Linux Foundation heightens Asian focus

New developments in Linux are about to emerge from Asia with the Linux Foundation’s heightened focus in the region. Last week, the foundation appointed Cliff Miller as its new director of China operations and Alex Lu, who will hold the same job in Taiwan.

Miller co-founded TurboLinux in 1992, bringing commercial Linux to Japan and China in the 1990s. He also co-founded Mountain View Data in 2000, which provided Linux-based data storage software and server provisioning software to the enterprise.

Miller’s counterpart, Lu is a co-founder at DeviceVM and, as the senior vice president of business development, continues to close worldwide contracts with leading OEMs to bring Linux to netbooks, notebooks and desktop PCs.

The choice of China and Taiwan to unleash a fresh wave of innovation in the Linux platform on servers and mobile devices is hardly surprising.

Taiwan has always been a hotbed for mobile and embedded development. The Linux Foundation noted that “there are a variety of companies in the country that today are increasing their participation in the Linux development community and initiatives such as MeeGo”.

In China, which Linux Foundation Jim Zemlin said is an important part of the Linux community, companies and Linux developers are building the most innovative technologies and are running Linux in enterprises across the country.

Miller said: “Before long, there will be over a billion people in China connecting with each other via mobile phones, PCs and other devices.

“And what better way to make their experience quick, reliable and fun than to use Linux? I’m eager to enable broader Linux use through promoting give-and-take among Chinese developers, consumers and companies.”

Until now, the Linux Foundation’s Asia-Pacific operations were only limited to Japan and Korea.