Is the Dell/Microsoft Alliance Fracturing?

An anonymous reader asks: "Dell has historically been the most loyal of all Microsoft's partners. Even today, it is very difficult to avoid paying the Microsoft tax on most of Dell's desktops and notebooks. Recently, two things have made the news where Dell is not toeing the Microsoft line. First, was the announcement that Dell is trialling shipping desktop and notebook PCs in the UK with Firefox as the default browser, instead of IE (announcement confirmed here). Today we have news that Dell is not going to support HD-DVD, despite reported incentives that recently induced HP to do so. So, what are some theories as to why Dell has lately been less of a friend to Microsoft, and what does this mean for the future? Does it mean that it might soon become possible to order Dell's full line of personal systems with Linux installed, or no OS/FreeDOS to save the Microsoft tax?"

Wishful thinking

[Lisandro]

Does it mean that it might soon become possible to order Dell's full line of personal systems with Linux installed, or no OS/FreeDOS to save the Microsoft tax?

    Yes. Soon. They will also come with a life supply of candy covered chocolate bunnies that will cure cancer and make you smile!

 

Re:Misnomer.

[Oliver Defacszio]

Hey man, I agree with you, but look at the rest of the snippet -- if you believe what you read at Slashdot, Dell is ten minutes away from dumping Microsoft products entirely in favour of linux. So is IBM. And HP. And probably Apple.

Reality has no precedent around this place, or in much of the OSS community.

Dell's inhouse OS

[fowlerserpent]

It's been known for a while that Dell is building its own operating system. It's a Dell version os Windows, sort of. It is called Delldows.

Re:Sure

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow! Who peed in your cereal?

Oh, wait... I did.

Re:They're no different...

[Kiaser Zohsay]

If Dell ever did ship machines with Linux preinstalled, they sure as hell wouldn't *tell* you what the root password was. You would have to call support, who would have you reboot, press F8 and select "Recover" from the boot menu, which would run a format-and-reinstall script from the recovery partition, fully restoring the machine to the pristine condition it was in when it arrived (ie, without any of your data files), just like they do now for crashed Windows boxen (really happened to to my father-in-law, he was not happy).

Re:Microsoft Tax

[SavvyPlayer]

Whether it's worth your time is another question.

Let's see:

1. Locate, print, and carefully read the license agreement associated with said software product. 0.5-4 hours.
2. Research and understand the Small Claims system in your jurisdiction. 8 hours (due diligence).
3. File the necessary paperwork. 4 hours.
4. Subpeona fee $10.
5. Building case file (repeated telephone calls with manufacturer, letter writing, documentation of each of these exhibits). 6 hours.
6. Traveling to and from courthouse. 0.5-2 hours.
7. Travel/parking expenses. $0-$100 (garages in large cities can run $35 per day).
8. Time spent at courthouse. 4 hours.
9. Other costs (admin fees, postage, photocopying, etc): $10-150.

Time cost: 23-28 hours ($7.18 - $8.70 per hour for a $200 refund).
Financial cost: $20-250 (possibly refunded by defendant)
Sticking it to the man: Priceless