Apparently Ubuntu is catching on fast in India, and Dell is selling Ubuntu laptops at 850 retail stores in India now, so that might not be such a bad plan for HP either.
With publishing houses like EA and Valve joining Ubuntu, and changing the perception that "Linux/Ubuntu is not for mainstream users", and the potential rejection of Windows 8 by the market, this could get interesting fast.
Google is registering 1,000,000 Linux machines a day. Small desktops, granted. But (IMHO) the Year of the Desktop was really about the year of Consumer Linux, which snuck up on everyone upwards, rather than flowing down in machine size.
I know you're joking (and I doubt Linux on the desktop will ever be a thing) but it would be hilarious if Microsoft were the one to propel the old PC assemblers into making a Linux push.
http://news.efytimes.com/e1/86247/Ubuntu-Adoption-Grew--Per-...
With publishing houses like EA and Valve joining Ubuntu, and changing the perception that "Linux/Ubuntu is not for mainstream users", and the potential rejection of Windows 8 by the market, this could get interesting fast.