[BALUG-Talk] Linux references in an essay

[Jesse Zbikowski]

BTW I would prefer slate gray with white trim...

On Wed, Feb 11, 2009 at 2:26 PM, David Fetter <david at fetter.org> wrote:
> On Wed, Feb 11, 2009 at 11:31:01AM -0800, Baptiste wrote:
>> Even though it isn't as famous, it is widely used for organizations
>> that need secured and specific settings of computer networks.>>
>
> I don't know what you mean by "isn't as famous."

Well that is pretty plain English doncha think?  I am sure you could
quantify it in terms of "brand recognition" or "name recognition"; see
for instance this Harris Poll:

http://consumerist.com/consumer/branding/coca+cola-is-the-best-brand-microsoft-beats-apple-279388.php

When you ask people "We would like you to think about brands or names
of products and services you know. Considering everything, which three
brands do you consider the best?" people respond "Microsoft" or
"Apple", not "Linux".  Not because Linux isn't good, it's just that
outside of the server room it isn't on the tip of everybody's tongue.
(OK so maybe Linux isn't a "product", but I'm just citing this to make
a point that should already be obvious.)

Vis a vis Jim's point about the relevance of fame: people do associate
famous brands with quality so it might be OK to acknowledge the "fame
gap" here.  However I might drop the bit about "that need secured and
specific settings of computer networks."  You can just say that
organizations and individuals use Linux for a wide variety purposes.
Disney uses it for its artists to run Photoshop.  Pixar uses it to
render animations.  The NSA uses it for Some Kind of Super Secret
S**t.

>> + can I say: Google increases its power by *opening its sources*??

I think the trendy way to say this without implying whether Google
gives as much as it takes is "by participating in the open source
ecosystem."