Wall Street Embraces Linux 505
Brian Stretch was among several
who sent in this story about Merrill Lynch
switching to Linux, this is interesting because it's actually companywide.
Talks about Red Hat, Linux threatening Unix and so on.
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Wall Street Embraces Linux
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The Tao is like a glob pattern: used but never used up. It is like the extern void: filled with infinite possibilities.
Easy Slashbots (Score:4, Informative)
Been there, done that. (Score:5, Informative)
Actually, I work in the aviation sector, and we've been using Linux for years for computing flight plans and relaying AFTN messages.
Merril London Office (Score:2, Informative)
Re:I still haven't seen the answers I am looking f (Score:5, Informative)
You have to understand this doesn't have much of anything to do with Linux, at least what they are using it for; you're talking about extending functionality of an email client/server. I'd suspect to see stuff coming from Ximian in this area as they target the desktop. However, with no users to support the development of such a project it's currently not worth it. Also this article isn't about desktop usage, it's about server usage. If you want the answer to that question
you simply just have to look at who currently uses linux and for what. You also have to look at the numbers of users on desktop.
2) How do you work around the lack of group policy controls in SAMBA? By this I mean forcing a computer to have the most up-to-date anti-virus software when it logs on to the domain; mapping network drives automatically; downloading OS patches automatically through a local server. AFAIK, Samba can't do any of this as well as a Windows 2000 Server can. And what about Active Directory? LDAP isn't as cohesive a solution if you are running Windows clients.
Blah this can be done if you know what you're doing, with some scripts. Not only that but I believe RedHat provides some type of functionality for this. Samba can't do the almighty everything without proper documentation and records/structures. Obviously Microsoft doesn't provide this so you take what you get for free. Last I checked you didn't pay for Samba, also last
I checked Microsoft hasn't released any specs recently enabling such operation, for any of the above you mention. However again you get this stuff for free, so you save costs and get minimal functionality if you have to support Windows users. If you're a windows based shop you have to pay thats what it boils down to.
From this article, I have to think that Merrill Lynch and others are changing their external server infrastructure, not their internal IT infrastructure.
This has nothing to do with external/internal infrastructure; they are replacing their sun boxen with linux boxen because it's cheaper and they get more bang for their buck. Wall St has used Unix for most of their vital financial etc etc transactions, they use os/2 as well. You won't find NT in operation anywhere the word "vital" is important on Wall St. For the most part this sounds totally alien of any internal/external server infrastructure I'd have to believe, that is how Wall st works.
The other conclusion I must draw is that the companies that are migrating to Linux as a workgroup server (i.e. replacing Windows NT/2000 Server with Linux) did not have a cohesive Windows network in the first place. Unfortunately, Linux is nowhere near a solution to Exchange, and it's perhaps 25% of the way to replacing a Windows 2000 primary domain controller's capabilities.
Blah, Exchange is an server application it has nothing to do with the rest of the network, and thats why Ximian just released it's Ximian Connector or whatever for Evolution. If Linux does make it on the desktop then their is a migratrion path and I'd figure if Ximian saw something like this coming down the pipe they'd look into replacing Exchange. There just isn't demand for something like that right now.. Just see #1 reply. You can't be serious about the pdc comment; thats all I have to say about that, I mean that is mostly laughable.
So what servers is Merrill Lynch migrating? Linux does have its core competencies -- web servers; application servers; network storage to some degree -- but they didn't mention what part of the infrastructure they were replacing. I would thus take the words "companywide" with a grain of salt in this case.
The article does say they are migrating their sun boxen, so thats what I tend to believe. Whatever functionality their sun boxen had is what they
would reproduce on Linux. Since you say all the above is not possible you should be able to deduce that it's most likely none of the above, once you
deduced that you'd either have the idea to ask Merril Lynch themselves or just leave the question unanswered. "Network storage on Linux" to some degree; stop throwing mud, that is totally unfounded and I and alot of other people would disagree with you. I seem to remember something about Veritas supporting Redhat in those list of companies. Not only that but there are many companies already using linux for their Sans. This comment again is extremely laughable.
"Companywide" I tend to take that meaning anything that was on a sun box that can be reproduce on a linux box and retain the same functionality and
uptime will be replaced with said linux boxen. It's also cheaper; would you like water with that tremendously big grain of salt or will some other
beverage accomdate you simply because it is taken place already or soon will be.
Re:Linux not really "free"? (Score:4, Informative)
Sure the software is free, but you still pay for the bundling and the distribution of the software, and there is no specification as to how or how much they charge for those services...
Re:Easy Slashbots (Score:3, Informative)
Indeed, one of the big benefits that Carey sees is that Merrill can write an application once and then deploy it with minimal work on mainframes, minicomputers, desktops, laptops and handhelds--whether it be on Intel (nasdaq: INTC - news - people) hardware or something else.
You're right they didn't mention Windows systems.
Re:Not safe enough for Air Traffic Control??? (Score:1, Informative)
"National Log, an essential FAA database that stores information about air traffic operations across the country. "
get your facts straight. their enroute system is a locked based system (very old I might add). and the approach and take off is being switched to STARS a raytheon built system that uses sun's running solaris 2.5
Re:Fables... (Score:3, Informative)
The fable is a mistelling of the story. Allegedly Canute had his throne carried to the shore where he sat as the tide came in (he did not drown), in order to prove to flattering courtiers who were saying that he was "so great he could command the tides" that of course he was not, that even kings were as nothing in the face of God's power.
However, I take your point about Linux.
Re:Not safe enough for Air Traffic Control??? (Score:1, Informative)
the enroute centers are a whole other ball of wax but they are making plans and taking bids (i believe) to upgrade the enroute system.
Wall Street embraced NeXT too (Score:5, Informative)
About Two Years Ago (Score:4, Informative)
About two years ago I met some people in the tech dept. at Merrill. Most of them were very aware of the cost savings involved, but were concerned about how well it would integrate in with their trading workstations, which were all SUNs. The software that was run on those workstations was closed-source, and therefore could not be easily ported.
Since that meeting, I learned of two things that happened. One is that Merrill has moved towards Microsoft Windows 2000 for their trading workstations, because software from Instinet, Reuters and Bloomberg is easily available for that platform. The other thing is that SUN has been using strongarm tactics to try and keep Merrill (and probably other companies) buying their hardware.
I don't have any details on what tactics were being employed, but apparently it lead to this switch to Linux.