Linux has become a prime candidate for businesses and POS systems in the hospitality industry in recent years. The recent rise in use of Linux POS systems is due to the fact that Linux is freely distributed, with a few exceptions, which helps to greatly lower costs and overhead. Essentially, Linux is free, but the development of the system for a specific purpose or place of business will require a Linux programmer who is experienced and knowledgeable. The primary advantage is that Linux is far more stable and reliable than a Windows based system. Linux does not have the same susceptibility to viruses and crashes to which Windows systems are prone. In more cases than not, Linux will run until the hardware fails or the system is shut down, creating a near one hundred percent uptime rating.
Linux Systems for Use in POS/Hospitality:
The same cost-saving qualities of Linux are being utilized in the research facilities that implement the Linux systems across clusters of servers that monitor, store and retrieve data and materials for large projects and assignments due to the stability and reliability that Linux delivers. High performance and research clusters are the norm for research facilities, as each individual server or computer on the network, called nodes, can distribute the processing and memory needs across many client computers enabling faster and more efficient research.
While Linux offers decreased costs, free distributed source code and high stability, it does come with a few drawbacks. Due to Linux being free, it does not come with tech support or a repair plan as do larger and paid operating systems. This means a dedicated employee or contractor will need to be hired if the researcher or business owner does not know the Linux system. In addition, if a dedicated programmer is not hired, the owner will need to visit forums and communities online to fix the issue or design the system him or herself. While this does not cost any more money, it will cause the individual to spend longer hours learning the system in order to design it as they wish.