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Stop making excuses, and start paying attention. WE WANT LINUX!!!

Linux submitted by homer 02/28/07

Dear Michael Dell,

By now, many people will have started reading Blogs and articles about how you have back-peddled on your commitment to listen to your customers' wishes. Here's just one:

http://blog.lobby4linux.com/archives/104-So,-How-Does-It-Feel-To-Have-Been-Ha...

[Edit] Here's a more "high profile" article, from The Inquirer:

Dell backs down from Linux promise

That makes this site (DellIdeaStorm) nothing but a farce.

First you ask us what we want, then you just blatantly ignore us. What exactly was the point in asking us what we want? Is this some kind of sick joke?

Maybe you were taken off guard, and hadn't anticipated the vast demand for Linux that happened, but it did happen, so deal with it ... or be perceived as a liar and a charlatan.

If you amalgamate all the various Linux "idea" posts on this site, and tally up the total votes, you're looking at something like TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND VOTES FOR LINUX. Are you just going to ignore that, and pretend it never happened?

Here's your response to this amazing phenomenon so far, and my comments:

We are listening, and as a result, we are working with Novell to certify our corporate client products for Linux, including our OptiPlex desktops, Latitude notebooks and Dell Precision workstations.

Well you are obviously not listening. The vast majority of the Linux requests on this site are not from "corporate" customers, they are from end users seeking home computing Linux solutions. Are you listening yet?

This is another step towards ensuring that our customers have a good experience with Linux on our systems.

It's not a step forward, it's a sidestep shuffle. What exactly are you afraid of ... that people might actually prefer Linux to Windows? I could build and "certify" a Linux workstation in 20 minutes, without the assistance of production facilities and a team of engineers, why is this such a problem for the world's biggest OEM?

Are you suggesting that Linux somehow represents a "problem" with regards to hardware, and that it's going to take a team of rocket scientists months to discover Linux compatible components?

Right now, Linux works with virtually the same hardware that WIndows XP does, and considerably more hardware than Vista ... but that doesn't seem to have prevented you "certifying" Vista (a.k.a. Windows ME2). What a joke!

As this community knows, there is no single customer preference for a distribution of Linux. In the last week, the IdeaStorm community suggested more than half a dozen distributions. We don't want to pick one distribution and alienate users with a preference for another.

No, no, no, no. That's not how it works. This is just more excuses.

At the end of the day, Linux is Linux is Linux. The distro is not that significant (other than the distinction between a commercial or community distro).

Surely the CEO of one of the world's biggest companies can make a decision.

Pick a Linux distro and run with it. And stop making excuses.

My personal preference is for Fedora Core, but if you offered an Ubuntu desktop machine, I'd buy it, because (like I said) at the end of the day it is Linux that is important, not the distro. My primary motivation is to keep my money out of Microsoft's pockets and have an OS ... any OS ... that is not Windows. I can, and probably will, switch between half a dozen distros during the lifespan of that hardware.

However, it is extremely important that you offer pre-installed Linux workstations to end-users, rather than just "OS-free" systems, because without this option, you will be helping to perpetuate the misconception that Linux is not popular. Well congratulations, you have just discovered exactly how much of a misconception this really is. Maybe you should have considered DellIdeaStorm years ago, rather than sit around waiting for point-of-sale figures that could not ever accurately reflect the popularity of something that is a free download.

Trust me ... you will not alienate anyone by making a firm choice of distro support. I'm sure the tens of thousands of home users, who are demanding Linux from Dell, will be overjoyed just to have a choice of any Linux distro.

We want users to have the opportunity to help define the market for Linux on desktop and notebook systems.

This is just nonsensical marketing gobbledegook. Say what you mean, and stop obfuscating the truth with gibberish.

You can "define" the market right now ... by selling us what we want, rather than what Microsoft dictates you sell to us. The 200000+ vote for Linux should be a clear enough "definition" for anyone ... who's prepared to listen ... and not bury his head in the sand.

In addition to working with Novell,

Bad move. By all means offer Microvell to any corporate user gullible enough to swallow Steve Ballmer's baseless FUD about Microsoft's intellectual property, but I think you'll find home users rather less than receptive to any distro offerings from any company that sleeps with the enemy.

we are also working with other distributors and evaluating the possibility of additional certifications across our product line.

This is the only promising statement in the whole response, but it sounds like a lot of hot air to me.

Actions, not words.

