iTechNote

Dell has opened a survey on Linux titled Linux Learnings: We’re Listening on Tuesday.

Do not get me wrong, Dell is already selling servers with Redhat Linux and Novell SUSE Linux pre-installed. However, Dell has yet to sell any desktop or laptop that comes with any variant of Linux.

To confuse things even further, Dell does sell a range of products that do not come with Windows - open-source desktops and laptops that come with FreeDOS.

FreeDOS is a free DOS-compatible operating system for IBM-PC compatible systems. It is not a Microsoft operating system and is not qualified for Windows licensing use under any existing Microsoft Volume Licensing Program.

The survey is quite primitive (only six questions) that indicates an early market study. It is designed to capture the PC usage pattern of would-be buyers. The questions include:

• Would your Dell system with Linux factory installed be for home or office use?
• Which systems should we prioritize on for Linux factory installation?
• What types of activities will you perform on your Dell system with Linux factory installed?
• Which languages should we prioritize on?
• For a tested & validated Linux install, what type of software support would you require?
• Which Linux distribution should Dell prioritize on?

Direct2Dell, the company’s direct communications channel for customers, gave some hints on the motive of the survey.

Your feedback on Dell IdeaStorm has been astounding. Thank you! We hear your requests for desktops and notebooks with Linux. We’re crafting product offerings in response, but we’d like a little more direct feedback from you: your preferences, your desires. We recognize some people prefer notebooks over desktops, high-end models over value models, your favorite Linux distribution, telephone-based support over community-based support, and so on. We can’t offer everything (all systems, all distributions, all support options), so we’ve crafted a survey (www.dell.com/linuxsurvey) to let you help us prioritize what we should deliver for you.

The idea of getting Linux pre-installed on Dell was promoted 110,756 times at Dell IdeaStorm, the idea-sharing platform by Dell, making Dell seriously think about providing the option to its customers.

If you want a Dell with Linux pre-installed sooner, do take the time to fill in the survey. The survey will end on 23 March.