Linux Usage Is on the Rise

The COVID-19 pandemic has had some severe effects on the economy and consumer spending habits. Businesses have shuttered, unsure if they'll survive the months-long closure. And although it's hard to find a silver lining in all the market data, one positive outcome is that the Linux operating system has witnessed a large surge in usage.

Before you get too excited, it's not as though Linux all of a sudden surged past either Windows or macOS. In fact, Linux desktop usage is still in the single digits. However, in comparison, Linux actually bested both Windows and macOS for growth in April.

The numbers paint an interesting picture, one that points directly to Ubuntu. During the month of April, Ubuntu gained 1.61 percent (from 0.27 percent to 1.88 percent) of the market-share, while Linux as a whole gained 1.51 percent (from 1.36 to 2.87 percent). This happens to coincide with the release of Ubuntu 20.04 (https://releases.ubuntu.com/20.04/), which has been met with rave reviews across the board.

And while Linux rose nearly two percent, Microsoft Windows dropped two percent, from 89 to 87 percent. At the same time, macOS rose one percent.

Although this does not mean Linux has taken over the market and will soon see its dream of world domination finally come to fruition, any increase in market share for the open source desktop is a win.

Information gleaned from: https://netmarketshare.com/operating-system-market-share.aspx

Lenovo Is Jumping on the Linux Laptop Bandwagon

One issue Linux has faced over the years is that there was never enough off-the-shelf hardware that included the open source operating system. Things started to change when System76 came into existence. Since then a number of hardware makers have jumped onto the bandwagon.

You can now count Lenovo among those numbers. In his latest blog, Matthew Miller, Fedora project leader, announced, "Fedora Workstation will be available on Lenovo ThinkPad laptops!" Miller continues, "Yes, I know, many of us already run a Fedora operating system on a Lenovo system, but this is different. You'll soon be able to get Fedora preinstalled by selecting it as you customize your purchase."

The Fedora-powered ThinkPad is a pilot of the Lenovo Community Series and will include the ThinkPad P1 Gen 2, ThinkPad P53, and the ThinkPad X1 Gen 8 laptops. Should the program be successful, it is possible it will expand to include other models in the future.

The Fedora-edition ThinkPad will come preinstalled with Fedora 32 Workstation. Miller has also stated that Lenovo is working with vendors to make sure Fedora has all of the necessary firmware support going forward. This will include features like fingerprint readers.

From the Lenovo side of things, Mark Pearson, senior Linux developer for Lenovo, said, "Lenovo is excited to become a part of the Fedora community. We want to ensure an optimal Linux experience on our products. We are committed to working with and learning from the open source community."

At the moment, no information on release date or pricing has been made available.

Original source: https://fedoramagazine.org/coming-soon-fedora-on-lenovo-laptops/

A New Linux Laptop Is in the Making

TUXEDO Computers is working in conjunction with the team behind Manjaro Linux to create a new Manjaro-based 15" laptop, called the InfinityBook Manjaro. The Manjaro team will provide the software and TUXEDO Computers will provide the hardware. This symbiosis will result in a laptop that can be configured with up to 64GB of DDR RAM, a 10th generation four-core Core i7 processor, and up to 2TB of internal storage.

Other unique features for this Linux-powered laptop include an aluminum cover and inner side, 12 hour battery life, Mini-DisplayPort and HDMI connection, GB LAN port, USB type C with Thunderbolt 3 support, several standard USB ports, headphone/microphone jacks, the SuperTux key (in place of the Windows key), the ability to change the keyboard's backlight color, a laser engraved Manjaro logo on the back of the display, and a brilliant red chassis.

The sales of the InfinityBook Manjaro will benefit both TUXEDO Computers and Manjaro. To this point, Herber Feiler, CEO of TUXEDO Computers GmbH, said, "We are pleased about the cooperation, especially since the sale of the InfinityBook Manjaro is a financial support for the team of Manjaro Linux, and we thus contribute to keep the diversity of open source upright."

Philip Müller, project manager of Manjaro Linux and CEO of Manjaro GmbH & Co. KG, said of the collaboration, "After the first meeting at a trade fair event was very informal, we are delighted that such a well thought-out partnership has come about. This allows both sides to contribute their strengths and Linux users worldwide to benefit from the advantages."

At the moment, the only model that is up for preorder is the 15" version of the laptop. Future configurations will include a 14" model with an opening angle of 180 degrees.

Preorder your InfinityBook Manjaro now (https://www.tuxedocomputers.com/en/Linux-Hardware/Linux-Notebooks/15-16-inch/Manjaro-InfinityBook-Pro-15.tuxedo).