HP and Novell this week announced plans to offer Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop on HP's $519 Compaq dc5850 PC, starting December 15th.

"The suite provides a number of applications, including a web browser, Open Office, multimedia tools and e-mail software," writes IT Examiner's Aharon Etengoff. "HP is also collaborating with Novell to develop a range of educational software solutions such as math, art and word games."

"Grant Ho, Senior Product Marketing Manager for Enterprise Linux Desktops at Novell, said the time is right for open source desktops," writes ZDNet's Paula Rooney. "'The economy is the No. 1 factor, and customers are trying to rationalize their IT spend and reduce the cost of their proprietary software spend and re-use hardware,' Ho said. 'They're looking for an open source solution at the right price point.'"

"Today, for the first time ever, all the major PC vendors are shipping at least one system with pre-loaded desktop Linux," writes Computerworld's Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols. "It's a big day for desktop Linux users, maybe the biggest day ever."

More here from DesktopLinux.com ... more here from bMighty ... more here from PC Pro ... and more here from The Inquirer.