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55 Comments
- scuzzman, on 10/12/2007, -2/+42Yes, but the school districts are trying to _save_ money ;-)
- kingace, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Personally, I set my grandma up with an old laptop and Xubuntu (this was her first time with any computer at all) - and once she got the hang of the basics of computing, she's been able to do simple tasks with it - email, web browsing, instant messaging, etc..
Surprisingly, as soon as she got an email account she was instantly into a whole network of, well, old people, who communicate many times a day in different ways. Her inbox is nearly as active as mine.
I feel that anyone, no matter the age, who has an open mind and is interested in computers, can learn to use computers - linux, windows, apple - whatever they have access to. - compu73rg33k, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Why is he being dugg down? It's true, it never was "just" for grownups. It was for anybody willing to give it a shot and learn a new OS. I installed Mandrake when I was in 6th grade and started learning linux and in 6th grade I was by no means a grown up ;)
- alettieri, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9I have plans to assist low income schools in implementing Linux. Children do adapt very quickly and show an eagerness to learn. The OpnSrc application community has support for many Classroom learning tools. Good Article, Great example using his own children.
- smokypotion, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10I wish my school district had used Linux when I was in school.
We had a crappy Windows/Novell system. We used to get hit my viruses at least once a week, if not every day, making the network go down. We had crappy versions of Microsoft Office that would crash all the time. The setup on all the computers was slow as molasses, even though the computers were pretty decent machines. Last time I checked the school district was still using this crummy setup. Poor kids.
Sure, some of the problems weren't directly related to Windows, but most of them were. Linux would at least fix the virus issue and probably the speed and software issues, not to mention save the school district a ton of money. I hope someone on the school board will see the light someday and fix the district's technology woes. - Dhalgren, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9http://www.edubuntu.org/
I know it's a distro, but I imagine they have all the good educational software bundled... - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9I'm 13 and I'm been using Linux for a few months, getting a little bit more into it. I have an old IBM Aptiva with Ubutnu on it, it's a tad slow so I'm going to try Slackware with Xfce. I also downloaded Slax after getting mad at DSL. I wish Slax wasn't Live only (yes, I know there's a hacky way to get it installed, but I'd rather not do that)
- spisska, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8People used to working in a X environment have little trouble adapting to a Windows environment. The same principles often apply. There may be a bit of frustration as a Windows environment is far more constricting than X is, and that Windows lacks a truly functional shell.
But the fact is that it is far easier to move from *nix to WIndows than vice versa. The question is do you want to teach people to use computers, or do you want to teach them how to point and click? - nphp20, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Is your grandma using a computer?
- Dhalgren, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9There is also always the possibility that one of the reasons businesses don't want to switch to Linux is because people coming from schools aren't familiar with the OS. In Addition, most Open Source applications on Linux are also available on Windows: Open Office, for example. So, as long as they have control over what applications they can run at work they will know their way around.
For what I was doing on school computers (writing papers, doing research, etc) it didn't really matter whether I used one of the macs or the IBM clones. The only thing I didn't like about the macs was that I could type faster than my letters would appear on screen... In the end, though, it wasn't that difficult to learn how to open the word processor on a couple of different operating systems. - ray4389, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8Yes and my school system buys Apples for technology type classes like graphic arts, photography, etc. We have 100 or so Macs.
- markos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Any recommendations for good open source Linux educational software?
- manitoba98xp, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7They "hated" them not because they were Macs were/are bad, but because they were stubborn, unwilling to adapt, and, most of all, you can't play as many games! :P
- cdmarcus, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7@HaroldX - STFU.
- Chicken2nite, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4@Melted UFO
I have never heard of a kid saying that they loved windows, and the only reason why I could figure they'd prefer windows is so they can play starcraft. I think this is a great idea, it gets the system moving away from re-enforcing Microsoft's dominance. When I was in high school, the computer classes consisted of teaching you Microsoft Office, creating Power Point presentations. I suppose they felt the need to justify paying for all of those licenses.
If you had the kids do something useful with the machines, maybe then they wouldn't hate them so much. Linux has a two button mouse, so that would probably alleviate some apprehension that they might have towards something different. - NewChar, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Yeah, right now there isn't even a consumer level video editor ala' Movie Maker or iMovie (Kino might be eventually, but it's very limited in the formats it can import).
For early elemtary education (ie before the students should be learning spreadsheets, word processing, etc) I think Linux would be a fine choice. - coredump0x01, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Try cinelerra http://heroinewarrior.com/cinelerra.php3 and/or avidemux http://fixounet.free.fr/avidemux/ I use them for editing vid-caps of games and home movies.
