Interest in Linux Outside the United States

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If you spend any amount of time on Direct2Dell and IdeaStorm, it’s pretty obvious that Linux is a popular topic.

On IdeaStorm, Linux and open source-related ideas are commonly some of the most popular ones. Currently the Sell Linux PCs Worldwide idea by ergo and Dell Ubuntu for Europe by yesmathew are near the top of the front page of IdeaStorm. In other words, they are recently popular ideas.

On the blog, Linux posts related to our recent commitment to offer Ubuntu are the top 4 most viewed posts since we launched in July last year. In just about every one of those posts, the common trend was this: a big jump in traffic the first day of the post followed by an even bigger spike on the second day. International interest was a big reason behind that trend. One more data point to put it in perspective: my post from last month that explained details of the three systems we’d offer with Ubuntu attracted almost 65,000 unique visitors that day—a single day record in terms of traffic. More importantly though, one of the most common requests I see from the Linux community via blog comments and direct e-mails is for us to to offer Ubuntu to home users outside the United States. At this point, I don’t have any new developments to communicate, but it is something that’s under consideration.

Veni Markovski is someone who knows firsthand the about the level of worldwide interest in Linux and open source software. Since 1990, he’s been actively involved furthering worldwide development standards that drive the Internet. While Wikipedia refers to him as a “Bulgarian Internet pioneer,” the reality is his influence extends way beyond his work there. Through the years, his work on Internet standards and initiatives is one thing that made him passionate about Linux and open source software in general.

Those are all reasons why I jumped at the chance to interview Veni while he was here in Round Rock to visit with Michael. Before I get to the video, check out Veni’s blog post where he reflected on his time here.

In the vlog, Veni talks about some of his work, shares his perspective on why Dell should expand our recent Ubuntu-based Linux offerings outside the United States, technology trends in eastern Europe and more.


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About the Author: Lionel Menchaca

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