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Open Source's Battle In Africa
eldavojohn writes "The BBC has more details about something we last discussed in 2008 — the showdown of open source versus proprietary software in Africa. When discussing the issue of cost, the piece quotes Microsoft's chairman on the scene, Dr. Cheikh Modibo Diarra, who alludes that open source continually costs you money by saying 'You buy Microsoft software, and you buy it once and for all, the cost that we tell you is the total cost for ownership.' On the other end of the story is Ken Banks from Kiwanja.net who has spent 15 years developing open source applications in Africa. His logic is that 'Today we're seeing growing open-source programmer, developer communities in South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria and other African countries. Clearly, if you have this informal programming sector coming up, access to source code is almost critical if they are going to be able to take advantage of these new tools that are emerging.' Well, the battle rages on, hopefully the emerging African developers and users pick the tool(s) that suit their needs the best."
Come on, everybody knows that there are no developers in Africa. It must be Nigerian scam!
Ezekiel 23:20
Oh yeah, that's exactly what they need in Nigeria--more programming skills.
SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
"'You buy Microsoft software, and you buy it once and for all, the cost that we tell you is the total cost for ownership.'"
And then Microsoft stops supporting the product, changes the formats the products uses, and makes prior formats erratic or impossible to implement. It's a good thing you'll enjoy your purchase of brand new software, because you'll be doing it again and again and again.
Or, you can go the Open Source route, which is continually and freely developed, usually for free-as-in-beer, and respects its own history. And if development stops, it's usually because some better Open Source project forked off or replaced it.
Better as in "it performs a better job," not better as in "we'd better release a new version to keep our market share."
"'You buy Microsoft software, and you buy it once and for all, the cost that we tell you is the total cost for ownership.' "
Yeah, like phasing out support for older OS's. And putting in new formats for the next Office iteration. I had to buy the new Office for home because those who upgraded never remember to downgrade. Not to mention that if you don't have a service contract you pay $X (I forget the number) per service call. I'm sure there are more instances of how "buy once, this is TCO" is wrong, but I'm not up to date on MS's current procedures.
What's the cost of OSS? Learning curve? Like Office 2007 didn't cause most people fits when it was released? I don't use Linux, so I'm no fanboy, but that statement was just ridiculous.
(Oh, and I graduate with my MIS degree tonight! Sorry, just happy.)
Vote monkeys into Congress. They are cheaper and more trustworthy.
The total cost of a windows box, the entire cost of ownership, is the up front cost of the MS software? Really?
Jesus, I've been a fool for using Linux on my personal systems. Why, considering all the man hours I've put into it, I would have saved virtually hundreds of dollars by paying for a quality Microsoft product!
I'm going to run out right away and buy a new operating system! Looking forward to never having to configure anything, and having a bug free system that does everything I want!
(Mods - Joke. Really.)
Of course you only buy it once. By the time the next version comes out it is so bloated, full of new DRM, in need of new video cards to handle the latest DirectX version, and just plain overall inefficient, that you need a new system to run it - which unavoidably comes with the next version of Windows preloaded.
Per processor licensing should have been banned long ago.
"It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
Hmmm... The article is a bit misleading.
In Africa, Microsoft faces strong competition from open-source software in particular the Linux operating system. Many use that and run run free counterparts to the Microsoft Office suite.
This is completely deceptive. The only people I know who runs Linux are students, programmers or web hosts. Run of the mill people do not use Linux at all. OpenOffice on Windows is used a little bit more often â" usually by people who cannot get a pirated version of MS Office.
There really is not incentive to use non-MS products. MS gives away all its software to university students and windows for the classrooms.
Microsoft's biggest competitor is pirated Microsoft software.
Wow. So all that money that we're spending hiring administrators, paying for software support and beating applications with a crowbar until they run properly is _completely unnecessary!_ I have been such a fool for all of these years. All I needed to do was pay the sticker price for a copy of Windows Server and that would have been enough for everything!
*cough cough cough* *mumble* *cough cough*
'You buy Microsoft software, and you buy it once and for all, the cost that we tell you is the total cost for ownership.'
