Dell Computer Corp. is getting ready to preinstall the Linux operating system on its Optiplex line of desktop PCs.

The company has been pre-installing Linux for large customers for some time, and it claims to be one of the first top-tier PC makers to make the open-source OS available as an option on its workstations and servers.

Dell's midrange Precision 410 and high-end Precision 610 workstations are available with RedHat 5.2 OEM System Builder Edition. The models running Linux are available with a single Pentium II or Pentium III chip from Intel Corp. and a Diamond Multimedia Permedia graphics card. RedHat 5.2 OEM System Builder Edition, which includes additional drivers for SCSI devices and graphics cards, will also be available soon on entry-level Precision 210 models as well, according to Dell officials.

In order to get Linux preinstalled on their machines, users must pay a $20 fee - that's $20 more than a system with Windows NT preinstalled. A full report appears on http://www.zdnn.com .