Announcing A New Linux Distro: BaitNSwitch Linux

[Ken Hess]

Today, I'm announcing my new Linux company, HookLineNSinker, Inc. (HLNS) which will produce a new commercial Linux distribution: Pricey Linux. HLNS products include Pricey Linux Enterprise, Pricey Linux Small Business Server and The Pricey Linux Desktop. There are also Pricey Linux Support options for those of you who need 24x7 support for your Pricey Systems. And to comply with Linux licensing, we'll also offer a free, community edition of our Pricey Linux known as BaitNSwitch Linux.

BaitNSwitch Linux is the distribution where we test out new features, versions and options. It is to be used at your own risk and is generally not recommended for business or production use.

Why is it not recommended, you ask?

Well, BaitNSwitch is actually very stable, reliable and free but what makes it generally not acceptable for business use is that we don't provide commercial support for it--only community. Versions change often and, although we release a "stable" version and a less stable development version, we'd obviously prefer that you spend several thousand dollars per copy of our operating system, plus support and training.

We, at HLNS, want the community version users to know that there is more to free than just cost. While free (As in beer), might sound great on the surface; there's no commercial support, training or certifications to support it.

Our initial releases are as follows: Pricey Linux 1.0, the Mondo MegaBux release, is due out July 1 and soon to follow is the BaitNSwich 1.0 (Nerdy CheapSkate) release on July 8.

We look forward to embracing a new user community and making lots and lots of money from those of you who are adept enough to recognize that you need commercial support for all your Linux deployments.

Please write back and tell me about your experiences with other commercial vendors who offer community versions. You can also let me know how you'd like to get involved with the BaitNSwitch community.

[tobiax]

Uh, that sounds like a great concept, and I find it particularly interesting since I'm plotting a startup of my own. But I find myself having read the entire announcement without having any concept of what you are offering or why anyone should choose it - the only lead you give is the product title "Pricey Linux" which, to say the least, isn't going to make me grab for my wallet

[sbj3]

Surely you jest. Are you looking for customers that will be caught by buying your marketing hook line and sinker? Do you wish to bait them and then switch? It may sound good to the stock holders, but I'm afraid I'm not in your market.

[khess]

I do jest. This post was divinely inspired from an email conversation I had with a major Linux vendor's community manager. Some of the info here is directly lifted from that conversation. True but hard to believe.

[r_a_trip]

Cheap potshots at Red Hat/Novell.

We, at HLNS, want the community version users to know that there is more to free than just cost. While free (As in beer), might sound great on the surface; there's no commercial support, training or certifications to support it.

Which is patently untrue. Maybe HLNS doesn't support the community version, but since the code is free as in speech and as in beer, anyone can offer support or training for it.

Stop thinking in terms of single vendor, single support option. Pressing the proprietary cookie cutter on FOSS just clouds your vision.

So what if the vendor tries to cash in on the lemming attitude that "the one who sells it should also be the throat to choke." It's a free market.

The true beauty of FOSS lies in the fact that anyone can support it. The source code isn't a trade secret and the licensing gives us many of the rights the copyright holder has, so we are not beholden to the copyright holder for changes.

Of course being CIO in this circumstance, means you really have to start doing your job. No more pointing fingers. You can't blame company Foo, if your chosen support partner Bar for Foo products screws it up.

[khess]

@r_a_trip

You're right but you took a direct quote from that conversation to analyze. I didn't say those words; they were said to me. Interesting, huh?