Smartbooks: Embracing Linux With Open ARMs

Asus notwithstanding, netbooks have received a great deal of attention in the Linux community for their role in gaining wider acceptance for our favorite operating system. So, when Freescale and Qualcomm recently debuted a line of what they call “smartbooks” at Computex — prominently featuring ARM processors and priced as low as $199 — the blogosphere had no choice but to sit up and take notice.

“Good opportunity here,” wrote jginspace. “I looked at the pictures in the article and was crestfallen,” countered fnj…