LINUX 2
The Operating System I have chosen to do my research paper about in SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop ver.10. The OS known as the acronym SLED 10 is developed, manufactured and distributed by Novell, Inc. to be the single desktop solution to compliment their existing line of Netware Servers and the new line of SUSE Linux Enterprise Servers.
Most of my work in the computer field has been managing various Microsoft Operating Systems from Windows 95 up to Windows XP Professional. About two years ago I got my first experience with HP-UX managing job schedules, backups and User rights. I even managed AS/400 Servers but never had the opportunity to work with Linux. Although approximately 85% of all desktop systems run on a Microsoft OS I feel there is a growing trend towards a need for IT professionals looking more at open source solutions. I felt that this paper would be a great opportunity to learn some of the features that have drawn people to switch from Windows to one of the various versions of Linux.
One of my hesitations of getting involved with Linux was a belief I had of it not being a user friendly option for end uses. With most people having a familiarity with a Windows interface the thought of teaching them something totally different would seem to be a daunting task. SLED 10 dispels this thinking with some of the similarities it shares with other Operating Systems like Windows. SLED 10 can be installed on an x86 platform running either an Intel or AMD processor which would give you the ability to load the OS on a current PC you have. SLED 10 also has a graphic user interface (GUI) similar to Windows or Macintosh so even someone without Linux experience can navigate their way through the system. SLED 10, like Windows, offers a built in fire
Linux 3
wall called AppArmor and allows for Certificate creation and management, file encryption and proxy management.
Although it seems there would be no need to move to a new OS...