Shuttleworth challenges Linux to beat Apple

by Egan Orion on Jul 25, 2008

Tags: Shuttleworth | Ubuntu | Linux | Apple

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And change the world

Spealking at O'Reilly Media's Open Source Convention (OSCON) in Portland, Oregon on Tuesday evening, Ubuntu Linux founder Mark Shuttleworth challenged Linux developers to surpass Apple's OS/X desktop eye-candy and polished integration to attract more new users.

He also shared his vision that open source software technology and related business models have potential to change the world for the better.

As leader of Canonical, the European company that distributes the popular Ubuntu Linux, Shuttleworth certainly has an interest in seeing Linux mature and become more widely adopted, and not just on PCs but also on mobile devices.

Shuttleworth asked his audience, "Can we go right past Apple in the user experience we deliver?" He postulated that this will be an important challenge to Linux desktop developers over the next two years. "Certainly on the desktop experience we need to shoot beyond the Mac, but I think it's equally relevant, the mobile space," said Shuttleworth.

He said, "The challenge for us is to figure out how to deliver something which is crisp and clean," without abandoning the open source development process.

Shuttleworth also suggested that startup businesses built upon open source software should develop services-based revenue models to fund their long term viability and growth, rather than relying on website advertising revenue.

"I think advertising works very well in the search case, but I don't think it’s the sort of final solution in terms of business models to drive investment in free software," he said. "A more general view of services is required." He expects there will be greatly increased innovation and experimentation with services offerings to generate revenue for open source software based businesses. "When we look back at this era, we'll be looking at economics," he said.

Shuttleworth believes that open source software and methods have great potential. He said, "There have never been better opportunities to create wealth, better opportunities to change the world."