 "Photo: Rob Strong")
 "Photo: Rob Strong")
Dressed in costumes or wearing shirts promoting "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," hard-core computer fans drifted in and out of convention rooms at the Red Lion Inn on Friday night, looking for games, science fiction and computer innovations.
Welcome to Linucon 2004: Austin's first festival devoted to Linux, sci-fi and anime.
While attendance was small, and Linux was hard to find, the operating system's fans claim its popularity is growing. It's just a matter of wait and see.
Although it was first embraced by programming wizards and technology enthusiasts at its inception in 1991, Linux has now grown to the point where even average computer users have started using the system.
"It's been a pleasure to watch it evolve from a hobbyist system to a mature platform for commercial use," said Stu Green, head of operations for Linucon's Austin branch.
Around the globe, other cities are cashing in on the Linux phenomenon. Just this September, government officials in Munich, Germany, moved 13,000 computers from Windows to Linux. While 13,000 computers may seem like a drop in the bucket compared to business giant Microsoft, some see it as a sign of changing times. Munich is Germany's third-largest city and considered the nation's IT capital.
Bergan, Norway and San Paulo City, Brazil also made the Linux switch this summer.
Back home, computing giant IBM runs on Linux, and AT&T is also considering switching, according to eWeek.com.
Two years ago, Wal-Mart began offering computers with pre-installed Linux and now offers eight different computer models because of the success they've had with the initial offering, said Amy Colella, a Wal-Mart representative.
Linus Torvalds, the system's namesake, created the operating system in 1991 when he was a student at the University of Helsinki in Finland. The system's code is open source, which means anyone can look at the code and modify it, as long as they agree to share the modifications with other users in the Linux community.
The fact that Linux is open source is one of the main reasons for the operating system's progress, said Eric Raymond, an open source proponent.
"The secret of Linux's success is that there are no secrets," Raymond said.
Closed-source developers, like Microsoft, only allow their code to be seen by the developers they hire, so there is a limited number of programmers working at any time. Unlike closed-source developers, all Linux users can work on coding glitches, and the overall process of updating a system is much more streamlined.
The constant examination of the code makes the system more secure. Viruses, trojans and worms that debilitate Linux systems are virtually unheard of.
And then, there's the fact that it's free. Because its open source, anyone can get their hands on the operating system. And as any impoverished college student knows, free equals good.
"I like the free part a lot," said Max Bayer, an Austin Community College mathematics sophomore.
You don't have to be a computer genius
In industries like government and business, where saving a buck is always top priority, administrators have taken note of the system's price tag of zero. Linux can be a low-cost alternative to other proprietary operating systems, such as Microsoft Windows, whose licensing agreement may cost hundreds of dollars to install on multiple systems.
In Austin, one of the country's technological forerunners, Linux is used for Web servers, blocking spam and for security issues, said Peter Collins, the city's chief information officer. The city implemented Linux in a number of servers after a pilot test last year had successful results.
Collins was one of the specific officials that Friday's convention targeted, Green said, because they want to tout the advantage of a system that doesn't carry proprietary fees.
But Friday's convention also targeted UT students, who make up a large percentage of the Linux community, Green said. The University has at least two groups devoted to the operating system - the Austin Student Linux User Group and SIGLinux, which is part of the Association of Computing Machinery.
Mark Miller, vice president of Linucon and a UT physics freshman, created the student Linux user group his first year here, after he couldn't find a Linux group to work within.
Miller is working on building his own Linux system from scratch, because, he said, "I'm bored, it's educational, and it's kinda fun."
Jeff Strunk, a LAN administrator for UT's Institute for Computational Engineering and Science, heads SIGLinux and also organizes the group's "Installfest," which has happened twice a semester for the past two years, he said.
Students bring their own computers, and SIGLinux members help the "newbies" load Linux onto their computers.
Strunk said his organization tries to attract normal users to these Installfests, so they can spread the Linux legend.
"We're targeting users that just want their computer to surf the Internet, write papers and use their computers for general stuff," he said.
And despite claims that Linux is too complicated for users whose strengths don't lie in computers, normal users get along fine, Strunk said. After three years of running the program with around 200 participants, only one person has lost his Windows installation, he said.
But you don't have to go to an Installfest to give Linux a try. Users can download Linux from thousands of Internet sites and buy installation CDs similar to Windows installation disks.
Many UT computer sciences graduate students and professors use Linux for research, and almost all of the computers in the Applied Computational Engineering and Sciences building use Linux, Strunk said.
Dan Updegrove, the vice-president for information technology services, said the University has considered installing Linux in computer labs across campus. But the software is not always compatible with the operating systems, and many students are not interested in learning to use it, he said.
ITS is also considering migrating the e-mail server to a Linux operating system. It currently uses a UNIX system.
Obstacles to a Linux world
Many appliances, such as cell phones and toasters, use Linux, and it has also found a major foothold in the financial sector because it's secure. It's also popular in the special effects area of the movie industry.
But one major problem has held it back, said Eric Raymond, an open source expert.
Both gamers and government officials agree that more software has to be made compatible for Linux to become more widespread.
"Linux cannot move into the next level of use until this problem is addressed," said Collins, Austin City Council spokesman. Vital applications like emergency dispatch programs cannot be run through Linux, he said.
While more games are coming out that are compatible with Linux, gamers have also put the system aside until more Linux compatible games are produced.
"I love Linux, but I don't want to have to mess with the system to get a game to work," said Denver McAnally, an ACC sophomore at Linucon.
And then there's the problem of convincing the average user that Linux isn't just for computer wizards. While many simply haven't heard about it, others immediately associate it with programming language and hackers.
"I've had lots of problems with Windows, but I think it's the easiest system out there," said Jeanine Heinson, a studio art junior. "I know the techs where I work use UNIX, but that seems way too difficult to master."
These obstacles mean that for now, Linux remains limited to government, big business and research desktops. It also means that students are shelling out money when they could be using Linux for free.
Some say they remain confident that Linux will eventually become mainstream.
"It's getting better," said Chris Tom, a UT alum and Linux fan who attended Friday's convention. "But it's not going to happen overnight."
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