Corel throws down the OS gauntlet

Corel is mounting a challenge to leading Linux vendors such as Red Hat Software and Caldera by marketing its own version of the operating system.

Corel president and chief executive Michael Cowpland told the LinuxWorld conference that to make Linux on the desktop 'happen in a big way, it has to be more like Windows'.

Cowpland said Corel will develop and market a Linux operating system featuring a simplified set-up procedure and automatic hardware detection.

The system will come with a Java virtual machine, and the user interface will be based on KDE, which is the most popular user interface for Linux.

The operating system, codenamed Corel Desktop for Linux, is scheduled to ship in November.

Cowpland said Corel could offer PC manufacturers a bundle consisting of the operating system and applications.

Corel's Linux plus the complete WordPerfect office suite would probably sell for around $50, Cowpland said. This would give PC vendors a price advantage over similarly configured Windows systems.

Much of Corel's Linux development work involves porting Window applications to WIne, a Windows emulator for Linux.

Wine allows some Windows applications to run natively on Linux, but many key applications such as Microsoft Office do not work well with the emulator.