OT: ISPs: Linux's role nowadays

[Marcel Rieux]

On Thu, Feb 25, 2010 at 3:34 PM, Chris Adams <cmadams at hiwaay.net> wrote:

> I run Linux everywhere it makes sense, and have for more years than most
> (I've been running Linux-based ISPs for over 14 years and Linux on my
> desktop for longer than that).  It just doesn't make sense in an ISP
> environment to run Linux on the routers.

And, from what I can see, most people who have experience think like
you. (I'll of course be glad to hear anybody who disagrees with this.)
Over the last years, 2 providers, each competing agains the other,
also told me they needed hardware based routers.

As for running huge databases, I believe big corporations would go for
Oracle, maybe DB2, Oracle now supports both a version of /Unbreakable/
:) Linux and Solaris.

Large scientific organizations -- the CERN, for instance -- seem to be
doing well on their own.

So where is Red Hat headed, in which field are they specializing? I've
heard of cloud computing/virtualization. What else? What kind of
companies are they dealing with?

I believe, for instance, that the NYSE is with them. Who else? Isn't
this pretty much a database service? It seems the NYSE is thinking
like me and decided they wouldn't get their OS from a company that
calls "their" blindly copied OS "Unbreakable". Is it possible that
Oracle knows so much about databases and no so much about OSes?

Note: Please all, try not to phrase your answers in technical
mumbo-jumbo. I get lost quickly. I'm just trying to get a general
overview.  I'm not going to implement a large database or router on my
desktop and require Oracle's or Red Hat's services any time soon :)

Regards!