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Linux in the Developing World
Norsemann writes "Peter Spotts of the Christian Science Monitor has some very interesting things to say about the latest wave of Linux adoptions throughout Asia and beyond. He hits on some important points about not only China's role in Open Source but the 'global' role in Open Source... Perhaps the best is still yet to come." The BBC also has a nice story about Brazil using Linux in cybercafes.
It is OSS. When you run your entire operation on MS you're having your data infrastructure being controlled by a foreign government.
OSS is the best thing in the world for those governments who might be a little suspect of U.S. commercial interests.
The other advantage is that OSS helps to close the gap between the haves and the have nots. There are those people that romanticize the developing world and think that bringing technology to them is a bad idea. Well obviously these people have never been to the developing world and the lack of technology in these places helps to keep them in the third world.
Ironically a tremendous number of people in Nepal have email access and the guesthouse I stay in in Kathmandu runs everything on Linux.
This is certainly interesting to see that Open Source is being more widely accepted in the developing world. It bring to question, in what manner developers of programs that are not open source will attempt to combat this. Microsoft's recent pricing of Windows OS for only $40 in Thailand is an example of these attempts. Will this attempt by Microsoft really have an impact in Thailand, or is this simply an act of desperation? I wonder what the current impact is of computers running Linux in Thailand?
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troll blacklist. Please mo
The same type of people who built our digital past..
here's a hint, it wasn't megacorp!
No offense, but have you ever heard of IBM? Or DEC? Or Intel? Or Texas Instruments?
OpenSource makes tons of sense in the "developing" and "cybercafe" world for several reasons. The flexibility in licensing and the diminished need for patching over the dialup lines (speaking of remote locations, of course...some of the best public access to the Internet I've seen is outside the traditional developing world) is a great asset to those on tight budgets. However, it goes further than that. As the non-Western economies tend to have a different standard of living, even inexpensive licenses (compared to our costs) could be cost prohibitive. I have a close relationship with some teachers from Belarus and the piracy there is rampid not because people are necessarily out to steal from "the man," but rather a $50 or $75 dollar copy of Windows XP Pro (and come on, other than NFR copies or those that get on reseller deals...it's never that cheap here) would put the software out of reach for all but the elite. That being said, if you want to following licensing (like in a school), the alternative is clear.
And there is a MAJOR push for Linux on the desktop here at the moment. Here is why:
:P) but this is what you get without an affordable public education system...
Previously businesses and individuals bought their software via low-cost vendors of pirated software. This kept their cost down.
More recently, the Indonesian gov't has been crackind down on said vendors (a good thing IMO). THis is causing people to choose between paying full price for Windows or getting Linux at little or now charge. When you consider that the average worker here makes less than 20% what a worker makes in the US, the equasion is not very ballanced.
So, here comes Linux on the desktop at least here. Unfortunately, I have been less than impressed with the skill of the IT workforce here (at least one network admin I met didn't know what localhost referred to
Anyway, I think that the third world WILL drive Linux on the desktop adoption for some time to come.
LedgerSMB: Open source Accounting/ERP
About 6 years back I developed and setup a Cyber Cafe management system that ran 100% off Linux and Open Source tools.
For developing countries like India one of the major advantages of Open Source is the Cost factor and the general commuinity based support avilable for most Open Source platforms. Added to that the fact that things work the way they are supposed to, and you have systems running for well over 60 - 80 days without the need for a reboot / support of any nature. The end result is a winning combination all the way.
The other major advantage of investing in Open Source is that the younger generation ( who are'nt into the commercial aspects of computing as yet ) grow up and learn within a framework that encourages choice and alternatives rather than constricting you into a predesignated thought process.
In things as they stand today, we need this kind of liberty of thought and process.
the reality is that vast chunks of the developing world will be dumped in 2003 with little or no sustainable technology future.
Bill? Is that you?
"Backups are for wimps. Real men upload their data to an FTP site and have everyone else mirror it." -- Linus Torvalds
Venezuela also adopted Open Source in its government offices like a year ago.
I've been using Linux at home since 1995, and enjoyed every moment (even the learning, frustrating ones!); and whenever I can, I try to make my venezuelan friends become aware of GNU/Linux and Free (as in speech) Software.
Back to work!
I'm currently stationed in Somalia in a physician exchange program. While they may not have the most advanced technlogy around, they offer dual-channel ISDN in the capital and dial-up access can be had in most towns.
While piracy is rampant, most legitimate (i.e. with international connections) seem to prefer Linux due to the prohibitive costs of the MS licensing. Of course there may be some issues when exchanging documents, but these issues are minor.
From speaking to some of the IT guys is their disbelief that we in North America still choose to spend so much money when there are low-cost options available. I guess it's why we drive SUVs and stuff our faces in all-you-can-eat buffets.