This just proves he's been listening to Microsoft too long. He's using Microsoft's favorite buzzword without even thinking whether his statement makes sense. The purchase price is not the total cost of ownership. Not even Microsoft is claiming that.
Even they will admit that TCO includes training and support. Microsoft's argument is that there are a lot more Microsoft-trained personnel than Linux-trained, so you don't have to train them yourself, or pay them as much because there are plenty of others with the same skill set willing to take their place. And technical support from Microsoft is free. But you still need to pay administrators or a whole IT dept, whether you buy Microsoft or Linux.
Only someone with a religious devotion to the Microsoft idealogy would claim that TCO only includes the purchase price.
To be fair, anyone who claims that Linux has no associated costs is just as much a zealot on the other side.
As for "you buy it once and for all," that's untrue. You buy it now, you buy it again when you want to put it on another computer, and then you buy it all over again, for all of those computers, when Microsoft tells you to upgrade. If you're big enough, you get a bulk discount. Depending upon how long it is between upgrade cycles, buying Microsoft still might be the cheaper option, but it's disingenuous to claim that you only have to buy it once.
Actually, if your point is that you only need to pay for it once, Linux still comes out ahead because you get it free, once and for all.
I haven't done any studies so I have no idea whether Microsoft or Linux has a higher TCO. But Dr. Diarra's statement is blatantly untrue.
This assumes that you have the skills to correct the problem yourself. Otherwise you are still waiting for someone somewhere to fix the problem.
The choice is either pay for support to someone (either microsoft or redhat/IBM/other *nix vendor) or you get the software (open source or you buy it) and hope you do not have an issue. Many people think that if they pay for software they will get support from the vendor. This may or may not be true, depends on the software. With open source most people think that you are on your own. You cannot dial a phone number and get help.
Many have bought software and not had an issue. The same is true with open source software. It is the individual accounts of problems that skew one's opinion.
To sum it up: we should always look at as many options as possible. Then pick the best tool for the job at hand.
The last time I checked an M$ Eula, you don't actually own any code you pay for. you are actually paying a use license. M$ retains ownership rights to the software.
"Software is the difference between hardware and reality"
Whenever I hear someone in the U.S. say that, it's usually quickly followed by a Microsoft or BSA representative calling them to clarify that the term "ownership" means "we still own it, we're just giving you a license to use it, and if you want more, you will pay us more."
If this guy genuinely believes Microsoft products are a "buy once, own forever" proposition, I think he's in for a bit of a shock once the install base reaches critical mass.
I'm not tense. I'm just terribly, terribly, alert.
'You buy Microsoft software, and you buy it once and for all, the cost that we tell you is the total cost for ownership.'
It was when he said this that the fine print started to appear:
* Price does not include technical support, which is free for the first two sessions, but USD $99 for further sessions (and per hour via telephone), the price of new computers you will have to buy to feed our bloated clock-cycle-consuming system, the costs of upgrades,, the extra cost of Office, or the rediculous amounts of money you'll need before we give you a look at the source code, which will require you to sign an NDA. Microsoft claims no responsibility for health issues caused by our OS, including, but not limited to, cranial damage you'll get after banging your head against the wall in frustration of our poorly-designed un-interoperable amalgamation of legacy support and psychosis caused by using our compulsory poorly-maintained virus-catching browser. Offer only good on Windows Vista Starter.
Sounds like an easy choice for Africa.
Trying to promote Linux in places like Africa that are still working on their IT industries could be perceived as paternalistic. The sad, sad fact is that the majority of the western world uses MS Windows, and that if you try and say that despite this, African users should embrace Linux - it can come across as if you are fobbing them off with something second rate. You aren't, of course, but that isn't how the Microsoft Ministry of Truth is going to spin it.
The best way to promote Linux in developing markets is to promote it in developed markets. Countries that want to build their IT industry will, logically, look to how its done in countries with successful IT industries. Any increase in the Linux user base in the United States or Europe will be mirrored by an increase in much of the rest of the world.
If we can put a man on the moon, why can't we shoot people for Apollo-related non-sequiturs?
"You buy Microsoft software, and you buy it once and for all, the cost that we tell you is the total cost for ownership."
