Some businesses using Linux as an internal server platform may only now be
confronting the challenge of migrating to 64-bit Linux distributions but are
actually stepping into familiar territory for most Linux users in the
business world. 64-bit Linux has been running for years on chipset families
such as Intel's EM64T (Extended Memory 64 Technology) and Itanium, AMD's
Athlon 64 and Opteron, and IBM's POWER. In addition, 64-bit Linux
distributions have been offered for some time from top vendors such as Red
Hat and Novell/SuSE, and have been available as a server operating system
choice from hardware vendors such as Dell, IBM, and HP.
With all of the availability and access to 64-bit Linux around, why hasn't
business been more aggressive in purchasing and deploying 64-bit Linux server
platforms? What initially made many businesses hesitant to embrace 64-bit
Linux we... (more)