Dell Increasing Virtualization (DELL, MSFT, APPL, EMC, VMW)

Dell (NASDAQ:DELL) is apparently boosting PC offerings with Linux and is going after more virtualization.  The company released some data that it will have PC’s that run multiple versions of Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows and Linux simultaneously.  It is already selling PC’s with the Ubuntu Linux system on it.  This came out of the LinuxWorld conference.

Dell is working with the VMware (NYSE:VMW; t.b.a.) unit of EMC Corp. (NYSE:EMC) for virtualization, along with other partners.  Everyone is getting into the virtualization game it seems.  Imagine when Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) offers out its operating systems to PC-makers, rather than just Macs allowing virtualization with other PC’s.

PC companies in the past had not been too crazy about virtualization.  But now they either really want to offer virtualization or they just will have to offer it.  With the new dual-core and quad-core processors (and the even greater multi-core offerings down the road) and perpetually lower DRAM costs, this is going to become easier and easier and cheaper and cheaper to offer.  Virtualization is coming on strong, like it or not.

Jon C. Ogg
August 8, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at [email protected]; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.