When Information Age’s Effective IT 2008 Survey showed that readers believed ‘deploying Linux in the data centre’ was one of the ten least effective strategies, it might be assumed that the open-source operating system had lost its allure. Far from it: it is now so mainstream it is a consumer commodity.

Witness the latest must-have gizmo available at consumer gadget website Firebox.com. The Tux Droid is a Linux-compatible desktop companion in the shape of Tux the Linux penguin that sits alongside a PC or laptop and acts as a wireless VoIP phone, an MP3 player and an alarm clock while also reading your incoming email and RSS feeds. The programmable device will “revolutionise the way Linux-loving info-junkies receive information”.

Expect to see ‘deploying Linux on the desktop’ enter the ten most effective strategies this year.

Further reading

Microsoft goes open-source? Software giant relaxes intellectual property protection to encourage innovation. EC unimpressed