Decided that you want to get on the whole Linux
IPO bandwagon? Missed the RedHat and
VA Linux IPOs, but considering investing
in The Next Big Linux Thing? Well, that might not be a bad idea, but don’t be
fooled by LinuxOne.
This company, with no income, no unique product, and no history, has just
filed
for an IPO. LinuxWorld has done an
extensive
story one LinuxOne, and The Register has
one of their own, too.
Neither of them are sparing in their descriptions of the company. LinuxOne has essentially
taken RedHat’s distribution and put their name on it and called it a new distribution.
But the product isn’t really relevant — it’s just an excuse to have an IPO.
What they’re doing, of course, is taking advantage of the
open source model for their
own profit, without
giving anything back
to the open-source community.
Bruce Perens says that we should
run them out of town on
a rail. I’m all for it. You, in the meantime, should stay away from LinuxOne
and advise others to do the same.