In the spirit of this year's U.S. presidential election, here's a vote for a penguin on every desktop.
Microsoft Windows may be the reigning ruler among desktop operating systems, and it's likely that title may be a lifetime entitlement, but there's always hope for an upstart.
So invoking the spirit of Ross Perot and Ralph Nader, business users may want to take a serious look at Hewlett-Packard's new Linux notebook, the nx5000.
Released in August at LinuxWorld Conference and Expo, this beefy laptop holds something for every professional who needs usability and mobility in one package.
The nx5000 runs on SuSE Linux 9.1, a complete desktop operating system loaded with the KDE 3.2 graphical desktop environment, the Konquerer Web browser, KMail messaging client and OpenOffice 1.1 productivity suite.
Now, if you're squeamish about trying new things, fear not. This isn't the equivalent of voting for the Green Party. A Linux desktop looks and feels like Windows -- no offense Penguinistas. The KDE desktop has a trash barrel for a recycling bin, a squatting penguin in front of a monitor for the My Computer icon and a green gecko where the start button should be.
Levity aside, this notebook is easy to use. KMail is similar to Outlook without the security woes. OpenOffice is a working alternative to Office, with a word processor, spreadsheet, database, presentation application, calendar, address book and the Kontact groupware client. Document creation will be very familiar in any of these applications, and interoperability with Office is well documented.
Performance is there via a 1.6 GHz Pentium M processor. The notebook boasts a 40 GB hard drive for adequate storage. The keyboard is comfortable and the 15-in. screen is plenty good for watching DVDs on the road -- yes there's a DVD player. There's also a Secure Digital memory slot for removable storage. Drawbacks: an 802.11b wireless card, which is a bit slower and less secure than 802.11g.
You also may need some configuration help from your IT staff getting online, depending on whether your ISP supports Linux.
In the end, however, the nx5000 is a tremendous tool for business users. And just think, if you're the adventurous type and someday Linux replaces Windows as the de facto desktop OS standard, you'll have quite a jump on your peers.
