Everex is taking a different tack with this open source stuff and is going to sell a $298 Vista Home Basic-based back-to-school PC at Wal-Mart's with OpenOffice 2.2, saving the user the cost of Office and letting him get used to the idea of running open source software in the protected environment of Windows.

Everex hasn't featured OpenOffice before, but Wal-Mart is an old hand at Linux.

The box called the Impact GC3502 that Everex is fielding is based on an Intel-compatible 2W environment-friendly 1.5GHz VIA C7-D chip with 1GB of systems memory, 80GB hard disk and DVD-ROM/CD-RW optical drive.

According to a canned statement from Everex product manager Eugene Chang, "For years now, industry restrictions and tightening profit margins have forced PC manufacturers to shy away from offering productivity software on their new PCs. In creating the eco-friendly GC3502, our main focus was to build a no-compromise, back-to-school PC with all the software applications a typical student would require, without resorting to bundling frivolous trial versions or increasing prices 30%."