I've spent the past three days exploring the products, companies, and technologies on display at Linux Business Expo, which was held concurrently with Comdex Fall '99 in Las Vegas. Many of the companies at the expo made product announcements; I've tried to detail them in previous dispatches.

There was an article published recently on Linuxpower.com that stated, in essence, that Linux will cease to improve in quality if there is no Microsoft monopoly to compete against. I strongly feel that this is not the case.

Well it is official, Corel has become a Linux distributor. And I must say they have some nice ideas, but they also seem to live in a closed environment without really looking outside their box much.

While spending time between classes perusing through the latest news issuing forth from COMDEX, I was perplexed at seeing nearly every major paper, website, and tech news organization in existence extol the phenomenon of Linux Ascendant.

If we win, if Microsoft loses, who will we have to compete with? What lofty standard will the masses fight against? Will Linux become the enemy?

Manchester Metropolitan University has turned to Linux for the backbone of one the largest online learning projects in the UK.

Following the footsteps of ERP majors like SAP, an Indian company has now ported its ERP software on the Linux platform. The software which aims to provide low-cost solutions for the small and medium enterprise segment was launched at Intelligent Enterprise '99 on Wednesday.

So Corel has entered into the distribution game. What were your ideas of how it would be? Mine differed greatly from what I came across. I had known that they were going to base it on Debian, but had no idea they would add so much of their own!

The Linux Professional Institute (LPI) announced today the completion of its first exam and its global deployment within the next several weeks.

This is surely the year of Linux, judging by Fall Comdex '99. The open-source operating system is all over the show this week, including at a keynote address, that great litmus test of buzz. Linux creator Linus Torvalds spoke to a packed ballroom Monday, and the head of application-maker Corel Corp., among others, declared that Linux's time is now.