Which distro for the enterprise now?

> I can buy that to a degree. However, I would have a real problem if I
> went to go buy that 350Z I want from my local Nissan dealer. Then find
> out they tacked on $2800 for "service".

Not at all what RH is doing. You want a free distro built by Red Hat (even
supported through Bugzilla, but not with any SLAs), go with Fedora.

> When questioning them, they tell me how great their service is and as
> favor to me they are forcing me to use their "authorized mechanics". They
> have 3 years worth of oil changes, and other preventitive maintenance
> included. As well as a discount on other repair work.
>
> To me this is more a kin to what Red Hat is doing by attaching the service
> fee to the license. If they want to sell the "authorized dealer" aspect
> great, it gives them a decided advantage. All the more reason, to **not**
> lock me into them. If they really are superior what are they afraid of?
> Why must they attach the service to the sale of the product?

Because they are selling service. No one seems to get this - the software
is mostly free. They are selling service. You are basically asking "What
are they afraid of? Why are they attaching service to this service contract
they are selling?"

Let me say this again: RH is doing exactly what has been recommended to and
by F/OSS support folks for years. They are selling support services. Why
is that so bad?

If you don't want the support from RH but want the next version of Red Hat
Linux, get Fedora. If you want support, get RHEL.

Thomas