Jacob Lehrbaum

Our homes have been quietly invaded over the past couple of years. Penguins are sneaking up on us, hiding in places we wouldn't expect, and they are growing in number. They are taking control of our televisions, our appliances, and our communication channels to the outside world. This is not the exposition of a B movie thriller, but a description of the rapid success Linux is experiencing as it enters and gains momentum in the consumer electronics market. While Linux has achieved success in the server space and, more recently, has begun making progress on the desktop, consumer electronics have been the silent win. Device manufacturers divulge little about what's inside the box, focusing instead on features that are available to the consumer. Unlike personal computers (PCs), where internal components are more exposed, Linux is buried inside the device with little vi... (more)

Your Next Phone Might Be Running Linux - Should You Care?

With more than 15 million Linux handsets having already shipped into the market, most in the last year, the promise of Linux for the mobile phone industry is becoming a reality. Linux handsets have primarily been marketed into Asia so far, with notably strong volumes in Japan. NTT DoCoMo, recognized as an innovator and mindshare leader in the mobile telecommunications space, expects to ship more than 10 million Linux handsets by the end of March 2006 into Japan alone. To put it in perspective, that number represents one Linux handset for every 13 people in Japan. But the growin... (more)