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226 Comments
- amdlinux, on 04/05/2008, -9/+109If anything, kids should not held hostage by a monopolistic company with questionable business ethics.
- rolf, on 04/05/2008, -3/+49That's kind of like saying in driver's ed you should have the opportunity to drive a Ford, Honda, or a Volkswagen. It's not completely the point of the education and besides that, and most schools can't afford it - the taxpayer will have to pay for such a meaningless luxury.
In school, kids should learn how to use computers in general. They should know how to use a word processor, not be tied to MS Office or even OpenOffice. Just like they should not be tied down to a Texas Instruments calculator but should be able to use any calculator. Same goes with many other programs.
I applaud the use of Linux though specifically, because I don't see the need for a school to pay for the extra software year in and year out (the savings to the taxpayers), be tied to one specific vendor. The promotion of open standards is also good. - pwnies, on 04/05/2008, -2/+41Now the real fight begins - will they use vim or emacs?
- Kingoftherings, on 04/05/2008, -4/+31In before Over 9000.
Awesome news by the way. - lenninct, on 04/05/2008, -2/+27Ubuntu scores another one!!!!!!!!
- mogebier, on 04/05/2008, -4/+28Yeah, Apple is an evil company, you are right!!
- bgrah449, on 04/05/2008, -7/+29dugg for both Windows, OSX, and Linux
- jcannonb, on 04/05/2008, -0/+21No, it's ubuntu, they will use gedit and bluefish
- inactive, on 04/05/2008, -0/+20My Swiss army knife runs Linux
- mithrasinvictus, on 04/05/2008, -1/+20If anything they should learn the universal principles behind the software they use.
Not operating a specific piece of software that is guaranteed to be outdated once they get jobs. - Falldog, on 04/05/2008, -35/+53If anything kids should have the opportunity to use both Windows, OSX, and Linux.
- svivian, on 04/05/2008, -15/+32Good idea, then they can see just how much Windows sucks by comparison.
- luchid, on 04/05/2008, -2/+18Are you implying Linux is useless? Do you realize most of the Internet works thanks to *NIX?
- Falldog, on 04/05/2008, -16/+32Enjoying Unix = Cool
Having extreme anti Windows bias = lame - HonoredMule, on 04/05/2008, -0/+15Can they use a free, open source operating system on Windows?
Technically, yes...but what's the point?
Getting "cheap" with my tax dollars is fine by me too. - surfernerd6987, on 04/05/2008, -6/+21Thats fantastic, 2008 is truly the year of Linux, Microsoft has screwed itself into a hole, and the next generation is realizing there are better alternatives out there.
- absurdist, on 04/05/2008, -1/+15Nah, it's just another idiot troll/MS fanboy. Check the comment history.
- theaceoffire, on 04/05/2008, -1/+15How about this: When you insults an OS, please either A) Tell why, B) Suggest an alternative.
Otherwise you sound like a dick. - bowens44, on 04/05/2008, -0/+13why waste money on windows if you're going to run free / open source software anyway? That makes no sense at all.
- tnoy, on 04/05/2008, -1/+14Yes, go from a vendor that controls your software, to a vendor that controls your software and hardware.
How the ***** is that a better move? Get your head out of Jobs' ass. - jorisb, on 04/05/2008, -1/+1450-50-50 the way it's supposed to be
- scrag10, on 04/05/2008, -2/+13Wine and Notepad
- skaldicpoet9, on 04/05/2008, -1/+12This is what the schools in the states should do. It would free up a lot of cost for other types of funding that schools desperately need.
- andrewtheart, on 04/05/2008, -1/+12(1) Games shouldn't be run at schools in any circumstances, and even if they were permissible, Linux has an array of native games to divert oneself with. Besides, Wine runs many Windows games better than Windows itself (particularly Vista).
(2) Photoshop runs in Linux (CS2 for sure, and CS3 as of recently). Not sure about Illustrator, but I have no doubt that it works.
It's going to take more work for kids to learn how to run games on these machines, thus they will be less distracted from their educational experience. - andrewtheart, on 04/05/2008, -1/+12Why do they need to use Windows, specifically? Windows itself is entirely self explanatory. The concepts you use to control the operating system are broad and very general things like clicking, typing on a keyboard, etc. (There might be a few special functions like copy and paste, etc, but these principles are fairly universal across Mac, Linux, and Windows).
You do not need previous exposure to Windows to be able to function in the real world on a Windows machine, if you have common sense. People who are learning computers need training on learning things like MS Word, Excel, and Internet Explorer, NOT Windows itself. And MS Word, Excel, and IE can all be run in Linux, and there are free alternatives available to these products anyway. - inactive, on 04/05/2008, -0/+10That's the thing with all the "Kids should be taught Office because that is what their employer will use" argument. There is no guarantee that Office of Windows will still be used or even resemble their current form.
- theWrkncacnter, on 04/05/2008, -0/+10It's like affirmative action for computers. Most everybody who uses computers will have used windows at one point or another, but you can't say the same for linux. This is giving people that chance.
- scrag10, on 04/05/2008, -0/+9Losts of industry standards have a Linux version.
