IBM unveils new Virtual Linux Desktop software package

With their sights firmly set on erroding Microsoft's sizable, but falling marketshare of desktop computers, IBM has teamed up with Canonical and Virtual Bridges to offer a new Linux-based virtual desktop solution. As its name suggests, Virtual Linux Desktop (VLD) works by squeezing multiple virtualized desktop images onto a server, and is being positioned as a cost-effective alternative to Microsoft's Windows desktop operating system.

Because VLD comes packaged with applications such as e-mail, word processing and other standard software, IBM says using VLD, as opposed to software from Microsoft, will save businesses about $500 to $800 per user. Taking it one step further, it is also possible to save up to $358 per user in hardware-related savings by not having to upgrade to accommodate the greater computational demands of Windows Vista. Because the desktops are virtualized in servers, cooling and reduced power could yield yet more savings ranging from $60 to $218 per user.

Forrester Research analyst Natalie Lambert does not agree that this represents competition to Microsoft, though. Other than the fact that Microsoft's market share is just too big to be defeated so easily, Lambert noted that, "The solution does not mesh with the way most enterprises are currently using virtualization technology."

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