Hmm, sounds like Novell shareholders want to see the company begin to trim away at some of the company’s fat. Then again, maybe some spin-offs would do the trick?

Blum Capital Partners, a major Novell shareholder that owns more than 5 percent of its stock, has urged the software company to dramatically cut expenses, emphasize Linux more and sell several divisions.

In a letter sent to Novell last week, Blum managing partner Colin Lind and partner Greg Jackson reiterated concerns they initially voiced in June about the software company’s performance. The two sent the recent letter after a Credit Suisse First Boston financial analyst raised similar concerns.

“We are deeply concerned about the direction and pace you and the board are currently taking and have been dissatisfied with the company’s results. Given the company’s recent weak operating performance, we believe that the majority of Novell’s shareholders share our discontent,” Lind and Jackson said. “Our conviction is firm in the future promise of the company. The question is whether the current management and board will execute.” [Read the rest]