GIVE US LINUX!

Are you trying to rejuvenate sales or not? Give the customers what they want.

We are continuing to investigate your other Linux-related ideas, so please continue to check here for updates.

Oh I'll be sure to, but I'm not holding my breath. Microsoft has you far too firmly under their thumb for me to seriously expect any positive changes at Dell.

Thanks for giving us all a glimmer of (false) hope, though. 68 Comments »

Implemented: Ubuntu Dell is Le$$ Than Windows Dell

Linux submitted by thebittersea 05/05/07 **IMPLEMENTED**

see comment from Erik down below... [Dell's Pricing Team]

$774 Inspiron 1420 (Ubuntu)
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5250 (1.5GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
Ubuntu version 7.04
Anti-glare, widescreen 14.1 inch display (1280x800)
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
80GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card
Integrated High Definition Audio

$824 Inspiron 1420 (Vista)
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5250 (1.5GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
Genuine Windows® Vista Home Basic Edition
Anti-glare, widescreen 14.1 inch display (1280x800)
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
80GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
24X CD writer/DVD Combo Drive
Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card
56Whr Lithium Ion Battery (6 cell)
Integrated High Definition Audio
The difference in promotion pricing was due to an error on the site, which has been fixed.






412 Comments »

No OS Preloaded

Linux, Operating Systems, Sales Strategies submitted by agreer 02/17/07 **PARTIALLY IMPLEMENTED**

I have a XP Pro retail copy, will soon buy retail vista, I also like Linux: Make WINDOWS-FREE, and OS-Free an option for more than just expensive business lines.


Dell has systems available that do not have an OS pre-loaded called N-Series line. You can check them out at www.dell.com/nseries.

449 Comments »

xps m1530 almost there

XPS products submitted by mstmd 11/28/07

well the XPS 1530 HAS ARRIVED. lOW WEIGHT, GREAT VIDEO CARD AND PROCESSOR OPTIONS, NOT SO GOOD SCREEN. CCFL WITH LOWER END DEFINITION. FIX THIS AND YOU HAVE A GREAT MACHINE 3 Comments »

Raise your hand if you're tired of negative Vista articles

Operating Systems submitted by matthew2142 11/28/07

Neowin member ispamforfood (interesting nickname!) has posted an interesting question on our Back Page News forum asking "Raise your hand if you're tired of negative Vista articles".

It is true that there are many news outlets that are having quite a bit of a lark bashing Microsofts latest offering, hardly surprising based on the real-world problems that many people suffered after upgrading their Windows XP machines. In defence of Microsoft, the recommended machine to use Vista with has increased quite a bit from Windows XP where 256MB of Ram was quite enough (or 512 for optimal performance) and now the recommended is 1gig or 2 depending on who you believe. Personally, I had 1GB in my machine when I upgraded (clean installed) but I only saw an improvement after I added an extra 1GB, bringing my RAM up to 2GB.

It's probably also fair to mention that Microsoft has since released Performance & Stability updates, which do fix a lot of annoyances such as slow copy/paste (calculation time) to other partitions. Anyway I have also done a poll, so voice your opinion by voting Yay or Nay to negativity on Vista by clicking the Member Poll link

Link: Neowin Discussion in Back Page News
Link: Windows XP was also treated the same (thanks deck)

http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=603325
http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=600187&hl=< PROMOTE IF YOU ARE GETTING TIRED OF THEM. DEMOTE IF YOUR NOT AND LOVE THE VISTA BASHING 98 Comments »

Put ports for eternal wifi antennas.

Broadband and Mobility, Laptops submitted by traker1001 11/28/07

I would love to be able to plug in some Hi gain antennas to my laptop without removing the bottom cover for my laptop.

Ideally all your laptops would have 3 external jacks that we could plug in 3 Hi Gain Wifi antennas and get the full 11n draft glory, But really I would be happy with this in any combination at the moment. 7 Comments »

make universal price on all products

Sales Strategies submitted by dodgeqwe 11/28/07

all products must have universal price .i see several people gets frustrated about offering same product in different price tag in different countries 2 Comments »

india wants linux

Linux, Sales Strategies, Laptops submitted by dodgeqwe 11/28/07

dell is not offering linux in any notebooks they provide in india.we also want linux as an option just like other countries. 1 Comment »

laptop/desktop

Desktops and Laptops submitted by mbusse 11/28/07

First I'm no computer nerd by no stretch of the imagination! My idea comes from frustration of ether buying a laptop or desktop. The convince and portability of the wireless laptop or the power, memory and graphics of the desktop. Can you combine them?

a desktop that comes with a wireless laptop BUT the laptop is nothing more than a wireless monitor ,keyboard and mouse for the desktop when you want to use it in another part of the house basically a wireless desktop.
what do you think???

