City of Munich Struggling With Basic Linux Functionality

jones_supa writes: Just like the city planned a year ago, Munich is still calling for a switch back to Windows from LiMux, their Ubuntu derivative. The councilors from Munich's conservative CSU party have called the operating system installed on their laptops "cumbersome to use" and "of very limited use." The letter from the two senior members of the city's IT committee (PDF in German) asks the mayor to consider removing the Linux-based OS and to install Windows and Office. "There are no programs for text editing, Skype, Office etc. installed and that prevents normal use," the letter argues. Another complaint from councilors is that "the lack of user permissions makes them of limited use." These kind of arguments raise eyebrows, as all that functionality is certainly found on Linux.

Comments

Idiocy.

[Shaman]

This is computer neophytes telling IT how things work.

Like the pigs running the farm. Like the inmates running the asylum.

Like councillors up to their ears in that Microsoft bribe money.

Re:Idiocy.

[TWX]

Computer neophytes are the reason that the IT department exists in the first place. IT's sole role is support. I don't care if it's a $200 netbook or a $200,000 iSeries financial server, computers are a means, not an end. All of us in IT have a job because we facilitate that means for people that don't know how to do it themselves, regardless of the reason why they don't know how.

If the IT department for Munich either failed to train users how to use their equipment (like how to find a simple GUI text editor like Mousepad) or failed to install such software it's not the users' faults that they're upset. I use vi, but I don't expect Bärbel to get escape-shift-colon-w-filename-enter to save her file, or to understand the differences between CR-LF and UNIX-style file structures.

I also wonder how good of a job they did keeping the users' workstations up-to-date. That's a huge problem in IT even on systems that were designed from the outset for it.

Re:Idiocy.

[Anonymous Coward]

There is no way to met the requirement when they change all the time because some porn/gabling/toy software/site will not install/work properly.

All the 'basic functionally' they claim to need are will know to be found in ubuntu and other distributions. These peoples are lazy liars, or corrupted liars that want microsoft money.

Re: Idiocy.

[Anonymous Coward]

The problem in Munich is the same I have seen everywhere I have seen Linux introduced

The workers use their laptops for personal stuff besides work.

Often employees get Admin rights as part of their work requirements and installing games and other personal stuff like GPS software or specific hardware drivers is common.

All of that is fine and dandy on Windows because people is mostly familiar with Windows and any one can click next-next-next.

Often the IT department has to deal with their system cock-ups and continuous malware infestations. "Uuuh I dunno it broke"

When you give a Linux computer to people 99% of the time it is a work tool, and obviously the workers are not happy that they can not use their new flashy free laptop paid by the council with public money for personal use.

And that is all there is to the story.

Re:Idiocy.

[Aighearach]

I just wanted to toss this in here, my wife doesn't know the difference between the words "internet" and "web browser," but she has no trouble at all using Skype on linux. If you don't know what is under the hood, it is all the same; you click the icon, the application opens, and then the buttons are from the application not the OS.

She knows we're not using windows, but she doesn't know what that means; but she can still use it exactly the same. And if she plugs in a USB drive from work, opens LibreOffice, works on a spreadsheet... and calls it "excel," it doesn't matter and it still works!

This is how it is supposed to be. Users who are not blacksmiths should not worry about the metal used for their plow, but instead they should worry if it can indeed plow the fields they have.

Re:Idiocy.

[AmiMoJo]

Years ago in a previous life I built/reinstalled some computers for customers. We used to install Open Office because most people thought it was part of Windows and couldn't comprehend that Microsoft wanted charge them hundreds of pounds for software that their work/school/mate's dodgy warez copy provided on every other PC they had ever used.

People were still confused and complained, until we started renaming the program shortcuts to Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Just the icons on the start menu, nothing else.

Translations

[sjbe]

The councilors from Munich's conservative CSU party have called the operating system installed on their laptops "cumbersome to use" and "of very limited use.

Translation: We don't want to be bothered learning anything new and it doesn't have solitaire on it.

"There are no programs for text editing, Skype, Office etc. installed and that prevents normal use,"

Translation: We have no idea what we are talking about, can't be bothered to ask any questions and only want to use what we are already familiar with.

Another complaint from councilors is that "the lack of user permissions makes them of limited use."

Translation: We want to be able to download whatever malware infested screensaver or porn we feel like.

Re: Translations

[buchanmilne]

As far as I remember, their transition strategy started with deploying OpenOffice and Firefox on all Windows machines and making them the default, then removing MS Office a few months later, then switching the OS a year later while keeping most applications the same.

IOW it is almost impossible that the users didn't have a word processor available or know how to use it, or even if it was the case, thus wasn't as a result of the OS change.

Not having Skype may be due to policy (which would apply regardless of OS), in favour of other privacy-respecting IM platform.

There is some Background ...

[Anonymous Coward]

Going to Linux was a big politcal thing (pushed by a social democratic administration) in Munich, being thoroughly planned project for over 10 years. Goal: reduce license costs, increase independence. Losing Munich to a self hosting project did cost Microsoft a lot, including prestige. They are very committed to see it fail.
Now, they recently moved their German HQ from rural Munich into the center (read: into central Munichs tax borders). And they have unleashed all lobbying power they could get hold on.
These two Politicians from the letter are from the CSU, that is Bavarias quasi-monarchistic conservative big-industry corruption-laden redneck shithead party, that is in lead of whole Bavaria - except Munich, which means, they are in opposition.
Now, review that case again ...

Re: Don't light your torches just yet...

[r_a_trip]

Munich has had this system since 2004. I refuse to believe that Munich could have survived this long on the system if it really was like in TFS.

Re:Are they running Windows 8?

[0123456]

because hitting the windows key and typing out what you want to do is just so cumbersome.

Hint: there's a reason it's called a GRAPHICAL User Interface. If I wanted to have to type commands, I'd use a real shell.

Microsoft added that crap when Search was the New Shiny, and everything had to have Search to compete with Google.

Then they added a tablet interface when the iPad was the New Shiny, and everything had to support touchscreens to compete with Apple.

Maybe they should just try building a good desktop OS with a GRAPHICAL User Interface.