You can't really expect me to think that people in Africa are that fucking stupid to believe this line of bullshit...
"I bow to no man" - Riddick
You don't buy the software, you license it until the next version of Windows comes out and your software becomes incompatible with that, and your computer has virtually no resale value as the software has to be totally wiped else you risk a visit from the BSA. And according to Gartner the TCO for a company to support Windows was $9,784 per anum per computer (1997). You think it's come down in the mean while :)
davecb5620@gmail.com
That only the government and the largest enterprises are buying software, all the rest is pirated.
So "Free/Open Source" software is at exactly the same price as "Closed Source" software.
And there is a sick fascination with "the rich people" although they became rich by ripping you off.
And the main supperiority of "Closed Source software" is that it gives more opportunity for "back door handlings"...
And of course the "donor organisations" are much better at recommending "nice donor nation originated products" than local "service"...
And thus the blood of africa is still flowing out to the occidental world...
Instead he'll end up with Linux and Open Office if the gov't cracks down on pirates, and MS will be entirely out of the picture.
"Think about how stupid the average person is. Now, realise that half of them are dumber than that." - George Carlin
He was kind enough to set me up, via email, with a very lucrative business deal where I stand to make huge profits.
Of course, my upfront costs keep mounting, but he assured me when he asked for my account numbers that the funds will shortly be directly deposited to my bank.
1. The school teaches the UK curriculum; when I was last speaking with the person at the UK school who established the link with the Ugandan school, she'd said they'd had some new computers with Ubuntu installed on them shipped out but they didn't have the software expected by the board that set the curriculum they were teaching. Maybe that's the curriculum's fault, maybe it was a misunderstanding, either way, it doesn't solve the issue, even if it's a problem of perception and knowledge.
2. Related to the above, some people have the attitude "Everywhere else in the world runs Windows, surely teaching something else is a disadvantage?"
3. Few people knew how to use computers, and people usually have experience in Windows when you do find someone that's used computers. Finding someone to help with a computer is hard, finding someone who can help with Linux may be harder (though I guess the converse may be true where Linus is prevalent and Windows is not).
4. Lack of networks to search for help when things go wrong. We made an effort to take learning materials out with us, both for the kids and for the teacher to learn more (and not just about Linux), but it's difficult to provide enough documentation to cover every eventuality. Arguably Windows has the same issue but I don't think it has it to the same degree.
I was walking a fine line - on the one hand, I didn't want to treat the learning of the kids at the school as some sort of social/computing experiment to the degradation of their education, but on the other hand, I think open source could be a great thing in those sorts of situations.
I'll also add that for the time I spent there, I only saw a tiny part of Africa, so hopefully other people have more enlightening experiences to share!
Yes, but not *just* spam. They will also get new friends with dead uncles!
There is no -1 Disagree mod. Slashdot.org/faq defines mod options. USE IT.
Dear Sir, I am a minister in the Office of Software. A recent license audit has uncovered $1.6 billion (ONE BILLION SIX HUNDRED THOUSAND USD) of software licenses in an account at the ministry. The account was for a project that was killed in a planning accident on the way to implementation. Since there was no next project for the licenses the licenses have gone unclaimed. I am asking your assitance in getting the licenses out of my country. As teh minister I can certify you as the regestered lincense owner. For your troubles I will give you 20% of teh licenses. If you are interested in this offer please reply.
I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
The big advantage of Microsoft is that you can buy it on a disk.
The big advantage of Ubuntu is that Canonical will send you, free of charge, an entire Operating System, complete with application stacks, on a DVD if you ask.
Cheers,
Toby Haynes
Anything I post is strictly my own thoughts and doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the opinions of IBM.
Like Richard Stallman said at the WSIS Tunis panel discussion 2005: This is electronic colonization, i.e. the Africans are supposed to pay for foreign products and remain ignorant and dependent.
LOLOLOLOLOL
I'm a manager at a /major/ East-African health-care organization based in Uganda.
Years ago (before I arrived) someone had a highly customized Microsoft Navision system put in for our HMS/ERP system.
