Four routes to Lin-Win desktops

Todd Volz ZDNet US

Published: 19 Apr 2002 09:57 BST

Aside from glaring ease-of-use issues -- most of which have been ameliorated by user interface improvements -- the essential problem has always been a lack of solid business productivity applications, and by extension, cross-platform file compatibility. Most Linux distributions ship with an excess of desktop apps -- from spreadsheets to word processors -- but none can truly compete with Microsoft's ubiquitous Office suite.

Initial efforts to make Linux more attractive concentrated on file compatibility with MS Office, the standard corporate office suite. Linux-native office apps such as StarOffice, Abiword, and Gnumeric achieved varying degrees of success with importing/exporting files to MS Office formats, but even the best import/export filters exhibit glitches in formatting. Since even minor glitches can quickly add up to reduced productivity and increased support costs, these Office substitutes have had little success convincing corporations to switch from Windows to Linux.

If native Linux apps don't cut the mustard, running the actual Windows apps they endeavor to imitate under Linux is the next logical step. That's the idea behind products such as VMware Workstation, Win4Lin, Wine, and most recently, CrossOver Office. These programs either emulate a Windows session within which you can run Windows programs, or run specific Windows apps by translating Windows API calls to their Linux equivalents.

Whether these solutions will suit your needs depends on your specific requirements and available resources. Emulation products such as VMware Workstation let you install a complete version of Windows under Linux and run a Windows session while running Linux at the same time. Emulation solves the applications issue, letting you run your Windows apps in their native environment.

In our tests, we found VMware easy to install and use and very stable. We were able to connect our Linux PCs to a Windows network, and MS Office apps ran flawlessly. And unlike Win4Lin, which supports only Windows 95 and 98, VMware lets you run any version of the Windows OS. (Of course, you still need a licensed copy of Windows for each Windows session you run.)