$$$ MONEY $$$

[trefall]

Gotta question and I figured this was as good a place as any to post it. I'm very interested to see responses. This question is generally for those who work in IT. If you're a Linux wizard but make your living as a carpenter, no need to respond.
I understand the philosophy behind 'open source'. It seems a grand scheme, but not very functional in making a lot of money. I love Mint and appreciate all the work that goes into making the best 'out of the box' distro for those coming over from Windows. But, I've read about how even Clem, works in a similar industry but I haven't read anything mentioning that he works specifically in Linux.
From what I understand, Linux is more common in servers than in office/business applications world-wide. If this is true, that brings me to my actual question -
"How do the Linux devotees in the IT industry make their living? Windows?"
that begs another question -
"Do the majority of Linux users consider themselves geek/nerd-ish?"
My answer would have to be, "I used to but technology left me behind 20 years ago."
Interested to see responses

[SimonTS]

I don't work with Linux, but do work in IT and as a result keep a close eye on the job market. Here in the UK more and more jobs are appearing on the market asking for Linux experience, or even for Linux certifications.

[trefall]

Simon,
Thanks. That doesn't surprise me. I've always seen Linux as more of a European phenom. I've never even been to Europe. I just don't like Bill Gates' early marketing scheme and tend to like to see how things work. When I worked with computers many years ago, Windows was the only option. At home, I put off Linux until my later years and now wouldn't go back to Windows. Granted that limits my 'virtual' life experience a little but I get by.

[vrkalak]

Mod: Moved topic to a more appropriate place.

Also, Clem (LinuxMint Founder and Developer) is the 'only' full-time employee of LinuxMint.
All the other LM Developers and Maintainers are volunteers. Some work in IT, some do not.

As for myself, I work on the computer everyday - for hours on end.
But I am not an IT person - I'm an Architect.

I am NOT a Geek ... (but, I do need to get a life)

[thatsallurspaceships]

"How do the Linux devotees in the IT industry make their living?"

Im not sure, maybe a professional IT person can sell you an umbrella in desert. He doesn't need to rely on products, he makes the best of what he gets. Also consider there are not that many professional Linux Informaticians and you have to pay the products too, not the buyer alone.

P.S.: Hope i dunderstand the question correctly

[trefall]

Spaceships,
More or less. My point is with most [non-Redhat] Linux distros, you can buy cds but you don't need to. Buy your own at a local store, much cheaper, download and burn it yourself. With shipping costs skyrocketing over the last seven years, it's a hell of a lot cheaper that way.
From what I've seen, 99% of Linux distros are put together by people with passion. Possible, but doubtful that Clem has gotten rich off Mint. I assume he does it, because he still enjoys it. I notice almost all distro sites have advertising which helps pay for services and maybe pay the programmers/maintainers a little something at the end of the year, call it a Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa bonus.
I also doubt it looks bad on a resume to be able to say, 'Founder/etc./Chief Security Programmer... for Linux Mint'. Anyone hiring for IT positions, I would hope, know what Linux Mint is.
To restate my question - Since most 'open source' is free, how do people who work on Linux systems support themselves?

[Kendall]

Very few people make money off of desktop Linux. The vast majority of people making a living off of Linux are doing so in the server market. Since the majority of the internet runs on Linux, the demand for coders and sysadmins is generally rather strong. Most people that I know who work on desktop distros don't do it for the money. It's nice that Clem can make a living doing it but in this case he's the exception, not the rule. A number of desktop distros are the result of the needs of a specific organization or are a part of a different business model. For instance CERN creates Scientific Linux because it's what they use for the work they do, it's nice that they distribute the distro, but it's not critical that they do so. Red Hat offers a server and support business, but they distribute Fedora for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that it serves as a great unstable channel for many of the packages that eventually get merged back into Red Hat proper. Canonical is basically following the same business model as Red Hat except that Ubuntu Server Edition is free of charge whereas Red Hat Enterprise Linux does indeed have a price associated with it. Even with my own distro, Peppermint OS, the desktop distro is only one part of the equation. I spend far more time assembling custom server builds for paying customers than I spend working on the freely downloadable desktop distro. I build the distro for a number of reasons, one of which is marketing the other services I offer.

Basically the real money in Linux is in the server market. Good coders and sysadmins are always in demand somewhere. Even web developers need a degree of Linux knowledge as there's a sizable chance that whatever they're working on will be hosted on a Linux server.

[trefall]

Thanks for that Kendall. It's what I assumed but want to know the story 'from the trenches'. I appreciate that.

[misterp1998]

I work in IT, primarily with Windows systems. I use Ubuntu at home, but all my pocket money is made cleaning virus-ridden Windows machines, I LOVE those Fake Anti-virus virus'es!!!