DELL WILL FACTORY INSTALL LINUX ON GLOBAL BASIS.

Dell announced Linux as the company's third global, strategic operating system to power the front-end of its customers' Internet infrastructure. The Linux operating system joins Microsoft Corp.'s Windows and Novell Inc.'s NetWare as one of three strategic operating systems Dell supports and factory installs worldwide.

The announcement is part of Dell and Red Hat Inc.'s One Source Alliance, a global initiative intended to speed commercial acceptance and respond to the growing demand for Linux-based systems for the Internet infrastructure. The addition of Linux as a strategic, global operating system is expected to help Dell to capture an increased percentage of spending associated with building the infrastructure for the new Internet economy, which is expected to reach $370 billion annually by 2003. The move also reflects Dell's commitment to Linux as a future operating system in applications where UNIX is widely deployed currently. Dell is currently the No. 2 provider worldwide of Linux-based systems and the No. 2 provider of Standard Intel Architecture Servers worldwide according to research by International Data Corp.

The Red Hat and Dell combination offers customers a "pure-play" for Linux development and deployment. Unlike many computer-systems manufacturers, Dell does not have a proprietary, in-house UNIX offering that competes for resources. This allows Dell to align its development resources around Linux and deliver best-in-class Linux solutions to its customers.

While Dell's plans for Linux initially will be on Intel's IA-32 based architecture, the company is collaborating with Red Hat to facilitate the migration of Linux into higher-end systems based on Intel's IA-64 architecture. As the operating system continues its rapid maturation in the areas of availability, reliability, manageability and security, it is expected to grow from its current strength in the Internet infrastructure to mission-critical datacenter and high performance computing applications currently dominated by UNIX systems. Dell is working closely with its independent software vendor partners to port leading e-commerce and other applications to the new architecture.

Dell was the first major systems manufacturer to offer factory installation of Red Hat Linux across its entire server line. The company also took the lead in offering factory installation of Red Hat Linux on Dell Precision workstations. Today, Dell customers also can order Red Hat Linux factory installed on at least one platform in each notebook and desktop product line.