When dealing with applications like back-end accounting, it helps to be able to mold programs to an individual enterprise. Linux, with its open source approach, lends itself to this.

Restaurant chain Papa John's (Nasdaq: PZZA) is an unlikely place for the great operating system war between Windows and Linux to play out. Papa John's motto, after all, is "Better Ingredients. Better Pizza." Pretty low-tech.

But with 2,900 stores across the country, Papa John's has significant IT needs. In a recent major overhaul, the company replaced its vintage electronic cash registers with terminals that use Linux to link to back-end accounting.

And Papa John's is not alone. Consider Regal Cinemas, which claims to be the world's largest motion picture exhibitor, with 5,663 screens in 36 states. The last time you bought an extra large popcorn with extra butter at a Regal theatre, that sale was transmitted to the chain's accounting department through a network running the Linux OS.

Both businesses recently began using Linux for the same reasons as many other companies: The open source  OS is markedly cheaper than Microsoft Windows; it requires less computing  power to run; and its customizability means businesses can tweak it to fit their individual needs.

A Third Battleground

In fact, the market for customized business applications can be thought of as the third battleground between dominant Windows and upstart Linux.

The first battleground is the server  market. Estimates vary as to how much of the server market is run by Linux, but 20 percent is a commonly used figure.

Linux has gained success in the server market because the individuals who run it, unlike average office workers, are comfortable dealing with the obscurities of programming code. If the kernel needs to be recompiled, that's no problem for the unusual breed of human known as the IT professional.

The Second Battleground (The Tough One)

The second battleground on which Linux and Windows are battling for market share in the desktop market. But unlike the customized business applications market or the server market, the desktop market is a tough sell for Linux.

The problem? All of those Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT)  applications like Word and Excel that we know and love won't operate in the Linux environment without a lot of help, if at all. Even more than the Windows OS itself, those popular programs are the source of Microsoft's dominance on the desktop.

An Open Third Market

But the market for customized business applications, the Papa John's of the world, doesn't lean toward Microsoft as much the desktop market does. Without anchors like the Office suite, buyers are free to choose the best option without concern for previous proprietary standards.

Microsoft, of course, will not quietly concede this lucrative market. But even if the software giant can lower its prices to fight back, it faces a critical disadvantage in the customized application market: the tweak factor. When dealing with applications like back-end accounting, it really helps to be able to mold the program to the individual enterprise. Linux, with its open source approach, lends itself to this.

Since Microsoft does not release its code, its product cannot be custom tweaked for individual use. In the server and desktop market, this was a strength. The company guards the secret code, giving it a competitive advantage. This doesn't work in the customized business application market. What was once a strength is now a weakness. And Linux may step in to fill the gap. _______________________________________________________________________________

Posted by N.S. Soundara Rajan, Freelance IT journalist, Columnist "Deccan Herald",  Spoken  English Teacher & Knowledge networker   ...connecting people to people, and people to knowledge