Sorry for the confusion!
hope this helps 2 Comments »

Custom paint on high end XPS desktops

XPS products submitted by spacegy4 11/28/07

Ive seen custom paint jobs on xps desktops such
as the world in conflict one.

I would be nice if people could submit their own
picture or art to be painted onto the case.

current designs are limited to these types of cases
and only on the front
http://dell.skinit.com/devices/desktop_face_plates 5 Comments »

Gobuntu Compatable System

Linux, Desktops and Laptops submitted by dpic 11/28/07

Take linux to a new level and support Gobuntu!



"Gobuntu is a GNU/Linux operating system, derived from Ubuntu, that endeavors to adhere to the Free Software Foundations four freedoms and intends to provide a base for other free software platforms to build upon with minimal modification required. It does this by only including open-source non-restricted software. This means there will be no firmware, drivers, applications, or content included in Gobuntu that does not include the full source or whose license does not provide the right to use, study, modify, and redistribute the body of work."

This means offering Gobuntu pre-installed and fully compatible with at least one laptop and one desktop as well as compatible with at least one printer.

After adding support for Ubuntu, Gobuntu should be very easy to offer. 8 Comments »

Sell a Better Book Reader than Amazon's Kindle.

New Product Ideas submitted by kenjennings 11/28/07

Sell the iLiad from iRex Technologies.

I looked at Amazon's attempt to nickel-and-dime people to death with the Kindle, then went out and bought an iLiad from iRex Technologies.

http://www.irextechnologies.com/products/iliad

While the Iliad is more expensive at $700, when all the fees and subscription costs for the Kindle are totaled in a year Kindle would cost more.

The iliad has a larger display and higher resolution than the Kindle with more (16) grey shades, it uses standard wifi for internet access to a FREE account on the iRex servers, and includes complete documentation for a variety of ways to produce documents in different file formats optimized for the iLiad display -- again for free.

Also, the iLiad display integrates Wacom Penabled input using Electro-Magnetic Resonance. This allows navigating menus, taking notes and making annotations in documents directly on the screen with a stylus.

In my use of the iLiad a full charge lasts a little longer than a work day with the unit turned on all day and frequent use of the stylus.

I take iLiad to work every day. I use it constantly to review specs and design docs, and take notes during meetings. Everyone who sees it is amazed by it. 9 Comments »

XPS gaming desktops should use standard power plug

XPS products submitted by spacegy4 11/29/07

I have heard people gripe about the nonstandard power plug that is used on the higher end of the XPS high performance desktops. If they switched to using a power supply with a standard power plug they could reduce the risk of people not being able to use their computer if they lost the plug. 5 Comments »

Multi-OS selection via checkboxes

submitted by xivulon 11/29/07

What about having a checkbox for each operating system in order to allow users to select multiple choices? No checkbox = no OS, multiple checkboxes = Multiboot. The conflict resolution dialog notifes about conflicts between OS and other hardware choices.

Select My Operating Systems:
[ _ ] Free DOS (info) [$0]
[ x ] Ubuntu 7.10 (info) [$0]
[ _ ] Windows XP (info) [add $50]
[ x ] Windows Vista Basic (info) [add $50]
[ _ ] Windows Vista Home Premium (info) [add $100]
[ _ ] Windows Vista Ultimate (info) [$150]
[ _ ] Windows Vista Business (info) [$100]

Ubuntu, XP and all other operating systems should be made available on all machines unless there is a fundamental hardware issue that makes a particular OS unsuitable (an issue that cannot be resolved by selecting a different component). Each item should have an info button which opens a brief explanation, a fair comparison table of all operating systems should also be provided. Details such as bootloader choice in multiboot configuration and disk allocation algorithm are left to Dell engineers to have fun with.

Hopefully that will accomodate most requests relating to OS choice while keeping the interface simple and intuitive. 26 Comments »

Goal: Dell FREEDOM Box - A Fully Open System for Home Users by 2010

Dell, Linux, Desktops and Laptops submitted by dpic 11/29/07

Set a goal of having at least one fully open system for home users by the end of 2010! This would be Dell's greatest endeavor yet!

