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Linux Taking Over Schools in India
slashchris84 writes to mention a BusinessWeek article about the growing role of Linux in the classrooms of India. In a country with a long history of corporate problems and financial issues, the inexpensive and flexible nature of open source software is gaining a lot of ground. From the article: "Two years ago, New Delhi said the best way to improve computer literacy in India was to adopt open source software in schools. Although Kerala is the first to introduce such a program statewide, 18 of India's 28 states either are using Linux or have pilot projects for its use in various government departments and schools. The education ministries in most states, and in Delhi the federal ministries of defense, transport, communication, and health, are all using the software on server computers"
from the penguins-in-strange-places dept.
Hey, Zonk, what's strange about Linux in education and government? Or is it India you find strange? New to the adoption of Linux by India topic are you?
The education ministries in most states, and in Delhi the federal ministries of defense, transport, communication, and health, are all using the software on server computers"
Also worth pointing out that this statement says "are all using the software on server computers", but doesn't say "all servers are using the software."
So it's like, "I see a tip of an ice berg, but I don't know how big it really is."
So that's, what? (21/4100) * 1,500,000 ~= 7,682 computers?
Not like it's going to make Microsoft sweat, but the comment from a student "Windows, never heard of it" might.
It sounds good, but it's not like Microsoft is going to suffer a lot for this.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
When I first read the headline I envisioned a hostile takeover by giant laptops with tuxeyes running fullscreen for laser shooting purposes. This is cool too though, I guess.
Was anyone else imagining scenes of guerilla penguin freedom fighters in air conditioned jump suits holding Indian children hostage demanding the release of politicl prisoners?
-matthew
"THERE IS NO JUSTICE, THERE IS ONLY ME." -Death
Cue in all the jokes about war and how it's usually USA invading other countries.
It's only a matter of time until most schools realise the full potential of open source software, let alone things like LTSP. It just makes sense to use things like this in an educational environment. Reduced cost, reduced administration, more portability between students...
And given that the students will "know" Linux after they're out of school, it's only a matter of time until it starts populating in the business world.
First there was Apple in education...And then Microsoft. Microsoft is shafting the educational system with their inflated licensing costs, and trust me, educators aren't standing for it any more.
It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
I read "Schools in India taking over Linux".
This is a well known tactic for the IT press since viewership is far lower on Thu and Fri and almost zero on weekends. When we start seeing THESE kinds of articles published during "prime time", then we'll know that Linux and open source has arrived and the press is not worried about 'exciting' a particular advertiser.
Seeing this in printed form would be a good indicator also.
IMO.
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
Rather refreshing to see as least people click the "anonymous" button because they know it's tired. Hey people, griping about off-shoring and automation and too many engineers is NOT a valid job search activity.
Hey, Zonk, what's strange about Linux in education and government? Or is it India you find strange? New to the adoption of Linux by India topic are you?
Ah, such a beautiful troll. It accuses Zonk of racism and implicitly calls Linux second rate. Best of all, it's completely wrong. Oh, but there's more, a defense of the Mighty Morphing M$ Monopoly. It could only be better by invoking religion, BSD and abortion.
it's going to make Microsoft sweat, but the comment from a student "Windows, never heard of it" might. It sounds good, but it's not like Microsoft is going to suffer a lot for this.
It sounds good and it is good. M$ is going to lose mind share because they can't both make a profit and "give away" software everwhere it's too expensive. They don't have the man power to decide, much less do the install. They can dangle a few machines in a few prominent places, but the needs and demands far exceed their ability to control it all. People are going keep installing free software and using it. The advantages are obvious and show, especially next to the crippled versions they insultingly have created for those who can't afford US prices. All of India is going to enter the information age and they are going to do it without the price, complexity and insult that non free software has to offer.
The only thing strange about this article is that BusinessWeek noticed it. What's not strange is that they rattle off a bunch of M$ FUD about "service trouble" and "it's all on the server" to conclude, "Linux will be knocking Windows off the desktop anytime soon." BusinessWeek is slowly understanding free software, but they are not ready for publication yet.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
That means it'll cost businesses( in 2010 ) $19.9 Million for Linux. They also say that businesses, etc already pay $200 Million annually for Microsoft Windows software but leave 2010 number out.
No wonder Indian schools are looking to Linux, they'll save huge sums of money this way and at the same time, be building a workforce capable of supporting this shift.
Who knows, in 2010, we may be seeing only IDC numbers on revenue from services around Linux and OSS.
It sure seems strange that these kinds of numbers always seem to be equated with how much money Microsoft makes or how big their market is when infact, it's all about how much it's costing businesses. After all, they are not talking about services and are all about software sales.
When US companies 'see the light' and realize these numbers are leaving THEIR pockets, they might be willing to look toward Linux on the desktop too.
