IdeaStorm: Hardware OEM Learnings of Linux for Make Benefit Glorious Company of Dellstan

Early this year Dell created a Digg-like site called Dell | IdeaStorm ("Where Your Ideas Reign"). The idea was for readers to submit ideas for the company, then have other readers vote and comment on them. Next to the title logo ran hints such as "How can technology companies address climate change?" (over "click here to Read Dell's point of view"). Needless to say, this opened the floodgates holding back a tide of Linux demand.

As of 8am CDST on March 13, here were the top ten vote-getters:

1. With 108886 votes, "Pre-Installed Linux | Ubuntu | Fedora | OpenSUSE | Multi-Boot"
2. With 73840 votes, "Pre-Installed OpenOffice | alternative to MS Works & MS Office"
3. With 54300 votes, "Stripped down, fast Linux Box"
4. With 50653 votes, "Have Firefox pre-installed as default browser"
5. With 49990 votes, "No OS Preloaded"
6. With 51048 votes, "NO EXTRA SOFTWARE OPTION"
7. With 35867 votes, "Provide Linux Drivers for all your Hardware"
8. With 29041 votes, "Linux 2.6.16 ready (sticker)"
9. With 20288 votes, "National Call Centers"
10. With 17376 votes, "LinuxBIOS instead of proprietary BIOS"

One hour later, Dell added two more posts of its own. On the IdeaStorm page, it posted "Linux – We’re listening… Now Tell Us More… : )" On the Direct2Dell.com page it added "Dell to Expand Linux Options". Both pointed to a survey at http://www.dell.com/linuxsurvey. The survey was also titled "Linux Learnings: We're Listening".

Hence the headline above.

- Doc Searls