If You Became a Linux PC/Notebook Vendor, How Would You Do It?

[DeadSuperHero]

I've been thinking about this semi-seriously. Perhaps it's a dream goal to file away for some day, but I think it'd be a fun idea to toss around.

If you amassed a large sum of money and wanted to start your own company to be a GNU/Linux PC hardware vendor, how would you go about doing it?

I personally would love to start a company called "Liberated Machines", or LM for short. Somehow, we'd start off buying existing parts and machines from manufacturers. We'd look for:

-Coreboot-compatible motherboards
-Hardware with entirely free drivers

We'd then work on putting these together to make high-quality desktops and eventually laptops and netbooks. By having entirely free software, drivers, and hardware, we'd provide and entirely free experience for the user.

Other ideas:
-Promotional sales in which an OGG mobile music player is bundled along with it.
-Offer easy file format conversion from proprietary formats to open ones.
-Offer links to central media sites powered by OGG (TheoraSea)
-Develop an alternative framework to Flash with open specifications, offer it up for the entire FOSS community.
-Develop a social network based on Elgg and find ways to tie services into the desktop, for free.
-Develop an alternative to Steam, but with unified APIs to help game developers get their games to work with the network. SDK plugins for different IDEs, etc.

These are all just wild speculations of things I'd like to do/see become a reality before I die.

What about you?

[starcannon]

I guess it really depends on your goals, and who you want your target audience to be.
I'd try to build 4 different types of machines:
1)Ultra Mobile (netbook)
2)Econo Desktop/Laptop series
3)Media Desktop/Laptop Series
4)Gaming Desktop/Laptop Series.

I would remarket media series as productivity machines if marketing required it.

I would not be as concerned about the openess of the drivers and software; indeed, I'd go for drivers and software packages that were the best, not the cheapest, or the most liberated.

I like the way Dell is doing it, but would like to see more selection in the Ubuntu line. I like that Fluendo Codecs and LinDVD are there by default. I would like them to see if they could offer Crossover, Cedega, Nero Linux, Star Office, Parallels, Enemy Territory Quake Arena, and as much of the other Commercial software that exists for linux available as optional factory install packages, along with some quickstart guides on how to use them. So I would probably look at how Dell, System76, and Zareason are doing things, emulate what works, and fill any voids I see in their models.

Finally I would not associate myself with groups that get involved in forum raids, and debasing a great deal of the market I would be attempting to connect with.

GL more vendors is better than less vendors.

P.S. I'd probably not get involved in software development of any kind until after I had a solid sales model rolling, software development can be expensive and time consuming to say the least; I'd work with existing software, if pushed I'd help within my limited abilities or financial means to fix bugs when required in the existing software that I may consider a requirement for my Linux Hardware.

[monsterstack]

I was considering actually trying this. I'd set up a small shop someplace and sell nothing but machines built for Linux. As far as brand recognition goes, I thought that spinning it around Ubuntu would be the best idea; having the logo around the shop and in the window might help. I'd concentrate on getting the cheapest parts possible whilst still being able to make a decent product. The machines themselves would have to be cheaper than the Windows counterparts. Additionally, I'd like to be a sort of walk-in help shop. You have some sort of problem, then I'll try and diagnose it for you. I'd offer basic installations of the most popular distributions, and do anything else upon request. I'd also offer bundling scripts with the packages to get things like DVD-playback and what have you activated out of the box. The only trouble is is takes an awful lot of money just to get started. I don't know if I'd have the balls to go through with it.

[DeadSuperHero]

I was considering actually trying this. I'd set up a small shop someplace and sell nothing but machines built for Linux.

I've thought about this, too. Sadly, I live in an extremely small town. But Peoria is reasonably closeby, so you never know...

[Murrquan]

If it were me, I'd load them with the GNOME desktop, the Global Menu Applet, and heavily rebranded / themed GTK applications. Then I'd position them as being competitors to the Mac. ^.^; Except that they'd be cheaper, and would be running all Free Software!

Now if only it were possible to ethically source computer hardware ... I mean, we could base them all on used / refurbished machines, but then we wouldn't be assured of uniformity and suitability to running Ubuntu on them. Unless we based this on Thinkpads, maybe ...

[Mason Whitaker]

I'd focus on the corporate environment. I'd be sun without the totally overpriced workstations. Initially I'd sell two workstations and a laptop workstation, and a server.
Workstation One) All and One Monitor with a matching keyboard and mouse. Running a linux distro with all things required for the corporate environment. ( OpenOffice, WMware, ect ). Sharp syncing with my server.
Workstation Two) Similar to workstation one, except it comes preinstalled with Linux and Windows.
Laptop Workstation) Built to connect to multiple monitors via Bonjour*, but also built for functionality on the go. Same setup as Workstation one.
Server) Does what every server does, lol.
Linux Distro) As for the Linux distro, I'd choose something that was lightweight and stable yet can handle multiple processes.
*Syncing Idea) I like Apple's Bonjour technology, and I'd love way to make my own Linux Bonjour clone. This way, my computers could easily sync up with my keyboards, mouses, screens, and possibly even syncing up with my server without all the wires.

Ah, dreaming is such a great thing!

[DeadSuperHero]

I'd be all up for that. Personally, I'd go into trying to develop a somewhat different approach to user interfaces, probably by modifying gnome. You never know.

[lykwydchykyn]

If I were going to do it selling Linux boxes, I would get away from the concept of selling them a "PC" and take a page from the netbook's...er... book. I'd try to build "computing appliances". Figure out 10 or 12 things everyone wants to do with a computer, set it up so that those things are DEAD EASY and preconfigured on a machine, make the hardware as compact, sexy, and cheap as possible, and sell them as purpose-built turnkey devices.

Here's my rationale, courtesy of my children: when we make spaghetti for our kids, it has to be spaghetti with marinara sauce the way my wife makes it. If I made spaghetti noodles, put chicken and alfredo on top, they wouldn't eat it. If I used a different recipe for the marinara, they wouldn't eat it. Now if I used a different sauce AND different noodles and called it a different name, they might eat it. The point is, even though any dish involving spaghetti noodles can be called "spaghetti", they expect it to be a certain way -- and if I call it spaghetti and it's not that way, they don't like it no matter how good it might actually be.

I've observed that people are this way with computers. If you call it a home computer -- a "PC" -- they expect it to be a certain way. And that certain way involves Windows. But if you change up the form factor and market it as something else, they are suddenly open to checking out what it is rather than what they expect it to be. Thus, the relative success of Linux on netbooks.

Just my thoughts, I'm no businessman.

[juancarlospaco]

Just like System76...

[Murrquan]

Just like System76...

Having bought a System76 notebook, I'm not sure I would agree with that. ^.^; I think I like lykwydchykyn's idea much better.

[Mason Whitaker]

Also, I'd love to make some sort of "Enterprise Tablet" running a Linux distro. Basically a netbook sized iTouch running Linux xD

[gn2]

Ask these people (http://lxer.com/module/db/viewby.php?uid=120&sort=120&offset=0&dbn=14), they know.