Cloud infrastructure is largely Linux-based, and cloud services’ overall growth is increasing Linux server deployments. As many as 30 percent of all servers shipped this year will be cloud services providers, according to IDC. This shift may be contributing to Linux hiring trends reported in a recent Dice study, which found that 77 percent of hiring managers have put hiring Linux talent on their list of priorities, up from 70 percent last year. In the third quarter of 2013, Linux servers accounted for 28 percent of all server revenue, compared to 21.5 percent in the same time frame of 2012. “The utilization of the Linux operating system is moving more and more up the stack,” says Dice president Shravan Goli. Linux is clearly the preferred platform for cloud computing deployments, notes Pund-IT analyst Charles King. Overall, 93 percent of the managers surveyed in the Dice report plan to hire Linux professionals in the next six months, while 86 percent of the Linux professionals responding in the survey said Linux proficiency has provided them with more career opportunities.