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Australian NSW Government Making Way for Linux

Posted by timothy on from the step-aside-please-step-aside dept.

seralick writes "Australian IT has reported that the Australian NSW government has established 'Australia's first whole-of-government panel to supply open source software and services to its departments and agencies.' Basically they have opened the way for the wide spread goverment usage of Linux software and services."

16 of 92 comments (clear)

  1. Wow! by ta+bu+shi+da+yu · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I never thought I'd see this. I wonder if Bill Gates will fly in and offer massive discounting for govt depts, like he did for Telstra?

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    1. Re:Wow! by Morlark · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I think it's a bit late for that now. Governments around the world are starting to realise that Linux is a viable alternative to Windows.
      This reminds me of what's happening with the Computing Society at my university. The society is a strong supporter of Linux, so Microsoft has been offering us free software. They have yet to mention what the catch is, so we'll have to see how it all turns out.

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    2. Re:Wow! by Pants75 · · Score: 4, Funny
      There probably wont be any catch.

      They wan't you familiar with and happy to use windows products when you hit the job market.

    3. Re:Wow! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting
      Telstra is the lamest company ever. They had systematically gouged Australians and set-back the broadband and other Internet based industries decades.

      Bill Gates and Telstra deserve each other, scum bags.

    4. Re:Wow! by Mr_Silver · · Score: 4, Insightful
      I never thought I'd see this. I wonder if Bill Gates will fly in and offer massive discounting for govt depts, like he did for Telstra?

      A very good point.

      I want Governments to be driving Open Source adoption in their departments because they realise the benefits that it gives, not pretending to do so in the hope that they can get better discounts out of Microsoft.

      It it is the latter, then we still have a very long way to go since the masses will equate Linux as being a barganing tool rather than a serious alternative.

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    5. Re:Wow! by Petrushka · · Score: 4, Interesting

      In many places the catch is convert all IT programs to MS only. It's the only thing you will ever need, so that's all that needs training. Some places reject the offer as they train UNIX in one form or another and do not wish to be IIS only.

      My latest example is when I tried applying for a job as a professor at a university in England (the application is still under way, so I will not name the university). The site is set up to accept covering letters and CV's only in Microsoft Word format: there is a notice expressly forbidding anything else.

      On a happier note, I contacted the university to complain about the stunning degree of narrow-mindedness shown by this -- do they really want to exclude anyone who doesn't use Microsoft Word from consideration??? -- and they replied saying that they were extremely sorry and they'd be happy for me to e-mail pdf files to them.

      Not quite OpenDocument support, but it's a start. And all without jeopardising my application. Yay!

  2. They'd be screwed without something like this by Dancin_Santa · · Score: 4, Interesting

    In short, NSW put together a group of companies that can be considered "preferred service companies" for when something is b0rken on a government machine. Until now, each problem report had to be handled individually, but with the "panel" in place, each problem can be pooled with other problems and the fix postponed en masse rather ignored on an individual basis.

  3. Not really. by ta+bu+shi+da+yu · · Score: 4, Insightful

    If they are licensing via the GPL, and they are using Linux (which runs on open standards and doesn't play well on proprietary standards), then I very much doubt this. The code will remain open.

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  4. Kangaroos Embracing Penguins? by Pants75 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Eeewwwwwwww!

  5. Misreporting and Slashdot Sensationalisation by pressesc · · Score: 4, Informative
    Firstly, this is old news. The formation of the panel was announced last year, and tenders were called to form the panel. The deadline for tenders was 28 Oct 2004. This is just to inform the people that the panel has closed.

    This in NO WAY makes NSW open source friendly. If anything it makes it harder for anyone in the govt to use open source. What this does is it requires users to buy open source software from a group of designated companies, basically locking small players out of the parket.

    This is bad news !!!

    Once again we see how slashdot story leads add so much spin to a story as to distort it completely.

    1. Re:Misreporting and Slashdot Sensationalisation by 0x461FAB0BD7D2 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The panel was formed to save government agencies the time and trouble of running open tenders. It was also formed to provide Linux-based services.

      Yes, perhaps this may lock out smaller companies or organizations, but it does promote open source usage by making it simpler to get.

      The main goal, as I see it, is to break the Microsoft stranglehold. If it requires the use of larger companies at the expense of smaller ones, so be it. If Linux captures a large share of the market, through these designated companies, then smaller players can come in and compete directly based on technical merit.

      If Ubuntu is better than SuSE is, let it compete against SuSE. But Ubuntu doesn't have much chance to compete against the might of Microsoft without the help of Novell, IBM and others.

  6. We won't get this news on the telley yet by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    We have to wait 8 months in Australia before this news is on the TV

    I better find a torrent for it!

  7. Accountability and Tools by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative
    The idea is to present open source as just another tool. The vendor serves as an "abstraction layer". In this way, a NSW government employee, who might be primarily trained in public health for instance, can rely on the systems vendor to take care of the details irrelevant to the public health issues.

    It is what traditional commercial vendors have provided for years. What's new is that it will be implemented on top of Linux instead of Multics or Windows or VM/CMS.

    Looks promising.

  8. My company made it on the panel by exekewtable · · Score: 5, Interesting

    My company Solutions First (http://www.solutionsfirst.com.au) made it on the panel right next to the multinationals. We are a relativly small IT firm that specialises in Linux solutions, even if most of our clients don't know it. We have been providing linux solutions for 5 years in our current form.
    Nevertheless, this is a great thing for NSW. It means that all those government departments that previously had to submit a tender for linux services can now just call us up and we can help them.

    There is a more detailed article here:

    http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/0,2000061733 ,39187094,00.htm
    we are listed as Sol1 in that list.

    Its going to a great chance for our little company.

    dave

  9. Hardly surprising by devious+concepts · · Score: 4, Informative

    This is not a spur of the moment action. Several years ago the NSW ALP had an open meeting regarding open source and more importantly open standards. Yes open standards, it is considerably more important than open source. Open standards span closed and open source and allow us to get on with business.

    Anyway, two years ago Della Bosca frankly admitted he did not know much of open source let alone linux, yet he was prepared to learn. To be honest he represents what we want. A politician who knows their limitations but is not afraid to ask. The result is a favourable movement towards open standards, which I believe is the way for governments to go.

    Three cheers for della bosca, he may not understand it but he is working for a better open world.

  10. Is this the sign of a new phase of Linux adoption? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    Go Dave!

    For some more context stuff, a contact of mine is an IT consultant hired by various large corporates primarily because he is tied into the nsw.gov.au old school tie network.

    He mentioned during a linux conversation that practically everyone in the NSW state government is "desperate to get rid of that Microsoft crap". Almost every department has people that have been hurt many many times by Microsoft, and have simply had enough.

    The key problem has been accountability. They are public servants, and so of course are never going to move until they are 100% sure they can do it and not suffer political/career repurcussions in the process.

    The (previously mentioned here) NSW Roads and Traffic Authority linux conversion was seen as their white knight project. From what I understand, that has been a strong success. With that out of the way, and now suppliers they can use without fear of repurcussion, I would expect to be seeing not just the odd single linux projects, but a whole swath of projects through most of the entire NSW government over the coming year.

    And you can bet once half of NSW is enjoying no failures from viruses and greatly reduced prices, the rest of .gov.au is going to model their efforts after them.

    Hazzah!

    Adam K