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
Does anyone know what distro they're planning to use? If financial factors are an issue, perhaps Ubuntu?
Reality is nothing but a collective hunch.
There is another angle, though. Maybe you dismiss it, but to some India is one of the hottest technical development centers in the world. And this is a country that highly values education and generally does a better job of providing it to even it's poorest constituents than the "Developed Countries". Having just returned from Hyderabad, I witnessed kids crawling out of what could only be described by a Westerner as a mud hut, with a sparkling clean and pressed school uniform on, ready to go to school. In America, these kids would probably not qualify for most public schools because they don't have an address.
Then, they go on to higher education... and guess what schools are being built fast in India? Technical schools. Lots of them.
My point is, your "backwater" country is doing a better job of educating it's masses than most western countries, and the tools that these kids learn today will shape technology tomorrow.
-- "In order to have power, I must be taken seriously." -Mojo Jojo
Ah yes, 'cause you'd never get government financial solvency issues or corporate problems in America, would you?
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
I'll ignore the condescension for a moment to correct your 'Windows is the computer' assumption.
I work in the developing world in a place where computers are about at the same level of uptake as they were in the US in the early to mid 1990s. More and more people are getting them, and exposure is increasing. From my observation, the only people who care about Windows are those who know nothing else. And that refers mostly to donors, volunteers, expat advisors and a few functionaries who have been trained overseas.
Almost everyone else has exactly the same reaction as that little girl: "Windows? never heard of it." This is true even if they're using Windows on their computer. They don't care about brand names, they just want to do their thing.
And by the way, of the roughly 450 youth who come and use one of the computer centres I administer, the most popular pastime is reading and writing email, followed by web browsing. Games come further down the list. Thing is, they can play games any time. Outside. With their friends. Email and the web? Their time for that is limited.
Crumb's Corollary: Never bring a knife to a bun fight.
No. Barely even sparsely populated with aborigines. Who didn't use the wheel, much less copper.
"I don't know, therefore Aliens" Wafflebox1
didn't mean to offend. However, you must admit, if you play games, Windows is the computer. I prefer Suse 10.1 for everything else.
Between Illinois and Ohio, I believe. It's that Amish, Mennonite thing they got going on that makes the simple, populist, peguin-thing so attractive. Watch out, though, as some of them won't turn back their clocks for nobody!
"Nothing will teach stupid users how to use a computer like software with a man page that hasn't been updated in five years, has no written documentation, and responses to bug requests along the lines of "learn C and fix the problem yourself, noob!"
Quoted directly from the MS fast fud site. My experience installing Mpeg4ip was quite different. I directly emailed the lead developer, got a polite reply and was directed to the online forum. What kind of support do you get in closed source land, a phone call to Jameel in Bangalore who calls himself 'Dave' and speaks in a fake US accent.
re Re:Well duh!
davecb5620@gmail.com
Ah, such a beautiful troll. It accuses Zonk of racism and implicitly calls Linux second rate. Best of all, it's completely wrong. Oh, but there's more, a defense of the Mighty Morphing M$ Monopoly. It could only be better by invoking religion, BSD and abortion.
I've learned never to underestimate slashdot posters ability to get things completely wrong. Troll? Racism? Come on, dude, put your biases aside when you're visiting here, you'll find things are always as they seem to you.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Think of the students who pass out these linux friendly schools.
Yes. How many will actually have any kind of impact on develpment or purchasing?
Before you answer that, consider the same rule for the schools in your own community. How many students will actually have an impact on purchasing or development trends. All you need is one dumbshit who becomes an MBA who didn't do squat with computers in school making decisions because "Everyone Else Is Going This Way" and/or "A Free Admin Magazine, heavily advertised in by Microsoft/Oracle/Sybase, etc, recommends something closed source"
The reality is decisions rarely go the right way, and I've been spending the past three years fighting the stpid bastard who made some of these decisions, because this is what they used where he came from. Damn damn damn!
This is not to say India or any of the places these students land will behave the same, but the odds are they very well might. We should be cautiously optimistic, but wary.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
If you want to be protected from hords of cheap programmers from India, then go with Microsoft.
Table-ized A.I.
I am from India, and yep, I am still in Highschool. And, Linux and Openoffice have made it to the High School curriculum, which *is not* a good thing. Why? Because most of the time, all these kids know is paint and wordpad, and ofcourse games! So, and the Linux we get in school books is all just plain bash. So, most of my friends are turned off By Linux, and by Openoffice as well, since they see it as a needless clone of Office. And, btw, most of the servers of the Indian Government run on IIS, as can be seen by visiting http://home.nic.in/abc.html This will give you an IIS 404 page, so it is IIS.... And, btw, Linux has not cost-factor advantage here, since most PCs are running Pirated versions of Windows...Even the ones in the Government Offices!