CNET has published a commentary by the Meta Group which argues that the benefit of lower royalty costs associated with using Linux as a PDA operating system is more than offset by the disadvantage of having fewer available applications. The Meta Group writes . . .

“Although the idea that a personal digital assistant running Linux could provide the same functionality as a Windows CE or Pocket PC device at a significantly lower cost is attractive, fact is most costs come from hardware.”

“Microsoft and Palm both charge only $7 to $10 per operating system license for a PDA, so eliminating that cost by using Linux would affect pricing only at the extreme low end of the market (that is, PDAs priced under $100, which offer only the most basic functions and are unlikely to meet most companies' requirements to support mobile workers).”

“Linux PDAs also have the disadvantage of having few third-party applications available, while the Palm community offers more than 1,000 — and the Pocket PC application list is growing rapidly. On the plus side, Linux offers a stable operating system with many of the features that corporations need for the custom applications they want to develop for mobile or 'pervasive computing,' including the ability to run Java programs on a Java Virtual Machine (JVM).”

“But many Linux-powered devices will have only a subset of the typical Linux or Unix features. Any company developing an application for a Linux-powered PDA should carefully examine the device's capabilities . . .”

“User organizations must understand that reducing OS license costs for PDAs has minimal impact and that Linux PDAs offer fewer applications than either Palm or Pocket PC. In comparing processor speed, memory, flash and above all screen quality, it makes little difference in overall cost whether the device is powered by Palm OS, Pocket PC or Linux. Applications are the key concern, and businesses should focus on the types of applications (managing personal information, automating a sales force, managing customer relationships and so on) they need and should select and release PDAs accordingly . . .”

Read full story

 
This article was originally published on LinuxDevices.com and has been donated to the open source community by QuinStreet Inc. Please visit LinuxToday.com for up-to-date news and articles about Linux and open source.