The Dell FREEDOM Box | From the software, all the way down to the hardware, a completely open system

Software:
* A fully open source operating system with no restricted software like Gobuntu.

Hardware:
* All hardware must follow these rules--
1. The interface to the hardware must be explicitly made public, so the hardware can be used freely.
2. The design of the hardware must be made public, so that others can implement it and learn from it.
3. The tools used to create the design should be free, so that others can develop and improve the design.

This movement is already making headway and progress will continue to increase. Dell is already getting involved--

It has been stated that Dell has a goal to have open Linux drivers for all Dell products. Dell, keep the pressure on your vendors to open up!

Support OpenBIOS and Open Firmware!
"Among its features, Open Firmware provides an instruction set independent device interface. This can be used to boot the operating system from expansion cards without native initialization code.

It is Open Firmware's goal to work on all common platforms, like x86, AMD64, PowerPC, ARM and Mips. With its flexible and modular design, Open Firmware targets servers, workstations and embedded systems, where a sane and unified firmware is a crucial design goal and reduces porting efforts noticeably."
- http://www.openbios.org/

Already, there is huge support for replacing proprietary BIOS
- http://www.ideastorm.com/article/show/62549/LinuxBIOS_instead_of_proprietary_...
- http://www.ideastorm.com/article/show/74358/Dell_Support_Open_BIOSes_for_Linux
And there is the Open Graphics Project
- http://www.ideastorm.com/article/show/72320/Help_The_Open_Graphics_Project<

This project would put Dell at the heart of the movement bringing Freedom, Reliability, and Innovation to the world of technology! Does one really need to ask why this would be better than proprietary technology?

20 Comments »

Help me consolidate my customer numbers on Dell.com.

Dell Web Site submitted by cosmichellion 11/29/07

I've made many purchases through dell and I have many customer numbers. It's nice that there is a feature that shows all the customer numbers and orders I've placed under Home, Home Office, SMB etc.

However, I keep wondering why the feature doesn't allow you to add customer numbers from certain other segments. When I wanted to add my new customer number and order for a recent purchase, I was given the following message...

"Only Home & Home Office, Small Business, Dell Refurbished and Dell Outlet customer numbers can be added using this feature. This customer number has not been added to your account."

If this feature doesn't do it, is there another I'm missing?

My newest purchase probably shows up under hi-ed or an EPP. It doesn't really matter, I just want to be able to keep track of all my orders in one place regardless of the segment. Can you make this happen? Comment »

Donations for Ubuntu development

Linux submitted by dave-2 11/27/07

If Dell ever implements the idea (and this, and this, and this, etc) allowing users to select Ubuntu from a list of OS options instead of going to another section of the website to order a special "N" series model, the Ubuntu option should cost less than the Windows options.

In addition to the OS configuration buttons, offer two buttons that allow the user to contribute that savings back toward Ubuntu development:

o Donate $0 to Ubuntu (default)
o Donate $25 to Ubuntu (split the savings)
o Donate $50 to Ubuntu (donate the full amount saved)

The amount of the full donation should reflect the cost of the least expensive version of Windows (e.g. Genuine Windows(r) Vista Home Premium) . 2 Comments »

Build More Durable Products

New Product Ideas, Simplify IT submitted by aikiwolfie 11/28/07

I would like Dell to build more durable products. Something that will last a minimum of 5 years.

And by "minimum" I mean exactly that. The product shouldn't die a death after 5years and 3 seconds. Dell should be building goods that last. 23 Comments »

Linux Drivers for All Dell Devices

Linux, Monitors and Displays submitted by grifter 10/24/07 **REVIEWED**

If Dell truly wishes to promote their Ubuntu line of computers then they should make sure that all of their devices work properly with the OS. For instance, the SP2008WFP monitor, while it does display everything fine, does not have drives for Linux systems of any kind. This is most certainly a hamper for any Ubuntu users to want to buy a Dell peripheral.


Please see john_h and matt_d's comments
14 Comments »

Allow ALL Dell Staff to Use Ideastorm

submitted by badblood 11/28/07

Apparently only a few moderators and spin doctors from Dell are allowed to use ideastorm and other staff aren't allowed. We were told that they were, but it aint true. We just heard it from a Dell employee. From the horse.

So let all Dell Staff use Ideastorm if they want.

Thanks

47 Comments »