[GTALUG] Linux Unicorns

[D. Hugh Redelmeier]

| From: ac via talk <talk at gtalug.org>

| I have been wondering about tech unicorns and Linux.

It seems to me that Linux has won and been commoditized on the server
side.  No high-level discussion needs to address this.  Several distros 
are good enough and almost interchangeable in abilities.

On the PC side, if you don't wish to demand a dedicated machine, you
have to fit into what the market has.
1. Windows of various vintages
2. MacOS.
99. Linux.

On the mobile phone and tablet side
1. iOS (not the most users but the most money)
2. Android.
3. Web App of some kind

On the dedicate device side: an engineering choice.  Embedded Linux if
the device is beefy enough.

All these decisions are easy.

On the device side, it is just an engineering decision.

Old Unicorns came from different times.  25 years ago, it wasn't
obvious that Linux would be where it is (and isn't).

Netflix uses NetBSD for at least some stuff.  Making a decision like
that today would take serious conviction.

| Does anyone on the list actually know (as in personal experience)
| whether/which (or even if) most tech unicorns are Linux based or with a
| Linux origin story? 

That may be interesting history but I doubt that it is worth
consideration for a new business.

More interesting is to figure out how to use the cloud without being
tied to a particular vendor.