ANTenna Blog -- Hardware & Software

Over the past few years, Linux-based desktop virtualization has improved by leaps and bounds. In some cases, however, it is already possible to run Windows software on Linux, while cutting Windows itself completely out of the picture -- and thanks to Google, some very high-profile Windows software is now bridging the Linux gap.

As you may have guessed, I'm talking about Wine: an open-source, binary compatibility layer that can run Windows-native applications on Linux desktop systems. According to the Wine project's developers, the software is still in beta, and it shows: While some Windows applications run almost as well using Wine on Linux as they do on a Windows desktop system, most take a serious performance hit. And in quite a few cases, Windows apps either run so slowly or crash so frequently that using Wine to run them on Linux isn't yet a practical option.

Yet there's a lot more to the Wine story, especially for companies weighing the pros and cons of a switch to desktop Linux.

Codeweavers is the driving force behind the Wine project; the company's developers contribute the vast majority of the project's source code and bug fixes. Codeweavers also, however, develops the CrossOver software line, which uses the Wine code base to deploy a number of thoroughly tested, fully supported Windows-native apps on Linux, including the Microsoft Office suite; Microsoft Access, Project, and Visio; Lotus Notes; Quicken, Adobe's Photoshop and Framemaker products; and many more.

While Codeweavers provides full support for a relatively limited selection of Windows applications running with CrossOver, the company ensures that these apps work remarkably well on Linux -- and as a group, its supported products include the Windows apps that most businesses can least afford to sacrifice as part of a move to desktop Linux. Of course, you don't have to take my word for it: Codeweavers' CrossOver Linux Standard software is available free of charge, while its Professional lineup provides additional features, including multi-user support and enhanced deployment tools, for a standard licensing fee.

Recently, Google announced that it has been providing Codeweavers with both developer resources and financial backing to make Wine work even better with some key Windows applications, the most important of which are Adobe Photoshop and Dragon Clearly Speaking. Adobe's Photoshop CS product line already works remarkably well on Linux, and Google's support is likely to give Codeweavers the ability to make Photoshop support a non-issue for companies considering a move from Windows to desktop Linux.

If your small or medium-sized business is pondering a move to desktop Linux, virtualization products such as KVM and Xen are still important pieces of the migration puzzle. But when you're ready to consider just how easy it will be to access those must-have Windows apps on a Linux desktop system, don't forget to take a careful look at the things Codeweavers and Google have accomplished using Wine -- and just how much they are likely to accomplish in the months to come. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.