From: "Linux Alert" <nix.jankow@fusionpr.com>
To: <lwn@lwn.net>
Subject: Try Linux Online
Date: Wed, 10 Jan 2001 12:22:26 -0500


For Immediate Release

Contact:
Nix Jankow
Fusion Public Relations
Tel: 212-651-4207
nix.jankow@fusionpr.com

RUNAWARE AND SLASH TCO PARTNER TO BRING LINUX-BASED SOFTWARE TO THE
WORKPLACE

Oakland, CA (January 10, 2000) - Runaware, the world's first Evaluation
Service Provider for software vendors and consumers, today announced a
partnership with SlashTCO, a U.K.-based open source services provider, to
promote Linux awareness and provide complete education of Linux products
through online testing and supplementary resources to help research,
evaluate and download Open Source products and applications, backed up by a
range of training and support options.

This partnership is representative of a critical turning point for the Linux
industry as, for the first time, two complimentary third party service
providers are combining to provide a complete solution for online and
off-line Linux training.  Runaware will enable software purchasers to test
Linux products through the web browser without downloads or installation.
Support materials such as reviews and explanatory articles provided by
SlashTCO will enhance the evaluation process.

"As a full-service software evaluation marketplace," says Rod Plummer, VP
Strategic Alliances at Runaware, "it is important for us to give the
software consumer and corporate buyer the most complete information on all
types of software available.  With SlashTCO we will be able to present Linux
products in a way that will fully educate and inform our users."

As part of the alliance Runaware will also provide its users with the
ability to gain further intensive Linux training through Slash TCO.
Runaware will generate web site traffic  and Professional Services customers
for SlashTCO in return for access to a host of research, support and
training materials that will complete Runaware's Linux "pavilion".  The two
companies will cross-link their sites, thus providing one-stop destinations
for Linux evaluation and training.

"Runaware's evaluation service in combination with SlashTCO's support and
training services," says Duane Mayes, CEO of Slash TCO, "will allow
potential customers the chance to fully discover the benefits of open source
software by freeing them to find the right software application and get the
support and training they need."

The Evaluation Service Provider
Runaware's unique service corrects the counter-intuitive way in which ISVs
have formerly been forced to do business.  ISVs whose software will be
evaluated online will benefit from an educated consumer base interested in
finding the best software specific to their personal and professional needs.
Industry-specific software will also be evaluated on the Website enabling
ISVs interested in attracting customers from a specific industry to build a
customer base.

About Runaware
Runaware is the first virtual marketplace for hundreds of full-featured
software applications that can be accessed in a live test environment over
the Internet with desktop-level performance.  Runaware takes the guesswork
out of purchasing software by giving consumers the opportunity to choose the
best software before making a purchase by providing access to full-featured
software demonstrations over the Internet.  Runaware's partners include
Corel (NasdaqNM: CORL), Compaq (NYSE:CPQ) and SCO.  Currently users can
evaluate software from Corel, Macromedia (NasdaqNM: MACR), and IMSI (OTC
BB:IMSI.OB) among many others.  Runaware was founded by Pelle Axeland in the
fall of 1999.  The Website went live May 2000.  The company has offices in
Stockholm and Gothenburg, Sweden, Ottawa, Canada and Oakland, CA.

To evaluate software online go to www.runaware.com

About Slash TCO
SlashTCO, Ltd. is the U.K.-based open source services provider that helps
companies make strategic business decisions regarding fast-growing
technologies such as open source. The company runs an online resource that
provides materials, information and discussion forums to help companies
analyze their IT strategies and slash their TCO - - total cost of ownership.
For more information, visit www.slashtco.com/.



*******************************
Nix Jankow
Fusion Public Relations
570 7th Avenue
16th Floor
New York, NY 10018
t 212 651 4207
f 212 840 0505
nix.jankow@fusionpr.com