If we want to modify anything more in-depth than what color a button is we have to call up a Microsoft Licensed Consultant who has a key-file on a USB stick that allows them access to the inner-workings of the system -- and pay them hourly.
This system is the beating fucking heart of our organization and we can't even make something a required field or modify the validation of an entry without calling these circus clowns up.
The default license allows access by 36 simultaneous users. Guess how much Microsoft Nairobi forces us to pay per-user when we want to add more? try EIGHT HUNDRED FUCKING DOLLARS PER SEAT -- AFTER DISCOUNT.
Want to store more information than we currently do? BUY MORE DATABASE TABLES.
Dr. Cheikh Modibo Diarra either has no idea what he's talking about or is an outright fucking liar, because Microsoft has nothing anywhere near a business model that works for Africa.
We can't wait to get off their system.
And you're assuming that knowledge and ability are somehow static.
I find this particular line of logic particularly irksome. That's mostly because nearly every single thing I've learned about computers, I've learned under my own steam. There's no mystical Linux Club where knowledge of systems and how they work are magically and instantly conferred on members.
There is, however, a school of thought that encourages lifting oneself up by one's bootstraps, and which (handsomely) rewards curiousity and initiative.
And lest I be accused of arrogance toward those who haven't had the same education and opportunities as I've had, I should mention that I'm putting my money where my mouth is: I work full-time in the developing world, and over the last 5 years or so have watched Linux begin to flourish on desktops and servers in the country where I've taken up residence.
The hardest part of building acceptance for FOSS generally and Linux in particular has been getting people to move away from the perspective that working in IT consists of nothing more than learning a series of incantations to be performed when your Windows machine inevitably goes FUBAR.
It's taken time, and the work isn't nearly done yet, but I'm gratified by the knowledge that, of the young IT apprentices I've taken on over the years, nearly every single one of them holds a responsible professional position managing high-end equipment, a significant part of which is running (or running on) FOSS software. Not one of them had any formal computer training before I happened along. For most of them, their employment opportunities were effectively nil.
Based on my personal and professional experience, therefore, I have to conclude that your argument is specious, misleading and counter-productive.
Crumb's Corollary: Never bring a knife to a bun fight.
I essentially run a very large free software project in Africa, which is a pan African project, including folks in Nigeria called AVOIR (http://avoir.uwc.ac.za). The FUD that we encounter on a daily basis from the MS evangelists is quite amazing sometimes, as well as highly entertaining. The big issue here is that licence vendors are allowed into schools, and Free software is kicked out. This sets up a skill set for the kids that is purely MS based for later on, much like drug dealing and addiction IMHO
"Why is that? How could a nearly decade old insecure OS stomp the crap out of a brand new Linux distro? because for home users Linux sucks,"
Totally, out of this world, wrong. Not flaming you - but it amazes me how little people understand the monopoly. Please, look to your local school's curriculum. What are children taught? MS, of course. Very nearly every computer in every school has MS installed. It was made a standard, mostly as a result of MS "exclusivity" agreements from a decade ago.
Son number 1 attends college, where he majors in something called "computer sciences". He learns Microsoft. He learns absolutely zero "science". I know more "science" than he does. That son knows FAR MORE than I do about Microsoft, Microsoft products, Microsoft troubleshooting, Microsoft support, etc, etc, etc, but he is totally incompetent on any other platform.
For studying the products of a single proprietary operating system, the kid expects to earn a degree in "computer science". In fact, he will become part of the problem that perpetuates the Microsoft myth that MS knows best.
People really ought to understand the dynamics of a monopoly, before mocking those who fight the monopoly. Probably fewer than 5% of the people who argue the merits of Microsoft really understand how the actions of last decade have locked so many people into MS products. The schools are a big part of the problem today.
I would LOVE to see public schools dump MS, en masse, and stop the indoctrination that is going on each and every day. Just wipe the drives, pass out a *nix or BSD distro, and have the kids install. The only MS machines allowed in school would be in virtual machines.
Real computer science could only benefit, as more and more children are forced to face and solve computer problems. By the time today's Kindergarden kids graduate, they would be truly competent on dozens of platforms - including Microsoft platforms.
"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br