The Linux penguin keeps on trucking

Linux's development structure has made more than a few executives nervous in the past couple of years. Once they gain a basic understanding of the way Linux is maintained, they get positively twitchy.

Linux, after all, is an open source system, overseen by a committee of experts who get constant feedback from legions of enthusiasts and developers. Any one of them could build their own, incompatible version, throwing the Linux world into chaos.

Controlling development
This doesn't happen, because people such as creator Linus Torvalds have the final say on what is and isn't in the core of the operating system. The question 'What happens if Torvalds gets hit by a truck?' is usually asked at this point, with the usual answer being that other big thinkers, many of whom have the same level of respect despite not being the namesake of the operating system, would smoothly take up the slack.

Torvalds made his operating system open source, but he did retain one very important piece of intellectual property for himself: the Linux trademark. The terms of use on that trademark are quite liberal, but terms can change, particularly when the original benefactor is lost. If Torvalds is hit by a truck, to whom or what would he leave the trademark in his will?

Heaven forbid, does one of the most influential software developers of the last five years even have a will?

Ensuring the future of Linux
Who could be trusted with such a thing? Handing over the trademark to a commercial Linux enterprise would seem to be out of the question: even if the terms of the trademark didn't change, it would create the impression of an 'official' single version of Linux, something people have been trying to avoid for years. Giving it over to a non-profit institution such as Linux International might not be considered a 'safe' move, offering too much enticement to the organisation to play politics.

To date, Torvalds has done a rather good job of staying out of Linux corporate politics. Rather than work at a Linux software company, he cleverly went to Transmeta, a hardware company with a long startup cycle. Even if Transmeta's Mobile Linux dream is realised, the chances of the mainstream market regarding Mobile Linux as the 'true' Linux are fairly slim.

A less-than-watertight case
Despite Torvalds' prudent trademark moves, he didn't pre-empt everyone. A South Korean man listed in court documents only as 'Kwon' attempted to become the nation's sole Linux trademark holder back in 1997, registering the name as his personal trademark on CDs and books. Because he was soundly ignored by the rest of the world, he filed for an injunction against a number of bookstores and Linux publishers.

Prudently, the Korean Industrial Property Tribunal invalidated his trademark request. The case is now tied up in an appeal. Still, if 'Kwon' can create headaches in South Korea, what does happen to the trademark if Torvalds gets hit by that truck?

In 1996, no one had a problem with 'Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds' - in fact, very few people really cared: they were either interested in Linux or not.

But with hundreds of companies betting their future on the upstart operating system, including some veterans and staggering giants of the computer industry ... well, let's just say that if the trademark is part of a Torvalds estate sale, I suggest you run for cover.

Haves vs have-nots at Comdex?
A rising tide lifts all ships, but it also raises the bar, and when people start slipping below sea level, you have to wonder what they're thinking. Comdex Spring, which recently took place in Chicago, included a Linux Business Expo that was packed with Linux publishers, distributors, and support companies. However, Red Hat and VA Linux both stayed at home.

Supporting a proper booth at Comdex is considerably more resource-intensive than sending a demo squad to a humble Linux user convention, and one can certainly be forgiven for not wanting to pay the conference centre rates of the city's unions if there's something else you could be doing that week. When the tech headlines are screaming 'Linux! Linux! Linux!' however, isn't it a good idea to at least put in an appearance?

It's a little early to start calling Red Hat and VA 'have-nots', but their strategy is dubious. Do they feel they've already permanently ingrained themselves in the minds of the business community?

For Red Hat, that's a gamble at best - it certainly has name recognition, but fame is fleeting. For VA, that's a ridiculous notion - it is in serious danger of becoming best known in business circles for its monumental stock price collapse.

Very notably present was BSDI, unleashing its strategy to eat the Linux lunch buffet by parading around its own life-sized daemon mascot, selling its own plush toys - and giving away copies of FreeBSD to anyone who queued up.