Compaq, Dell, Others Pump $57M Into Linux Vendor

TurboLinux today will receive a $57 million
investment from a consortium of IT firms led by Compaq and Dell Computer, according to published reports.

The move comes in the wake of a massive training program deal that
the Linux vendor has just struck in China. That deal calls on the San
Francisco firm to supply Linux training programs in at least 10 major
Chinese cities.

The investment, reported by several wire services over the weekend,
is thought to be the largest yet for a Linux company.

Other investors in the firm reportedly include Applix, BEA Systems,
Citrix Systems, CSK Venture Capital, CTC, Fujitsu Support and
Service, Inprise, Legend Computer, NEC, Novell, NTT-ME Information
Xing, SCO, Seagate Technology, Toshiba and Toyo Information Systems.

The move is bound to bolster interest in the Linux operating system,
which was originally developed as a voluntary project, but now has
the support of several industry majors, including IBM and Microsoft.

The Chinese deal for TurboLinux involves the firm offering TurboLinux
Certified Engineer training courses across China, through a network
of 15 authorized TurboLinux instructors.

Commenting on the Chinese deal, TurboLinux co-founder Iris Miller
said that there is an incredible demand for TurboLinux training in
China, especially with the company's corporate and government
customers.

Visit TurboLinux at http://www.turbolinux.com.

Reported by Newsbytes.com.