Sun Software to Be Cheaper Than Windows

Yahoo!/AP ^ | 9/16/03 | Matthew Fordahl

[B Knotts]

SAN JOSE, Calif. - In a move aimed squarely at Microsoft Corp., Sun Microsystems Inc. is unveiling on Tuesday a suite of software for businesses that want to dump - or just can't afford - the Windows operating system on their companies' desktop computers.

The Sun Java Desktop system, which was formerly code-named Mad Hatter, runs on the open-source Linux operating system and includes a variety of programs that replace Microsoft's Internet browser, productivity suite and other parts of the Windows package.

In morning trading, Sun shares rose 9 cents, or more than 2 percent, to $3.95 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Sun officials say its system will cost as little as $50 per user per year and can be installed on any computer that can run Microsoft's Office 2000. The software also is designed to interoperate with Windows-based programs such as Exchange and Microsoft Office.

"We're talking about a radical savings - more than 75 percent over just the comparable upgrade cost for Microsoft," said Larry Singer, Sun's senior vice president of global market strategies.

Sun, a leading maker of high-end, Unix-based servers, has been struggling since the dot-com collapse to bolster sales as systems based on inexpensive x86 microprocessors and the Linux operating system become more powerful and more viable.

The company has since embraced both x86 chips and Linux in an effort to become a leader in low-cost computing. The move toward desktops is another facet of that transformation.

But Tuesday's announcement also echoes a theme heard throughout Sun's nearly 20-year history: A desire to position itself as an alternative to Microsoft in desktop computing.

In the late 1980s, Sun's 386i PC project flopped as the young company was then ill-prepared for the market. More recently, attempts to get support for its universal programming language Java in desktops have been hindered by Microsoft.

In fact, Sun's $1 billion antitrust case over that matter is still pending in a Maryland federal court.

Sun's latest attempt tries to leverage its Java brand, which is popular on a wide range of computing platforms from servers to cell phones but has contributed little directly to the company's bottom line.

Singer said because of Java's openness and integration with the new Sun desktop software, developers will have access to more components of the underlying software than they do with Microsoft's proprietary offerings.

Singer said there's another key difference between Sun Java Desktop and Microsoft Windows-based systems.

"Guess what? It wouldn't have blown up ... with the worms and the viruses" of recent weeks, he said.

Sun also planned to announce a major upgrade to its StarOffice productivity suite. Singer said it would work better than previous versions with Microsoft's competing Office suite.

Besides the desktop system, Sun was also announcing a suite of server software at its SunNetwork user conference in San Francisco. The software, formerly called Project Orion, has been officially named Java Enterprise System. It's priced at $100 per employee per year.

"It's kind of taking a page out of Microsoft's books," Singer said. "We are for the first time introducing a suite of products that have greater value as the sum of the parts than the parts themselves."

[B Knotts]

Didn't see this one coming. "Java Desktop?" Dunno if that will fly, but it's interesting that they're going right after Microsoft.

[Mr. Bird]

Singer said there's another key difference between Sun Java Desktop and Microsoft Windows-based systems. "Guess what? It wouldn't have blown up ... with the worms and the viruses" of recent weeks, he said.

And I have little concern with coming down with Feline Leukemia. Is it not reasonable to assume that if Sun grabbed a larger share of the market, there would be plenty of people developing viruses to attack them as well?

[Cicero]

For the most part, this will be inferior software. For instance, it will use the RealOne media player, a real piece of bloatware-spyware if there ever was one.

Also, if it's any concern to Freepers, the poeple involved make Bill Gates look like a raving conservative.

[Myrddin]

"Guess what? It wouldn't have blown up ... with the worms and the viruses" of recent weeks, he said.

Not with worms and viruses. It will blow a big stack backtrace in the java console window and leave the unsophisticated user wondering what happened. There is a big difference between cheap and inexpensive. The Sun stuff will be cheap. Calling Sun technical support should be fun too.

[Jalapeno]

I'll just tell you I am so glad I bought SUNW at $20 a share. I think they have other isues they need to deal with.

