Linux software vendor Red Hat plans to fortify its desktop Linux lineup by shipping Red Hat Linux 8.1 in April, a 32-bit technical workstation this quarter and a full-fledged corporate desktop in the next six to 12 months, the company confirmed.

While the company plans to continue to position its Red Hat Linux 8.0 as a consumer-oriented product, it is gearing up for a corporate desktop in late 2003, said Mark De Visser, Red Hat's chief marketing officer.

"What you see in [Red Hat] 8.1 is how we are investing in the technology required to get to the corporate desktop space," said De Visser, noting that the release, code-named Phoebe, incorporates enhancements to the new BlueCurve GUI, and that the corporate edition later this year will offer an e-mail client that can access Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes. "These are all part of a family of products that will expand over time and address desktops and portals," he said.

Red Hat alluded to its desktop plans in an interview with CRN last October. Red Hat 8.1 will continue to be positioned as a consumer-oriented product, given that Red Hat does not yet have the infrastructure in place to support corporate desktops.

Industry sources said they expect more details about Red Hat's corporate desktop plans--including the latest Red Hat 8.1 upgrade--at the Linux Desktop Summit, slated to take place Feb. 20-21 in San Diego.

Red Hat 8.1 was released to the Web in beta form late last month. The update offers an enhanced BlueCurve GUI that made its debut in version 8.0 in September and an updated Linux 2.4.20-2.2. kernel. It also offers new features such as font viewing, the ability to burn files to CDs, a new themes applet, an updated Mozilla 1.2 browser and KDE 3.1 and GNOME 2.2 graphical desktops.

The enhanced GNOME file manager, Nautilus 2.1.5, for example, offers a new sidepane layout for easier navigation, transparent pointers and built-in archiving for groups of files, industry sources said.

"It's a point release," said one source close to the company, noting the planned April ship date. "They are cleaning up icons and adding themes."

However, Red Hat's most important partner--IBM--will think otherwise, one source close to the company said.

"That depends on how one looks at it. From the world of Red Hat followers, it's a point release," said the source, who requested anonymity. "From the [IBM Global Services] portfolio manager's point of view, the Blue Curve desktop wasn't up to spec and Red Hat had to hurry up and clean up the desktop and do lots of bug fixes."

One IBM executive confirmed that IBM Global Services is deploying Red Hat 8.0 and services for a limited number of corporate customers and is negotiating with other Linux desktop players.

"I don't know if it's publicized [about Red Hat]. We're talking to [Ximian] around taking advantage of IBM Global Services for deployment and implementation," said Dave Carlquist, vice president of IBM's global emerging markets for SMB markets. "But I don't see nearly as much demand on the desktop as I do on the server."

IBM and Red Hat announced last year a global reselling and services alliance on Red Hat Advanced Server and Red Hat Network. However, Red Hat's De Visser said the company has no alliance with IBM Global Services on the Linux desktop and would not comment on whether Red Hat authorized IBM's services arm to sell it. He did say any company with a support infrastructure is free to deploy it, but Red Hat doesn't have the resources in-house to handle all the printer support and network issues that accompany a desktop release for businesses.

"[IBM Global Services] goes into a deal and controls the whole environment," he said. "I'd imagine they'll say they'll take that risk."

De Visser would not comment on a claim by one source that Red Hat builds desktops to order for IBM Global Services and ripped out the WINE code in the Red Hat Linux distribution to avoid angering Microsoft.

In October, Red Hat executives told CRN that Red Hat won't attempt to unseat Windows and Office but will aim its desktops at targeted customer segments such as call centers at financial institutions needing only Word and Excel, or highly technical audiences that use one or two productivity applications. A 32-bit technical workstation would allow them to consolidate their high-end CAD/CAM and electronic design automation (EDA) applications and productivity applications on one desktop machine, rather than having separate Unix-based workstations and PCs.

To deliver on that, Red Hat announced at the Enterprise Linux Forum last month its plans for its 32-bit workstation release this quarter. The company already made available a 64-bit advanced workstation release for Itanium last year, De Visser said.

Red Hat's technical workstation, which is expected to be released this quarter, is designed to work with Red Hat Advanced Server and will offer an application development environment for enterprise application deployment on Advanced Server, as well as a design workstation used in the EDA and digital content creation markets.

One source close to the company says plans are proceeding well on its high-end workstation release, as well as its overall desktop plans.

"Technical Workstation is an enterprise desktop product [with] support for workstation tools for graphics, CAD/CAM, software development," said the source, who requested anonymity. "It's a hardened version of the base distribution more suitable for enterprise development and desktop deployment. If you want a comparison, Red Hat Linux is like Windows XP, Red Hat Advanced Workstation is like Windows 2000 Workstation, and Red Hat Advanced Server is like Windows 2000 Advanced Server, Solaris or HP-UX." It is planned to be released during the first quarter of 2003.

Dell is in discussions with Red Hat and plans to load the 32-bit workstation on its Precision workstations, Dell said.

Sources in the Linux channel are cautiously optimistic about the desktop aspirations of startups but say endorsements by Sun Microsystems and Red Hat give the Linux desktop more credibility. Sun also plans to debut its Linux desktop this quarter.

"Red Hat, Lycoris, SuSE and several others have made a go at the desktop, and I think a lot more effort will spring out of the upcoming Linux Desktop Summit," said Mark Robinson, CFO of Auto Rain Data Systems, a SCO-authorized partner in Spokane, Wash.

One analyst said Red Hat is bolstering its desktop lineup but continues to be a server-centric company that won't try to compete head-on against Microsoft on the desktop.

"They may have a technical workstation, but they don't want to compete head on against Microsoft," said George Weiss, vice president at Gartner.