Turbolinux, Big Blue Partnership Going Strong

In the continuation of a partnership between Big Blue and a leading Linux
provider, Turbolinux weighed in at LinuxWorld in New York Tuesday with a new
Server 6 for IBM’s eServer z900 and S/390 mainframes.

Turbolinux has also agreed to provide 24/7 call center support and onsite
professional services for IBM eServer z900 and S/390 customers through
partnerships with services and solutions organizations Linuxcare, Sytek
Services and UTS Global.

Both firms feel that putting Turbolinux’s open source software on IBM
mainframes offers customers cost-effective options because of faster access
to enterprise data through a portfolio of Linux applications that work with
IBM middleware.

Some analysts agree.

Bill Claybrook, research director of Linux at Aberdeen Group, said the firms
are hedging their bets on the notion that their partnerships can result in
new, revenue-generating e-business applications.

“Turbolinux on a mainframe can add up to a very compelling value
proposition — the ability to deliver tightly
integrated, high-performance, high-availability, and scalable e-business
solutions,” Claybrook said.

Turbolinux Server 6 for IBM eServer z900 and S/390 has already been tested
in customer production environments, including some of the world’s top
banks, manufacturers and telecommunications companies.

CSK Network Systems — one of Japan’s top ASP, ISP and systems integration
companies — hosts a new mail, calendar and Web server offering for its
corporate customers on Turbolinux and an IBM mainframe in Tokyo.
The company is able to host on one S/390 server a mix of mainframe, Unix and
Linux applications, all of which work
together.

With Linuxcare, Sytek Services and UTS Global, Turbolinux offers customers
around the world an extended menu of support and service offerings for Linux
on IBM mainframes.

Tuesday’s announcement at LinuxWorld is the latest in a series of
software/hardware deals between Turbolinux and IBM. On Jan. 10, Turbolinux
and IBM agreed to market, distribute and support bundled IBM solutions on
Turbolinux that include IBM’s DB2, WebSphere family of e-business
application servers, Lotus Domino, Tivoli Framework and a small business
suite for Linux.

Dan Kusnetzky, vice president of systems software research for International
Data Corporation, said that deal would accelerate the adoption of Linux in
the enterprise, particularly in Asia where Turbolinux has a strong presence.

While IBM isn’t the only hardware outfit to cozy up to Linux — Dell and
Hewlett-Packard have offered their own hugs — the industry is watching and
waiting to see what Sun Microsystems Inc. does with the open-source
software.

Insiders say the fact that most of Linux is installed on Intel is just one
of a
handful of reasons why Sun, though bullish on open-source models, has been
loathe to jump in the game. Analysts say the notion that Sun is reluctant to
trade in its money-making Solaris platform for Linux is another reason.