail to Linux’s coffin, which may finally be closed for good if and when Microsoft decides to offer Windows 7 for free.

Via The Link

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10-inch, Netbook, Software
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Written by: Björn A.

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  • Gary

    “if and when Microsoft decides to offer Windows 7 for free”
    LOL…

  • Alan

    Microsoft is already giving away XP for next to nothing, it wouldn’t surprise me if they gave away Windows 7 for free to select manufacturers if it would convince them not to ship Linux.

  • http://www.electronicpulp.net David Gonzales

    This.

  • Harry

    I can understand it if they don’t want to offer too many models in retail stores and confuse consumers. But they could offer downoadable linux for the machines that could replace the Windows setup.

    That would be fine with me, PROVIDED they also refund the cost of the windows license. This is possible since the installer could contact the HP servers, verify that Windows was wiped, and make it impossible to reinstall it on the machine. Then it would get some sort of claim code for the refund. I am sure such a scheme would work well using the same technology that retail Windows uses to validate genuine products.

    This also has the advantage that it will be done only by users who know what they are doing, eliminating returns for the linux machines.

  • Me

    “With this, HP adds yet another nail to Linux’s coffin, which may finally be closed for good if and when Microsoft decides to offer Windows 7 for free.”

    you’re pretty stupid

  • Sinbad

    OK.. this is truly retarded. In fact, I’d be hard-pressed to find a more fucktarded anti-Linux article. Desktop and Notebook Linux systems today (such as Ubuntu) are very robust, and certainly not ‘infinitely less’ user-friendly than any Microsoft OS. Microsoft will never release Windows 7 for free, and they haven’t released Windows XP for free either. In fact, they don’t distribute WinXP licenses at all any more.

    I use Linux because it’s what I’m used to. It works great for me, and as for ease of use, it has drastically improved in recent years, to the point where I know enough people without the technical prowess to understand the term ‘operating system’ who have no problems with it. It has the backing of such names as Intel and IBM, 88% of the top 500 supercomputers run it (I know that isn’t strictly relevant but still), it is hardly rare on embedded & portable devices (such as mobile phones) and Google is developing its own Linux OS (Google Chrome OS).
    I don’t think it is going to go down like BeOS and OS/2 this time.

  • cack

    I wonder if the author realizes the machine hosting this site is running Linux and apache?

  • http://www.electronicpulp.net David Gonzales

    Now that I do realize it, I fail to see what it has to do with my article.

    I’m not anti-Linux myself, and in fact I use it from time to time on my computers. Just because I’m stating facts about the demise of Linux on the netbook market, it doesn’t mean I have anything against free software or open-source alternatives to proprietary operating systems.


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