Mandrake Linux download policy angers club members

Daily Newsletters

Sign up to ZDNet UK's daily newsletter.

NEWS
Days after MandrakeSoft launched a controversial "club" to boost its bottom line, the Linux distributor has angered many in its user community by changing the rules of the Mandrake Club programme. MandrakeSoft finalised version 8.2 of Mandrake Linux on Monday, and became the first Linux distributor to announce that it would include StarOffice 6.0, an office suite from Sun Microsystems that recently instituted fees after several years as a free download. Because of the fees from Sun, MandrakeSoft decided to allow only some Mandrake Club members to download the office software -- those paying higher fees. The decision to allow the downloads to Silver members and higher left out about two-thirds of the Mandrake Club members, despite the club's original claim that "All membership levels enjoy the same benefits." The move has angered many Mandrake users. "I find this 'new' arrangement disturbing," wrote one user in MandrakeSoft's forums. "I think the Mandrake distro is great, but I am greatly disappointed in this new decision." MandrakeSoft explains that it was taken by surprise by Sun's decision to charge for StarOffice, and was forced to come up with a compromise for its users. "There were two possibilities: 1) don't let the Club members download the SO6; 2) Let all of them download the SO6, and cut our revenues; (or) 3) Let only the higher levels of membership download," wrote Denis Havlik, MandrakeSoft's forum moderator, on Tuesday. "After counting all the 'pros' and 'contras', and doing some polls among the users, we thought that '3' is the best solution." Because of this policy, the company changed the note on Mandrake Club's site from "All membership levels enjoy the same benefits," to "All membership levels enjoy almost the same benefits." This, however, left many of the original Club members feeling ripped off. "You simply cannot apply the change to your original set of club users," wrote one user. "We were told we would enjoy same benefits." It was not clear as of Friday afternoon whether MandrakeSoft was planning to change its policy, and the company did not respond to requests for comment. The original notice saying that StarOffice 6.0 would be available for download by Club members has now been removed. MandrakeSoft's decision on 12 March to launch a drive for the Mandrake Club surprised many industry observers, with the company's claim that it is in danger of shutting down if it does not receive short-term funding from its user community. "Mandrake Linux distribution's short-term future is in jeopardy due to a simple factor: money," the company wrote in a statement. The club offers memberships at rates ranging from $5 (about £3) per month to $100 for individuals, and also offers corporate memberships. With the dot-com implosion other high-tech companies have turned to similar methods of support, including many high-profile Web sites that have begun offering special content to subscribers. For Linux distributors such as MandrakeSoft, Red Hat and SuSE the situation is complicated by the fact that they deal in open-source software, which is generally covered by licences requiring that any development work done by the company be released freely back to the community. Linux companies generally make their revenues from retail versions of their products and by selling support services. Sun, for example, is to begin charging for StarOffice 6.0, but still offers the software's open-source components as a free download.
For all your GNU/Linux and open source news, from the latest kernel releases to the newest distributions, see ZDNet UK's Linux Lounge. Have your say instantly, and see what others have said. Go to the Linux forum. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

  • Login

Will not be displayed with your comment

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

Get ZDNet UK's daily newsletter

Enter your email address to sign up

ZDNet UK Live

tinycg

Don't forget to check out apps like GoodReader or SlideShark either, they're indispensible for people on the go in presentation situations. Best...

3 hours ago by tinycg on Four top iPad apps for people on the move
TerryRK

Well it seems there is something a number of us agree on. Why is the Ubuntu Unity launcher so ugly? I thought perhaps it was something to do with...

7 hours ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Freebies202

Duplicate comments are not made intentionally. Its very good to know that now you are keeping check on this problem because sometimes a commenter...

17 hours ago by Freebies202 on Microsoft fixes blog comments, speeds up blogs with open source
kevinmchapman

"the very significant number of users" and "many (most) of us" - you have no evidence for these statements. It is a fact that most users are saying...

1 day ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Marg Menzies Harrison

Another grammar faux pas is the improper use of "you". When sitting down down in a restaurant, for example, I get cringe when the waitress...

1 day ago by Marg Menzies Harrison via Facebook on 10 flagrant grammar mistakes that make you look stupid
zdnetukuser

And NOW, folks, for Canonical's next trick... Kubuntu is late. Here's a pencil. Draw your own conclusions. cf.:...

1 day ago by zdnetukuser on Linux Minterface
Moley

@kevinmchapman. The discussion here reflects the very significant number of users who really do like the traditional menu system and who wish to...

1 day ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
kevinmchapman

Er, no... It is an efficient means of finding the application/file/setting you need in one place. The icons are a simply a fallback for when you...

1 day ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
TerryRK

Isn't the provision of a text based search an admission by the developers that the mass of icons approach does not work? I don't need to use a...

1 day ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
kevinmchapman

"Unity and GNOME 3 both abandon the old text-based cascading menus in favour of a graphical icon-driven system." Point truly missed. Both use a...

1 day ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
TerryRK

whs001 - Thank you, I'm glad you liked the article. I absolutely agree with you on your first point. I should perhaps have made it clearer that...

1 day ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

If we allow corporate interest to dictate the way our government circumvents due process against foreign entities then we should accept the same...

1 day ago by via Facebook on ACTA stumbles in Germany
GHar123

I totally dislike pirating of works, I fear that artists will be deterred from creating works if they think that they are going to get ripped off....

1 day ago by GHar123 on ACTA stumbles in Germany
JCB33

How dare film makers, artists or anybody that invests in creativity stop us pirating their works for free. I want to be able to walk into my local...

2 days ago by JCB33 on ACTA stumbles in Germany
Moley

@GrueMaster. I prefer horses for courses rather than one size fits all. I, and I suspect most other computer users, do not really wish to have...

2 days ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
greycynic

The product that scares me every time I have to use it is the Office 2007 version of Excel. The first bug that I found was applying the median...

2 days ago by greycynic on Ten flawed products that derail productivity
GrueMaster

Nice review and very informative. One thing I'd like to add (in reply to whs001's 1st question), the main reason to have the same interface from...

2 days ago by GrueMaster on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Frederick Wrigley

I'be been using Mint 12 since the RC came out, and I am far more happy with the Cinnamon, the Mate, and, yes (with extensions), theGnome 3...

2 days ago by Frederick Wrigley via Facebook on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
bdantas

Excellent article. One small correction, though--although a fresh installation of Linux Mint 12 will, indeed, provide the user with a version of...

2 days ago by bdantas on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Alan Ralph

In related news, the ISPs club together to get the members of the Home Affairs Select Committee (ya goofed on that part, ZDNet UK) copies of "The...

2 days ago by Alan Ralph via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material