November 2010
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System76 Turns Five! A look to the next five...
Five Years Building Ubuntu PC’s
System76 turned five earlier this week, which makes for a great opportunity to take a look at where we’ve been and where we’re going. I’ve had the great pleasure of co-founding and leading this company. I work with an exceptional team that is dedicated to customers and to building the next-generation computer manufacturer. We’ve worked...
October 2010
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The System76 Starling Netbook to Remain on Ubuntu...
At System76 we take a holistic approach to creating products. Our PC’s aren’t simply pieces of hardware with software loaded on them. They’re an entire customer experience. A customer should be surfing the web within minutes of receiving their computer. Every System76 computer, from the Starling Netbook to the ultra high-end Serval Professional, should be responsive and snappy....
July 2008
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KDE 4 will rock!
KDE devs have been under fire since the release of KDE 4.0 - it’s bad enough that they’ve worked with Groklaw to expose misconceptions. It has been years since I’ve used KDE and all the chatter prompted me to take another look… after five days I’m hooked.
A entirely revamped desktop demonstrates the creativity that an empty canvas encourages. The Desktop, Oxygen Icons, Plasmoids, and Panel...
March 2008
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Race to the Bottom Stains Linux
Wal-Mart announced that they have discontinued Linux desktop computer sales on retail store shelves. The AP feed reads “Computers that run the Linux operating system instead of Microsoft Corp.’s Windows didn’t attract enough attention from Wal-Mart customers, and the chain has stopped selling them in stores, a spokeswoman said Monday.” And follows with “‘This really wasn’t what our customers were...
February 2008
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56 Days at System76
The first 56 days of the 2008 have been tremendous. Here’s what has happened at System76.
Ubuntu 64 Pre-Installed and Supported
Almost since inception System76 has shipped laptops and desktops that support 64 bit operating systems. We continuously tested 64 bit Ubuntu until finally, with the 7.10 release, we felt confident that the operating system was ready for our main stream (and enthusiast)...
January 2008
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Out with ‘07… in with ‘08
2007 flew by. System76 continued to grow rapidly. The company hired, open offices, participated in two Ubuntu Developer Summits, Ubuntu Live, kept toe to toe with two new Ubuntu releases, expanded our work promoting open source software, and released a new website and 10 new products. A fun year in business.
We’re going to start 2008 with a bang. A month full of announcements and advancements....
May 2007
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Bait and Switch
I recently read of bait and switch accusations against Best Buy. Whether or not Best Buy is guilty, these practices are too often used for bringing in customers and padding the bottom line. I doubt these are the strategies that create great companies - unfortunately it seems the tactic becomes too appealing as companies mature and growth slows. Are large retailers resorting to used car dealership...
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How System76 Began
Disclaimer: Accounts may vary. Many discussions during the rather lengthy run up to System76 were accompanied by our silent partner… Beer.
It was 2003 and I had re-started one of my old companies after a long vacation. My good friend and Co-Founder of System76, Erik Fetzer, was helping in numerous areas and mentioned that he had registered system76.com to sell Linux computers. I thought it was a...