Sun Microsystems has opened a test facility dedicated to its open-source alternatives, a move viewed as an attempt to loosen Microsoft's grip on enterprise desktops.

The Open Source and Java Desktop Centre of Excellence has been established in partnership with integration specialist Si2, which has been spearheading the strategy behind Sun's open source office productivity package, StarOffice.

StarOffice is a central plank in Sun's desktop software bundle, the Sun Java Desktop or more commonly known by its project name 'Mad Hatter'. The recently launched product compliments the Sun Open Network Environment (SunONE) software stack, Sun's Java Enterprise System.

The establishment of the centre signals that Sun, responding to concerns raised by organisations contemplating a switch to StarOffice, is embracing a holistic approach to mounting its challenge for the office software space.

"Customers wanted to see whole environment run so we talked to Si2 and they decided to set up a centre of excellence for...[for] lack of better term -- 'office productivity'," said Sun Microsystems software product manager, Laurie Wong.

Si2 director John Englaro indicated that some of the estimated 20 or 30 organisations are concerned about devoting hardware and technical resources to trial the software environment.

So Sun is going to extreme lengths to ensure users are not under any kind of burden to evaluate their offering. The centre has already offered to deliver hardware equipment to an interstate customer in Adelaide.

"The intention was to make it as easy as possible for the customer to actually come and make an evaluation and, if they're happy, to then proceed to a 'proof-of-concept'," said Englaro.

Sun's Wong argues that the licensing scheme that Sun has attached to the product family is likely to be a big draw card. The company argues that popular methodologies based on processor usage and desktop audits are overly complex. Sun has opted for a flat-fee licensing scheme.

As earlier reported, Sun will offer Java Enterprise Server package to organisations on a three-year agreement at a cost of AU$171 per employee per year. Java Desktop will cost AU$90 if purchased as add-on to the enterprise suite.

Some estimates put the cost of Office XP licenses at around AU$770 per seat under Microsoft's controversial software assurance scheme.

However, Wong said that Sun has no illusions about the task it's facing, acknowledging that IT managers are cautious creatures of habit.

"We're not kidding ourselves that no matter what data is put in front of them that some will say 'that's all very nice but I like what I have and that's the way it will stay'," said Wong.

According to Si2's Englaro, there is lot of FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) in the market place undermining confidence in open-source software, including the dramas associated with SCO's recent attempts to sue IBM over Linux.

"Everybody is basically watching everyone else but no-one wants to be first," said Englaro.

"We have to break some of this conservatism that seems to be, specifically, in large organisations and government, [in order] to move away from something that they were brought up with. I think they're all very scared to do it," he added.

Englaro shared a colourful observation comparing the behaviour of enterprises faced with the decision to make the switch from proprietary office software, to the jittery antics of penguins huddled on an ice wall.

"When one penguin jumps the rest will go," he said.

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