A new Linux-only mainframe model that IBM will announce Friday is the strongest indication so far of the company's enthusiasm for uniting the comparatively new operating system with the decades-old business computer line. The refrigerator-sized machine running only Linux will be formally announced at the LinuxWorld Conference and Expo show in New York next week and will begin shipping by the end of March, said Pete McCaffrey, director of IBM's zSeries mainframe group.
IBM hopes to lure new customers to the mainframe line with the system because it costs less than a full-fledged mainframe and doesn't require the usual high level of mainframe management skills, he said.
"I would say that most industry analysts right now are probably impressed with the speed with which Linux has been adopted on the mainframe," said Giga Information Group analyst David Mastrobattista. "It's only been on the mainframe for a little over a year now."
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