But not ALL FOSS software works under Microsoft.
FOSS doesn't limit education it promotes it, it implies that if theres a problem LEARN how to fix it.
That being said schools don't need much software anyways, a word program is usually enough. - RoboDonut, on 04/05/2008, -0/+9Linux isn't about rebellion.
It's about technical merit. - mfc5200, on 04/05/2008, -0/+8I think for school this is a really good idea, because as the article mentioned, the students will be able to use the same software at home for free.
I remember some years 10 back (6th grade), I had procrastinated on a power point project about the Orinoco Crocodile. Every day we were supposed to be working on this project. I spent most of that time trying to find .wav files from funny movies like spaceballs and animating lightsabers as .gif to use my as my cursor. Anyways, the day before the project is due, I told my mom I needed to go and buy Microsoft PowerPoint for my homework. As I figured, Warcraft II looked a lot cooler and more complex than Microsoft powerpoint, and Warcraft II was only like 50 bucks. So Microsoft powerpoint would have to be like $20 bucks max. Lo and behold, it was around $200 at the time, and I showed up to class the next day without a project.
So it would be nice to use free programs at school such that the students could use those same programs at home should they choose to. - andrewtheart, on 04/05/2008, -0/+8Digg a little deeper - he probably correctly realizes that the switch to open source in schools in such countries is an indication of the general attitude of the freedom from restrictive and monopolistic policies in the various bureaucracies such as the government, the school, whatever.
- luchid, on 04/05/2008, -0/+8They have consoles at come. Why would you want games and Photoshop on a school computer?
- superyounan1, on 04/05/2008, -1/+9seems like more and more countries in Europe are being added to my list of places i'd love to visit one day, that is, if I can afford to get any Euros
- HonoredMule, on 04/05/2008, -1/+9Well then, I guess the future is looking pretty bright!
- pilobilus, on 04/05/2008, -2/+9Microsoft offers software vouchers plus grants for hardware to any school anywhere that will agree to keep other operating systems off their campus. This is a long standing marketing policy. The reasons to use Linux instead are those stated, plus lower "total cost of ownership", plus removal of a network security nightmare. On the whole, it's the rational choice.
- pilobilus, on 04/05/2008, -0/+7They can get Windows for free, plus grant money for hardware, if they agree to keep other operating systems off campus. This is long standing Microsoft marketing policy, intended to produce all the brainwashed drones money can buy.
- fr3ddie, on 04/05/2008, -10/+17screw paying for software!
- latova, on 04/05/2008, -0/+7Its better than installing windows, by then all the kids will have graduated.
- Remmy, on 04/05/2008, -3/+10http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/080404/microsoft_windows_g ...
With a new Windows version coming every 6 minutes, using a Free Operating System in the academic world seems to be the logical step. It will save a ton of money, it will expose a new generation to alternatives, and it allows them to openly and freely modify the software and system to meet their needs without violating some sort of EULA imposed by a corporation.
Anyone thinking that Windows will remain the world dominating Operating System seriously needs to start looking at the alternatives. Not just GNU/Linux, but all Unix derivatives. The world is realizing that it doesn't need locked in, closed source, proprietary systems. - mrsteveman1, on 04/05/2008, -1/+8There isn't going to be any year of linux. What there will be is a continuous series of years where Microsoft shoots themselves in the foot repeatedly, in public, which will then let everyone else walk all over them.
- HonoredMule, on 04/05/2008, -0/+7I would visit a country based on their forward-thinking leadership.
- cap11235, on 04/05/2008, -0/+7Perhaps you should bother to learn them first. You can get a lot done in a very short amount of time once you get past the learning curve.
- cppwizard, on 04/05/2008, -4/+11I have been a linux user for almost 10 years. Having said that, what the hell does "democratization of knowledge" mean? Knowledge is truth, why politicize it?
- inactive, on 04/05/2008, -0/+7I don't think we are talking about a poor third world country here, but free is nice. Ubuntu is a nice operating system and should serve them just as well as any other, so why pay for one?
- pilobilus, on 04/05/2008, -1/+8I take "democratizaton of knowledge" to mean:
* removal of financial barriers to learning
* removal of practical & technical barriers to communication
* direct user control of learning & communications tools
* wider distribution of learning & communications tools
Linux is no panacea, but it is miles ahead of anything, in terms
of the factors named above - spyd3rweb, on 04/05/2008, -0/+7Congratulations would you like a cookie?
- andrewtheart, on 04/05/2008, -0/+7Why would the students hate a fairly generic computer interface that provides them will all the applications they need at their fingertips? That's just strange.
- tnoy, on 04/05/2008, -2/+8You probably said the same thing for 2007 (and 2006, 2005, 2004, etc)
- BryanJK, on 04/05/2008, -0/+6They won't be playing games in school, and for classes that use photoshop they could just have Windows machines or even dual boot
- LinuxKitty, on 04/05/2008, -2/+8Apple and Microsoft are not much different in their goals. Apple only lost the fight against Microsoft, many years ago. Yes, Macs are nice, but they are overpriced and the user is locked into a system worse than is the case with Windows.
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