"Uhm, how bout those guys that pretty much invented the architecture of the net as we know it today? "
They were mostly contractors, not employees. Almost all research undertaken by the Feds has been done by contractors with an oversight office, in this case ARPA/IPTO (which later became DARPA and still is), put together to administer the research teams (contractors).
I've been working as a Gov't Wage Slave for 15 years. I have only met a handful of 'IT gurus.' Most of the idiots screw things up, then yell loudly "I'M A MICROSOFT CERTIFIED ENGINEER, of course I didn't make a mistake!"
I went to a meeting a few months back where an officer asked about Linux, and was told by his "Microsoft Certified Engineer" that "Linux is all command line and much too difficult to use. It doesn't even have a graphical user interface!"
"Okay, kinda true," I said. "I don't think Linux has a graphical user interface, but then Linux is an operating system. It's not really supposed to. Try GNOME or KDE if you want a GUI. Runs right on top of Linux. You can even dumb it down enough to look very much like MS Windows if you like."
So much for "Microsoft Certified Engineers." As far as I can tell, their only qualification is making uninformed proclamations and protecting their jobs by misinforming their bosses about alternatives to Microsoft. (BTW, I'm putting together an old lunchbox this weekend for my new CO. He wants to take it home and see for himself what '..this Linux stuff is all about.' Boy is he in for a surprise!)
Of course, there are *some* organizations which have really interesting toys to play with. My friends at NSA are certainly not bored! Of course, they're not stuck with NT/2000 either!
Okay, let me eat my words. I just talked to a friend who is still in contracting, and she said they removed the word "Microsoft" from the FAR. Did it a few months after I left apparently. Unfortunately, Section 8.4 still says you must purchase through GSA before going locally and all they currently carry are PC's with Windows. Getting a waiver of this requirement is a pain.
On a brighter note, I checked the GSA provider list, and they do have one Linux vendor listed. I have no idea what they are approved to sell, but it's a start!
I worked for 10 years in a DoD contracting office. Our 'bible' for what we can and cannot contract for is the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). The FAR specifically prohibits the purchase of any desktop OS but Microsoft UNLESS you can prove that MS is unable to meet the specific requirements of the job. Since the requirements are a desktop with an office suite, you can't use Linux.Cost and reliability cannot be considered in the acquisition with regards to an OS other than Microsoft.
I've since moved into an IT position, and I've managed to get permission to dual boot my NT with Linux to use some of the functions that MS does not provide. Another IT office on the base is uing Linux for DNS servers. We're slowly making progress, but I wish someone with power and money would challenge the FAR.
Once chance is a solicitation DARPA has for High Productivity Computing Systems (HPCS). I submitted a story to Linuxbiz on Slashdot tonight. Hopefully there's someone out there who can take it on.
Slashdot Mirror
"Uhm, how bout those guys that pretty much invented the architecture of the net as we know it today? "
They were mostly contractors, not employees. Almost all research undertaken by the Feds has been done by contractors with an oversight office, in this case ARPA/IPTO (which later became DARPA and still is), put together to administer the research teams (contractors).
I've been working as a Gov't Wage Slave for 15 years. I have only met a handful of 'IT gurus.' Most of the idiots screw things up, then yell loudly "I'M A MICROSOFT CERTIFIED ENGINEER, of course I didn't make a mistake!"
I went to a meeting a few months back where an officer asked about Linux, and was told by his "Microsoft Certified Engineer" that "Linux is all command line and much too difficult to use. It doesn't even have a graphical user interface!"
"Okay, kinda true," I said. "I don't think Linux has a graphical user interface, but then Linux is an operating system. It's not really supposed to. Try GNOME or KDE if you want a GUI. Runs right on top of Linux. You can even dumb it down enough to look very much like MS Windows if you like."
So much for "Microsoft Certified Engineers." As far as I can tell, their only qualification is making uninformed proclamations and protecting their jobs by misinforming their bosses about alternatives to Microsoft. (BTW, I'm putting together an old lunchbox this weekend for my new CO. He wants to take it home and see for himself what '..this Linux stuff is all about.' Boy is he in for a surprise!)
Of course, there are *some* organizations which have really interesting toys to play with. My friends at NSA are certainly not bored! Of course, they're not stuck with NT/2000 either!
Okay, let me eat my words. I just talked to a friend who is still in contracting, and she said they removed the word "Microsoft" from the FAR. Did it a few months after I left apparently. Unfortunately, Section 8.4 still says you must purchase through GSA before going locally and all they currently carry are PC's with Windows. Getting a waiver of this requirement is a pain.
On a brighter note, I checked the GSA provider list, and they do have one Linux vendor listed. I have no idea what they are approved to sell, but it's a start!
I worked for 10 years in a DoD contracting office. Our 'bible' for what we can and cannot contract for is the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). The FAR specifically prohibits the purchase of any desktop OS but Microsoft UNLESS you can prove that MS is unable to meet the specific requirements of the job. Since the requirements are a desktop with an office suite, you can't use Linux.Cost and reliability cannot be considered in the acquisition with regards to an OS other than Microsoft.
I've since moved into an IT position, and I've managed to get permission to dual boot my NT with Linux to use some of the functions that MS does not provide. Another IT office on the base is uing Linux for DNS servers. We're slowly making progress, but I wish someone with power and money would challenge the FAR.
Once chance is a solicitation DARPA has for High Productivity Computing Systems (HPCS). I submitted a story to Linuxbiz on Slashdot tonight. Hopefully there's someone out there who can take it on.