Mishmash of news; Apple's helping hand to Microsoft is reappearing now that GNU/Linux and ODF gain traction, partly thanks to Google

Userful Corporation, the world leader in multiseat Linux desktop virtualization, today announced that 30,000 schools worldwide have chosen Userful virtual desktops to reduce computing costs and improve computer-to-student ratios.

Microsoft has now joined Apple in a guerrilla war against Google's Android, and Google's next steps are far from certain. The smartphone industry is still in its infancy, but its strategic importance to computer companies big and small can't be overstated.

More analysis of Microsoft's approach to competitors' territory

Apple and Microsoft have millions to finance their marketing campaigns. GNU/Linux on the other hand is a totally different story.

Microsoft uses its marketing agencies to pay Mac bloggers for Apple poison

When Google released Chrome last Fall, I wrote that it represented a direct attack on Microsoft and Apple. This week, my colleague Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols writes in ComputerWorld that Android could be coming to a Netbook near you by the end of this year.

Tech companies are playing hardball on smart phones, yet Linux could gain the upper hand with Intel and Nokia going on the defensive with MeeGo. To get you on Facebook while on the bus, play a tune, and - oh, yeah - make a call, Microsoft and Apple are finding new ways to reign in the competition on phones: they're using patent threats.

Regardless of how severe limitations Apple imposes on the iPad, we can expect it to be reasonably successful. I don’t think it will duplicate the success of the iPhone but due to Apple’s strong marketing and its own technical merits, it will sell in significant numbers. How will this affect Linux and the upcoming tablets based on it?