Microsoft boosts efforts to beat Linux

Microsoft Corp. said yesterday that it is stepping up efforts to replace Linux with Windows, highlighting a new campaign aimed at specific kinds of server workloads.
Speaking at the company's annual financial analyst meeting, Kevin Johnson, a Microsoft group vice president, said the software vendor is focused on offering specific products and services aimed at three areas where Linux is now a common choice: Web servers, high-performance computing and edge servers.

"We are targeting product and technology offerings to the unique needs of running those workloads," he said.

The plan is an extension of the Microsoft "Get the Facts" campaign, which the vendor launched in 2003 to compare the value proposition of Windows with that of Linux in an effort to show customers that Windows offers a better return on investment in most cases.

Johnson said Microsoft's plan to target areas where Linux is especially popular will help Windows displace the open-source operating system.