My e-mail to HP...

[xequence]

I decided that it would be a good idea to e-mail some big computer companies and tell them the benefits of having an option to include linux on their computers. Here was my e-mail:


Hello, I noticed you have linux avalable on your servers and that is great, its just I want to buy a desktop and I dont want to waste my money buying windows as I wont use it. I just thought your company could take 100$ off the price of a desktop and not include windows. You could include a free version of linux. There are many great versions avalable such as:
Fedora Core
Debian
Ubuntu (My favorite, I use it)
Simply Mepis
PCLinuxOS
and many others...
I just think windows is being forced onto people by the big companies (like you and dell) and if people saw they could get a computer for 100$ less (or however much microsoft charges you for windows...) then they would want to save money (You would still make the same ammount of money, just microsoft wouldent.) and they would get the linux version of it and learn how to use linux before getting acustomed to windows. You could offer a drop down menu with different versions of linux for people to choose, and give an explanation of each one. Linux is much easier to use then windows and would be a great step forward for your company.

I am going to try and find other companies that allow you to e-mail them before owning one of their systems and e-mail them and I urge you to do the same :)

Here are the links ive found to e-mail them. If you find one for other companies tell me and ill post it here.

HP - Questions before you buy (http://www.hp.ca/corporate/forms/prod_email_form.htm)

[aysiu]

That's kind of funny that you targeted HP in particular. Did you read about how they were designing laptops specifically for Ubuntu?

http://www.cooltechzone.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=1341
http://www.ubuntulinux.org/support/custom/hplaptops

[xequence]

That's kind of funny that you targeted HP in particular. Did you read about how they were designing laptops specifically for Ubuntu?

http://www.cooltechzone.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=1341
http://www.ubuntulinux.org/support/custom/hplaptops

No reason in particular except dell doesent let you e-mail them before buying a computer as far as I know and I saw a HP compaq laptop for 500$ in the futureshop flyer. If they took windows off it I might be able to get it for 400!

Then I realised I needed to do a 1 year subscription to sympatico internet :(

[Kapre]

I decided that it would be a good idea to e-mail some big computer companies and tell them the benefits of having an option to include linux on their computers. Here was my e-mail:



I am going to try and find other companies that allow you to e-mail them before owning one of their systems and e-mail them and I urge you to do the same :)

Here are the links ive found to e-mail them. If you find one for other companies tell me and ill post it here.

HP - Questions before you buy (http://www.hp.ca/corporate/forms/prod_email_form.htm)
Good Idea! But I think aysiu is also right (not HP only). Shouldn't we target all those re-sellers too? LIke Bestbuy, Futureshop, Source (here in Canada) and also also those in the states to try and offer the distros to their customer? 2 years ago, I saw Linux (suse, mandrake) boxes being sold on the software aisle of Futureshop and Bestbuy but its all gone now (dunno why they pulled it out - pressure from M$??).

K

[Kapre]

Then I realised I needed to do a 1 year subscription to sympatico internet :(

Dont want to start a new thread. I think this is becoming a standard on their so called "big savings". But this is what I dont understand on this offer, how can you get the $100 or $200 if you dont want the ISP (say you want to go with Shaw or Rogers or other ISP). This IMHO is a not a good ad.

K

[mstlyevil]

You can get a brand new pc at Wal-Mart with linux already loaded on it.

[xequence]

Walmart doesent allow you to search stock on their website so its hard to find more about them... Ive heard they have 128 MB RAM.

[Brunellus]

Walmart doesent allow you to search stock on their website so its hard to find more about them... Ive heard they have 128 MB RAM.
...and not all WalMarts have them in stock. MicroCenter, however, stocks Linspire-loaded computers--AMD Sempron, 128 or 256 mb ram, at aroun d$200.

I wonder if they're sellng.

[KiwiNZ]

HP offers , Suse and Redhat on desktops and Ubuntu on Laptops , Redhat on Servers .
Looks to me that they are doing quite well.

[zenwhen]

Nice email and good idea. Ive been known to send a few emails like this in my time. I emailed Ahead software about a Linux Nero about six months before it came out.

It came out. It was ******. But it came out. :)

[WildTangent]

checking HPs site, i can confirm they offer a no windows option. not sure if they include linux, but i know it has FreeDOS (something about being required to supply an OS)

-Wild

[KiwiNZ]

checking HPs site, i can confirm they offer a no windows option. not sure if they include linux, but i know it has FreeDOS (something about being required to supply an OS)

-Wild

I have very close associations with HP and yes they do offer Linux on Desktops and Servers

[poofyhairguy]

I have very close associations with HP and yes they do offer Linux on Desktops and Servers

Quietly on the desktop side.

[xequence]

Quietly on the desktop side.

