[Technical] Interesting computers-in-education piece. Education & the ACCC

[Con Zymaris]

On Tue, Aug 02, 2005 at 12:52:30PM +1000, Russell Curr wrote:
> Hi Con,
> 
> We tested linux desktops last year in one room but eventually went back 
> to WinXP due to some vocal complaints from staff - students did not seem 

Why not keep staff computers on XP and all the labs on Linux?

You see, it's not just the fact that you are depriving the students of 
exposure to alternate computing platforms. You're also depriving them of 
access the hundreds of free educational applications, or apps which are 
useful in education.

For instance, our locked-down educational PC, built-atop Linux and open
source, comes with software for symbolic math manipulation, scientific
plotting, chemistry quizes, geometric modeling, spelling quizes, typing
tutor, 3D modelling and rendering system, music notation system, DVD &
video editing, sound editing and about 500 more apps. I bet few on this
list would have any of these on their student desktops.

In a corporate environment the staff will be told "This is what you are 
going to use. You have no choice"

> to mind what platform we had. They have all adjusted to 
> StarOffice/OpenOffice as we are not migrating to MS Office2003 - the 
> latest OpenOffice seems great and very cheap - we can give it to our 
> students... And with Novell moving to linux I think the future may be 
> heading our way.  So we appreciate your battle to open up this area to 
> alternatives.

In the end, we can't force state schools to consider alternatives. But 
unless the Department of Education actually opens up tendering to 
alternatives, we have zero chance of winning business. This is 
anti-competitive to the extreme. Which is why we're going to the ACCC.

> 
> We have also struck 'windows centric' thinking with some CD based web 
> files where the author mixed cases with file names and url's,  such that 
> the system failed on a linux web server - it was obviously designed for 
> an MS IIS. Its nuisances like these that make you want to shout out that 
> we are not all using MS stuff !!  So keep up the fight.

Of course. And only by breaking the artificial constraints presently in
place, can competitive products have a look-in, which in turn will force
vendors like the one you mention to actually cater for something which
isn't just Microsoft.


-- 
___________________________________________________________________________
Con Zymaris <conz at cyber.com.au> Level 4, 10 Queen St, Melbourne, Australia 
Cybersource: Australia's Leading Linux and Open Source Solutions Company 
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