Local computer manufacturers eye Linux

Business appears set to explode in Nigeria’s fast
growing IT market for 10 years old Linux with
indigenous manufacturers of branded computers
tinkering with plans to implement the operating system
(OS) to make their PCs more affordable.

Zinox and Omatek appear to be in the fore-front of
this move and may seal a deal soon with major
promoters of the OS. But Zinox said it was considering implementing a Linux OS with its own flavour complaining that there were not much strong local promoters of Linux.

 

Other hardware makers are already holding top-level
discussions with Linux vendors and a likely deal may reduce Windows share of the market. Windows OS,
Microsoft’s flagship product dominates the market for
now. But local firms say the undue emphasis on volume
and the high cost of Windows XP, about 33 per cent of
the cost of an average system, is making the Linux
option very attractive.

“One of them has been here and I know they have been
holding similar discussions with other manufacturers.
We cannot give a definite answer as to whether we have
reached a decision on Linux yet but we are working on
reaching one,” a spokesman for one of the companies
told the media at the weekend, adding “We want more
Nigerians to own their own system. One way to do this
without compromising the quality of the hardware is to
offer an equally reliable operating system.”

According to him, Windows XP OS goes for about N20,
000 or about 33 per cent of the cost of the entire
system at N80, 000. “Remove that and you have a robust
system that could cost as little N55, 000 to N60,000.”

Linux, which is only 10 years old, now enjoys global
acceptance. A BBC report last July noted: “Now it is
available in many different "distributions" that come
with a bewildering array of utilities and programmes
that have turned it from an engineers tool into
something much more useable. Its emphasis on openness,
collaborative development, stability and security has
helped it grow in stature and stand in stark contrast
to Microsoft's way of doing business.
“Linux is starting to find a place in many businesses
who are tired of endless price hikes, upgrades, bug
fixes and managing the many problems that Microsoft's
software can bring.”


With global giants IBM and HP already implementing
Linux in their products, the OS is already in strong
competition with Windows as was hoped by its creator.
Asia, Europe and a good chunk of Africa already
enthusiastic about Linux and in Latin America is
already opening up to the OS with Brazil in the
forefront of countries deploying Linux to replace
Windows. In Nigeria, HP Nigeria recently sealed a
Linux deal with Novell. More Time Information
Technology (MTIT) limited which is considered a big
time promoter of Linux solutions is working closing
with Suse Linux to unload the solution in the local
market.

Any deal with a local hardware manufacturer would
redefine the market could give the market to the OS,
created by Finnish programmer Linus Torvalds, a little
over a decade ago while studying at the University of
Helsinki. Linux is a version of the Unix operating
system created in 1969 by Ken Thompson and Dennis
Ritchie.

Microsoft maintains an unchallenged dominance in the
fast growing local market where no less than five
indigenous makers of branded systems contend for
space. They are Unitec, Zinox, Omatek, Beta and
Pragmatic. All have a potential huge sale starring at
them within the private and public sectors a Linux
deal is a major win for advocates of open software.

“Any operating system that can perform and is capable
of enjoying acceptance has a chance in any market”
said General Manager Omatek Computers Yomi Soyinka
adding that his company has received offers from some
Linux solution providers but no decision has been
reached. Some senior Zinox officials say the company
would remain proactive and take decisions that
“reflect the dynamics of the market. The market
ultimately helps in making such decisions,” one senior
official said.

Linux major advantage appears to be its price. The OS
is touted by its promoters as costing next to nothing,
“Linux is starting to find a place in many businesses
who are tired of endless price hikes, upgrades, bug
fixes and managing the many problems that Microsoft's
software can bring, “ the BBC quoted a source in its
online report last July. The reported added: “The
organisations turning to Linux also like the fact that
there is a vast pool of software engineers out there
tinkering with the software and ready to help solve
any problems they encounter. It is on this after sales
care that the Linux companies tend to compete.”
Linux attraction for local hardware manufacturers is
not different. MTIT and other vendors promoting the
software are doing so on the basis that it is cheap to
install and cheaper still to maintain once installed.
In a depressed economy such as that of Nigeria what
“an affordable system is one that does not put holes
in your pocket and does not demand that you upgrade at
all cost,” said one local manufacturers.

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