If you’re as confused about the definition of Enterprise Software as Microsoft and the Department of Justice, then this article from Tom Adelstein at O’Reilly’s Linux DevCenter should clarify things. Adherence to an obsolete definition of ‘Enterprise Software’ as meaning ‘SAP, Oracle and Peoplesoft-ONLY’ lost the case for the DOJ and Microsoft.
Adelstein kindly points out that the GNU/Linux atmosphere today is also clouded by a similar misprision of the dividing line between the enterprise and consumer segments, which leads to an unnecessarily harsh view consistently being taken of the intentions of enterprise GNU/Linux vendors.
Link to the article is wrong.
http://www.linuxdevcenter.com/pub/a/linux/2004/09/16/linuxenterpris…
Enterprise version = a Linux distro with all the desktop refinements taken out. Stable older versions of software put in. On the premises support (usually), telephone support. Help with installation and upgrading.
IN short, a stable release focusing on getting work done, and in needed lots of hand holding by the supplier