I'd invest in IBM, but for reasons unrelated to their "Operating System Du Jour". After all, IBM was the company that brought us OS/2 Warp. IBM will survive even if the Linux revolution doesn't happen. Looking at their multiples though, IBM's share price might be a bit high so investing in IBM might not be the best short-term performer, but since your friend is asking you to solicit investment advice from the public Internet...
Generally speaking, their financials are pretty clean, their management isn't totally lame, and they still pay out dividends (even if the yield is something like 0.46%). IBM is the type of stock you put in your IRA and forget about.
I don't know what sort of return on investment he is expecting, but the days of VA Linux's wild rise are history.
