LAMP is the new wonderkid, a more deadly threat to Microsoft than the touted Linux as LAMP stands for Linux-Apache-MySQL-PHP/Perl/Python. So its a direct assault on Microsoft’s Windows Servers & .NET Platform as LAMP is not just an OS out of whom Windows can beat the living daylights out. Its a comprehensive package that consists of a web-server & a database with a choice of development languages(PHP/Python/Perl) & they are all FREE to obtain & use. So Microsoft looks to Extinguish LAMP, reports c|net.
So(as c|net reports), as Open Source products(contents of LAMP) are free to download, they give their first blow to Microsoft there as Microsoft’s products do require you to buy a license. So the area Microsoft will look to oust LAMP is “total acquisition costs” by proving that their products will prove to be cheaper in the longer run.
LAMP has been around for quite a number of years now but its gaining popularity rapidly because of two reasons(as I see them):-
- Its FREE to obtain & use, no licensing fees.
- Better security compared to Microsoft’s base Windows & Microsoft’s products IIS, SQL Server & .NET(this may be debatable with the presence of Mono) don’t run on any other OS.
Apart from these reasons, I don’t see any other reason as to why people & companies will favour LAMP over Microsoft. If it comes for ease of use, I don’t see anyway in which PHP or Python are more easy than .NET(VB.NET & C#.NET), Perl doesn’t come in the category of easy-to-use.
So in November this year, Visual Studio 2005 is slated to come out which will bring with it Visual Web Developer Express designed for small-scale web-development where LAMP is predominantly used. Also on the release schedule will be SQL Server 2005 with 2 low-end editions including a free Express edition(an updated version of MSDE?). The Workgroup Edition of SQL Server will include business-intelligence software for generating business reports, which is an expensive add-on otherwise. Also on the charts is a revamped Internet Information Server(IIS) which will be modular so that server admin can choose which components to run & which not, so this will be a huge performance & speed booster.
Microsoft is also working on its multiyear plan called Common Engineering Criteria which will see the creation of common tools for administering its server application line, from Windows Server to SQL Server. Having products that are engineered to work together will certainly be a big plus for Microsoft, as its something that Microsoft’s open-source competitors can’t do(not at present atleast).
It seems like Microsoft is tired of being the 2nd choice in the web-hosting market, with web-hosting companies going with LAMP as their primary choice!! 😉
Now all has to be seen is that how & when Microsoft delivers its first blow to LAMP, powerful enough to be noticed!! 😀