Novell is looking to change that by introducing an “open-source apps store” which would bring a wealth of free software to Linux users. This is set to appear in an openSUSE edition of the Moblin OS. This app store will differ in that Novell won’t be asking for a single penny in exchange for a download.

“I would compare what’s happening on netbooks with what’s happening to the smartphone,” Holger Dyroff, vice president of business development at Novell told PC Pro. “On the user end, all they’ll see is an open-source applications store with one-click downloads of new software. Unlike the other stores though, they won’t have to pay for any of those applications, which will be very attractive.”

The move could provide a real boost to Moblin, which has been well received since its v2.0 Beta launch a few weeks back. Moblin is being adopted by a number of Linux distributions and could bring much-needed Linux unity to the netbook segment.

I do wonder how successful something like this could be, it all depends on how well it is marketed, something which Linux hasn’t done too well in the past. Also, I’m not too sure how this would differ from places like SourceForge, where you can already download many open-source applications. So far no mention of a firm launch date.

A number of operating system vendors (OSVs) have already committed to Moblin. This includes Linpus, who will offer its Moblin V2 Linpus Linux Lite in two versions, one with a Linpus UI and one with Intel’s UI. Canonical will release an “Ubuntu Moblin Remix”, whilst Novell demoed its SUSE edition of Moblin Version 2 on Acer and MSI hardware at Computex. Xandros also demonstrated its “Xandros Moblin 2 solution” on an Asus Eee PC in at Computex.

Now we have the news that Moblin 2.0 will support Google’s Android Market, which offers free and paid applications that can be downloaded to devices based on Google’s Android operating system. The system will operate in a similar way to that announced by Canonical: a run-time environment will provide a compatibility layer between the Android application and the Moblin operating system, allowing the applications to run as they would on a native Android system.

Anand Chandrasekher, senior vice president of Intel’s ultra mobility group, showed several Android applications installed on an Atom-based netbook running Moblin 2.0 during a speech on Thursday. The Moblin Linux kernel was created to be a fast and lightweight platform, specifically designed to run on Intel Atom-based netbooks. The v2.0 Beta is available to download now.

If you remember, Moblin was originally created by Intel, but it recently handed over control to the Linux Foundation. The move was viewed as an attempt to attract more interest from netbook vendors who are currently steadfastly sticking with Windows XP. Judging from the Novell announcement, Intel still appears to be actively promoting the technology.

“It’s very possible you will see Novell going to market with OEMs on pre-installations on netbooks as early as a few weeks after the final release of Moblin 2.0,” according to Guy Lunardi, Novell’s Director of Client Preloads. Novell is also injecting Moblin with code from SUSE, Lunardi said.

Lunardi confirmed that Novell will only focus on optimizing Moblin for Atom and other x86 chips, not ARM. “We are very committed to the x86 architecture. We really believe that the industry doesn’t need a plethora of infrastructures,” he said. Novell did not offer a timetable for its Moblin v2 distribution, although it could happen as soon as a few weeks following the formal release of Moblin v2.

New netbook models featuring Novell’s SUSE Linux operating systems are expected to be showcased at Computex Taipei in early June. The vendors that Novell is currently working with are the usual suspects, Acer, Asus, Micro-Star International (MSI) as well as other vendors. SUSE currently comes pre-installed on four netbooks. Lenovo’s IdeaPad S10e, MSI Wind, First International Computer Inc.’s CW0A1 and the HP Mini 2140 netbook.

Whilst some may suspect that maybe some ARM-powered models with SUSE may be shown, Novell ruled this out. Markus Rex, senior vice president and general manager for open platform solutions at Novell, recently said: “There certainly is a lot of hype around ARM-based netbooks, [but] at the moment, we don’t do anything on ARM-based devices.”

Via Digitimes.