Yea, all these people saying they offer linux when I missed it... I saw them offering red hat a couple months ago but I dont remember if I saw if they put the price down.

I searched linux on the site and only found it on servers... Would they not offer linux to canadians on hp.ca?

There is still the "HP recommends Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional" on the top :(

Just checked the site and I saw linux ones at hp.com...


Operating system: Choice of Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional,
Microsoft® Windows® XP Home
or Mandrake Linux

though thats just on business desktops...


When you customize an a1030e PC, you have two options:
Windows XP Home, which gives you complete home computing functionality, including wireless connections, Windows Firewall, and privacy support
Windows XP Professional, which is recommended for home offices and features an encrypting file system to help protect sensitive data

thats on the normal ones...

Now on hp.ca

http://www.hp.ca/products/static/desktops/
http://www.hp.ca/products/static/presario-desktops/
http://www.hp.ca/products/static/pavilion-desktops/
http://www.hp.ca/products/static/mediapc/
http://www.hp.ca/products/static/workstations/ia32.php

http://www.hp.ca/products/static/workstations/risc.php (No idea what those are... OS is HP-UX o.O The processors range from 500 mhz to 1 ghz.)
http://www.hp.ca/products/static/thinclients/ (three "thin clients" offer linux kernal 2.4)


So in the end, HP doesent seem to offer linux from its canadian site.

Ill try and e-mail retailers like the source and futureshop...

EDIT: I will e-mail service@futureshop.com

[byen]

kinda funny that hp does not want to incorporate this with compaq as well! i mean compaq is the worst (laptop) you can get if you wanna run linux...i mean look at this:
graphic card:ATi (phew)
Network card:Broadcom (lol...the worst)
Modem:win modem/conexant (better get another)

can it get any worse? but yes...i must agree it is a great start(as long as they dont charge the same for the win and lin versions)

[xequence]

Hello, I would just like to take the time (as a futureshop customer) to recommend that you at futureshop pressure your desktop/laptop suppliers to offer linux on their computers. Incase you dont know linux is an operating system that is free. (There are SOME linux versions that arnt, though that is a minority. People are free to do what they want with linux and some take it and make a version that costs money.) Linux is extremly stable and secure and it can not get viruses or spyware. I feel that if you included a free version such as Ubuntu (http://ubuntulinux.com/) with a desktop or laptop instead of windows you could take 100$ off the price of it. You could have a cheaper computer then your competitors with a much better operating system. It would be a big step into the future for futureshop. Windows is being forced onto consumers by the big computer companies. There is a big market out there of people who dont want to waste their hard earned money buying a computer with an expensive operating system (windows) when they can get a version of linux for free. This step would bring a whole new meaning to budget computers. Just think, instead of you having to pressure your suppliers to cut down in hardware costs you can pressure them to do something VERY easy: pressure them to install linux.


Thats my e-mail to futureshop :)

Byen, I really dont have much experience with laptops at all :P Im guessing broadcom network cards arnt compatable with linux?

And I do aggree, I would be sure mad if they charged the same for the windows and linux versions. The point I am trying to make to them is this is an easy 100$ or more off the cost of making the system. They will still make the same ammount of money off the system but it will be quite a bit cheaper for the consumer. The big loser in this is microsoft. The winners are the manufacturer, the consumer, and the open source community, and everyone else who isnt microsoft.

[poofyhairguy]

kinda funny that hp does not want to incorporate this with compaq as well! i mean compaq is the worst (laptop) you get get

I think this alone is accurate (even though Dell does have some junk recently).

[xequence]

I think this alone is accurate (even though Dell does have some junk recently).

What company is best for computer quality? I was considering building my own but duty shipping the cheapest barbone system I could find from the US would be alot. I mean ALOT :P

EDIT: I realised other companies that would loose out if everyone used linux. Spyware and adware companies along with the anti-spyware and anti-adware companies ;)

[matthew]

You might find this pdf interesting.
http://h10018.www1.hp.com/wwsolutions/linux/products/clients/HP_whitepaper_Mobiles_Linux_062205.pdf

It is from a link on this page
http://h10018.www1.hp.com/wwsolutions/linux/products/clients/index.html

[YourSurrogateGod]

Quietly on the desktop side.
[Mr. Burns' Voice]Excellent! It's progressing as planned.[/Mr. Burns' Voice]

[xequence]

Futureshop's reply...


Dear Valued Customer:

Thank you for your e-mail.

Thank you for your feedback. The computers and laptops we sell are sold
with standards set by the manufacturer, and we are not at liberty to
change these standards.

Perhaps you can contact the manufacturers and make a suggestion to them.


I tell them how they can make their store more popular and better and they dont do it o.o

Atleast I got an answer :)