[Blood of Tyrants]

It is completely reasonable. Fifty software designers might not be able to find any security flaws in an OS, but 50 million might.

[Salgak]

Actually, by its' nature and development history, UNIX-based systems are far less likely to be vulnerable to viruses, and the filesystems of UNIX-based systems are FAR more granular in their distinction of what you can and cannot do with a given file or directory. Yes, there HAVE been Unix-based viruses and worms: the "Morris Worm" of 1988 comes to mind. Note the date. There ARE Unix worms and viruses out there in the wild today, but they're not common, AND YOU DON'T NEED ANTI-VIRUS programs to stop them, as a general rule. . .

[B.O. Plenty]

Dear Sun Microsystems:

If your OS does not run all.......and I mean ALL applications which run on Windows....forget it. Microsoft will beat you into the ground. As far as I can tell, Apple had a chance about 20 years ago to have the dominate OS for all times, but blew it by not allowing others to develop programs that would run on Macs. The rest is history.....at least 75% of the World's p.c.'s run Windows.

[Reeses]

the RealOne media player, a real piece of bloatware-spyware if there ever was one.

I agree but are you also aware MS media player likes to report to MS servers everything you view or listen to with it?

[Jack Black]

I'm not sure what the importance of this is. I bought, installed and run RedHat 9. (I paid $39 for it). It includes a word processor, a spreadsheet (very nice), a powerpoint type of thing, lots of media player stuff, etc.

Why would I want to buy another set of these from Scott?
On the other hand at $40 bucks it's not a huge investment, I might try it.

Corporations are not yet moving to Linux for desktops. It's still a server OS. I'm not sure this is enough to tip it. As someone else pointed out its the applicaiton
catalog that makes windows so important. No matter what little niche your interested in there is a windows program to do it.

[AF_Blue]

Sun officials say its system will cost as little as $50 per user per year...

So, I can assume the Osmonds won't be using this?

[=Intervention=]

"If your OS does not run all.......and I mean ALL applications which run on Windows....forget it."

As if there were no programs that are worth having that do not run on Windows! And as if progress is a bad thing! You must do everything Windows does out of the box or I (petulant user #2392) won't go for it! Ah contraire, the dissatisfaction with Windows exhibited by most Windows users is exploitable, and anyone who brings along a better mouse trap is welcome to the party. Go for it Sun! In the end the customer wins.

[Bush2000]

As if there were no programs that are worth having that do not run on Windows!

That isn't the point. Nearly all desktop users run Windows today. That's a fact. Those users have a serious investment in Windows code. Moving to a non-Windows platform throws away that investment. Which was the point of the original poster: Unless you can run MY software, you can forget it...

[Bush2000]

Didn't see this one coming. "Java Desktop?" Dunno if that will fly, but it's interesting that they're going right after Microsoft.

You can file this one under "Software That is Used Internally By Sun and Which Nobody Else Uses..."

[Musket]

Actually, by its' nature and development history, UNIX-based systems are far less likely to be vulnerable to viruses...

Shhhhhhh. They don't want to hear that. It might hurt their feeeeeelings.; )

[Salgak]

One OS to rule them all ???

Does that mean we have to throw Bill Gates into the fires of Mount Doom ????

[Salgak]

You want to run your old Windows apps on a Linux box ?? Try WINE.

Heck, you can even run EVERQUEST on Linux with WINE . . .

[Bush2000]

You want to run your old Windows apps on a Linux box ?? Try WINE.

Uhhhhhhh ... WINE won't run my DOS apps, nor will it run the vast majority of my DX games.

[Salgak]

WINE currently supports up to DirectX8. As for DOS, there ARE DOS/PC emulators for Unix.

Of course, if Linux starts to break through to the desktop outside of the Geek Ghetto, then more and more apps will ship dual Linux/Windows. . .

[Bush2000]

WINE currently supports up to DirectX8.

So what. Doesn't the fact that most games won't install under WINE mean anything to you?!?