In an alliance between the underdog browser and the dark horse operating system, two Norwegian firms announce a client product for use with Linux.
Opera will collaborate with fellow Oslo-based firm Troll Tech on a new browser. Troll Tech is noted for producing one of the first browsers, albeit a demonstration version, created through Netscape Communications' open source initiative. That browser also was for the Linux platform.
The Norwegians are demonstrating a prototype of Opera for Linux at the LinuxWorld Expo this week in San Jose, California. A shipping version is expected next quarter.
Troll Tech based its prototype on Qt, the firm's cross-platform application framework, replacing Opera source code geared to Windows with code geared to Qt. Opera engineers will do the next phase of the job, porting core browser functionality to the Linux platform.
Linux is an open source descendant from the Unix platform. Named for Finnish programmer Linus Torvalds, Linux is considered an increasingly viable alternative to Microsoft's Windows OS and has attracted a surge of attention and investment in recent months.