CodeWeavers, Inc., today announced that it has licensed its award-winning CrossOver software technology to Xandros for use in the upcoming Xandros Desktop OS. The technology will enable Xandros users-many for the first time-to run popular Windows applications, including Microsoft Office, Lotus Notes, Intuit Quicken, and many more, dependably in the Linux environment.
CodeWeavers Lincenses its CrossOver Technology to Xandros
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Eugenia Loli
Ex-programmer, ex-editor in chief at OSNews.com, now a visual artist/filmmaker.
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this is, as I see it, the first Linux distrobution that has actualy licenced software from another company. and it is a very very usefull peice of software at that.
heh…what would be realy cool, and a jab at MS, would be if Xandros offered Office XP as an available package with its OS 🙂
This sounds good.. Codeweavers have a pretty solid reputation for making things work.. This should be good.
Was it Xandros that Lindows was based on anyway?
but I just have to bring this up…. what about LindowsOS? So Xandros is seriously considering competing directly with a company it help create by licensing Corel Linux 3.0 to them? Wow.
being able to run Windows apps on Linux is a good move.
along the lines of being able to run DOS apps under Windows 😉
it will only help accelerate the move to Linux, knowing there is a stop-gap measure in place before native Linux apps show up in force.
#p
I am still awating for CodeWeavers to decide if they are going to work on native freebsd. They are actually work on it, but they are moving very slowly thought..
If they would get a photoshop crossover software, i’d be a happy boy! That and Flash are the only reason I still have to use Windows 80% of the time.
I just ponder how well and fast will windows apps run under linux? The idea is a great one because it will attract Linux newbies.
“I just ponder how well and fast will windows apps run under linux? The idea is a great one because it will attract Linux newbies. ”
I use winex and crossover plugin at home, and Quicktime, Shockwave, Starcraft, and Warcraft II all run at full speed on my 400. At work, I use an old wine “daily build” for Lotus Notes, and TextPad among other apps, and they all run just as fast as they do on the W2K machine sitting next to it. (I don’t like to switch just to check email..)
I never actually compared CrossOver Office and native Office on Windows, but if it is anything like normal WINE performance, it is slightly slower. If it is a gamer (in WineX), it is significantly slower.
However, i don’t think this is good for Windows users. OS/2 for a long time was able to run all Windows applications. Did it end out as the victor? Nope. If you have to invest time to switch OS to Linux, just to run Windows applications (in a Windows lookalike desktop), just for some added concieved security, and slower boot time? Not me.
I think the key of Linux success is the price. Right now, as a free OS, its sales growth of 30%…. and they didn’t shift just because they can run Linux. No, its the price.
this is, as I see it, the first Linux distrobution that has actualy licenced software from another company.
It isn’t. Caldera has included licensed components since its inception, particularly Novell stuff. I’m sure I could find others. Just wanted to set the record straight.
By the way, how many recall that Caldera began as a special project inside Novell called Corsair? This was even earlier than 1995, which is the date of this press release:
http://cyberwerks.com/cyberwire/cwd/cwd.95.03.12.html
that discusses Ray Noorda leaving Novell to start Caldera. But I read even earlier (maybe in some Dvorak pieces) about conflicts within Novell about creating a Linux-based competitor to Windows. I think some work began, which became Caldera Desktop. The history is confused somewhat by Novell’s Corsair 3D GUI. I’m not sure how it is related, but I’m 99% sure that Corsair referred to Caldera’s Linux project first. Maybe the name was reused or the GUI was a component that was spun off. Anyone know?
Rob Campbell
This sounds good.. Codeweavers have a pretty solid reputation for making things work.. This should be good.
Was it Xandros that Lindows was based on anyway?
From what i have been reading Xandros is loosely based on the old Corel Distribution which was based on Debian 2.1 if i remember correctly.
Just kind of wondering when xandros was going to be released. The website hinted that it would be about now. Any ideas?
Perhaps this has been the cause of the delays of release?
Is it too early to tell how this will stack up against Libranet? They are both based on Debian Woody, so Xandros should have apt-get, right? Will it have something comparable to xadminmenu?
As far as release delays, I’d rather have it working properly later than buggy now. I say they should take the time they need to do it right (within reason).
How long it is until the EULA on office includes a clause such as the following:
13a By clicking I agree you (the end user) agree that if this copy of microsoft office is used on an operating system other than an approved microsoft windows operating system; you will be breaking Microsoft’s open source law. As a result of using this on a non Microsoft platform, you are agreeing that you may be sued by Microsoft for hacking copyrighted material for use on unintended systems. Further legal action for repeated use may be deemed necessary in cases of use on more than one system
Luckily the EULA doesn’t matter in major parts of the world. If i buy it i can run it however the hell i want to, as long as i only run one copy at a time. They couldn’t take this right away even if they made me sign the eula as the law is above any such contracts.
I looked at the link earlier this afternoon and now its seems as though they have taken it down…. wonder why.
“Lincenses”
Does that stand for LINux liCENSES or is it a plain typo ?
This probably could be challegde in court, but nobody even bothers to. The rich ones couldn’t care less about Office on other OS, the poorer ones, well, don’t have money 🙂
I would like to see Microsoft sue somebody for using their software in an “unapproved” environment like Crossover, WINE, or Bochs. They would have a hard time proving that such a requirement is not unreasonable.