Singapore's Resolvo Systems has announced the launch of MoveOver, which it describes as "possibly the world's first migration tool" to assist Windows users in migrating to a Linux desktop environment within a few clicks of the mouse.

In only two steps, MoveOver makes a Linux desktop look and feel like a typical Windows machine, said Wong Onn Chee, project director, Technology Solutions, Resolvo Systems.

MoveOver comes with a user-friendly, wizard-driven interface to migrate various parts of the Windows environment, including documents, email messages and settings from Outlook or Outlook Express, wallpaper, cookies, Internet bookmarks and other user-specific preferences, to major Linux desktop distributions. Installation is quick and fuss-free, and the best part is, users do not require any Linux know-how in order to make the switch, said Resolvo.

Wong said one obstacle to the migration from Windows to Linux has been the "mental challenge" facing long-time Windows users who are contemplating the move. Also there are worries of data loss and whether the Linux desktop is really that easy to use, he said. "Users will have questions as to what will happen to all the files, files structure in Windows explorer, bookmarks, wallpaper, and most importantly emails in Microsoft Outlook/Outlook Express."

According to Wong, these concerns have been addressed with MoveOver.

Established in 2000, Resolvo Systems positions itself as a resource optimization company focused on optimizing clients' business resources ranging from business analytics to office collaboration and Linux infrastructure solutions.

Its clients include the National Library Board, Singapore Ministry of Defence, China Construction Bank, The Boston Consulting Group, Citibank Singapore, SembCorp Logistics, Shell Exploration (Asia, Middle East and Africa), North East Community Development Council and the South East Community Development Council.

The company is currently looking to partner OEMs and major Linux distribution players to bundle MoveOver with their products.

"We feel that this is the most efficient way to reach out to our potential customer base," he said. "At the moment, we are already in talks with some of the major OEMs and major Linux players."

The company will also open source part of the development of MoveOver. "This is in line with open source software development trend and through this, we are able to leverage on a larger pull of community users to help us improve MoveOver," said Wong. It has made available MoveOver Freeware Edition which is available free for downloads. "Once we have finished our preparation, we will open source parts of MoveOver for the benefit of the whole community," said Wong.

MoveOver is now compatible with all Linux distributions running GNOME 2.6 and Evolution 2.0. Forward compatibility with later versions of either components is assured.

The MoveOver Standard Edition is priced at US$20.