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Sun starts distributing Ubuntu Linux

Server giant, which already offers Linux distributions from Novell and Red Hat, is getting into the Ubuntu game. Who isn't?

Matt Asay Contributing Writer
Matt Asay is a veteran technology columnist who has written for CNET, ReadWrite, and other tech media. Asay has also held a variety of executive roles with leading mobile and big data software companies.
Matt Asay

Ubuntu is on the upswing. The signs are everywhere (including here with its tie-up with IBM). Canonical, which developed this version of Linux, has been very busy talking with the major server and desktop vendors and is making inroads with both.

One that will come as a surprise to most, however, is that Sun Microsystems is one of the server vendors getting into the Ubuntu game, as the VAR Guy notes. Sun also offers Linux distributions from Novell and Red Hat, but its inclusion of Ubuntu is a significant demonstration of Ubuntu's clout.

Sun is firmly committed to Solaris. No doubt about that. But think about how cool a Sun-acquires-Ubuntu-Linux story would sound to buyers. Suddenly, there would be real competition in the Linux market--competition based on product quality, not on cheap support. That would be a hugely disruptive story to tell the market.