- kingace, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Haha. Thing is, she's the kind of lady who has a huge collection of coupons, so she'd probably go for it. =P
- ray4389, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6My Grandma could easily use Linux--she works on a computer at her job doing some bussiness *****.
- Dhalgren, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3So you showed up a month ago? When I showed up a year ago it seemed to be all linux and mac. At a later point we had lots of wii stuff. What are you complaining about? That the view of a socially-driven site follows social fads? This kind of stuff is what makes digg a great site to visit. Who wants to read about the same stuff month in and month out? If you want something different, then make your own site and see who shows up...
- pengu2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"Hey kids, Ubuntu doesn't count, sorry."
Yes, buried by another Ubuntu user...
But let me tell you why!
Ubuntu is not just another "easy to use" distro. Ubuntu is not made to be "easy to use" or "newbie friendly" it's made to be SIMPLE to use (yes, even by linux users).
Everyone is saying that Ubuntu is debian for the lazy, or the newbie distro, however, it is not. I have used (and still do use) Gentoo, Slackware, Debian, Red Hat, and Fedora (not LFS yet tho).
The thing is, I am writing this from my Ubuntu laptop because it "just works". Sometimes, people just have to get down to work, without messing around with the OS.
P.S: i have used linux for 2 years, and use FreeBSD on my desktop, DSL on my second laptop, Arch on my third laptop. And finally, Ubuntu on my third (work) laptop. - ericmoritz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3pengu2: I totally agree. I've been using Linux for 7 years and I use Ubuntu because I don't like wrestling with my computer to get it to work.
Sure I can dig into .rc files, but why? That should be a last ditch effort. Why is there such a trend in Linux users to want to do things the hardest possible way? - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Prescisely, compu73rg33k, I have known how to use and program (on) Linux/UNIX since the fourth grade. It is, in my opinion, easier to use than Windows, and I currently run *NIX constantly.
- cdmarcus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Hell, I'm that age now and using linux. Of course, it's a hell of a lot easier to use now.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Linux is for kids! , All kids should know how to use nano to edit /etc/X11/xorg.conf and some apt-get is good for them.
- Polymira, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2And yeah, I'm talking RedHat7, Slackware, etc. KDE 1.x, gnome had a task bar like kde... umm .... 3d drivers were a no unless you had a 3dfx card for the most part .... yeah, no ubuntu/linspire/etc for us =p ... oh yeah, and NO USB! (that came with the 2.4 kernel series)
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@ king
I was talking to NewChar who said "ie before the students should be learning spreadsheets, word processing" - TjLAXattack, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Friend just started working at http://www.kiddix-computing.com/
LINUX-based OS for kids. - Polymira, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Ummm ... I started using linux full time 6 years ago when I was 14 ... hardly grown up =/
- fizzfoam, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2My parents (in their 70's) both loved learning to use computers; e-mail was the biggest attraction, it got them in touch with long-lost friends, and eliminated the long-distance phone bills (anyone remember what THOSE were ? :) ) to their kids. And picture trading. And recipes. They started with Windows 98, then we moved them on to XP.
But it could have been Linux, or BEOS, or AOL- it didn't matter. They never cared how the thing ran, as long as the desirable apps were there! That's always been the only important thing in the success of an operating system.
PC's (generic "PC"s, any brand) first caught on because of SuperCalc. Businessmen drooled over it, and told their staff to "get me a SuperCalc!" What's SuperCalc? The first popular spreadsheet, late 1970's, and it ran on CP/M - not DOS, not Windows, not Mac, not GEM, not XP, not BEOS, and WAY before Linus Torvalds began typing his little experiment, LINUX.
Then there was MAC.... Adobe Photoshop and Pagemaker made the MAC succeed. It sure wasn't the MAC OS; that was a piece of doggy doodoo; it actually showed cute pics of bombs exploding on the screen when it crashed, which it did frequently. Bombs... wasn't that professional?
PC's finally caught on because they said "IBM" on the front. That was a big enough assurance to software developers that they might sell a few copies. But there was no Windows yet, not for years. Gates and company made a few bucks because they lucked out when IBM agreed to use DOS. Then Lotus 123 came along. Remember that? That 'supercalced' the PC, and helped sell a lot of 'em.
Meanwhile, Microsoft saw some more possible cash flow if they could look "MAC-like", so they frantically began to borrow whatever they could to copy MAC OS. They wanted Photoshop and Pagemaker to run on an MS OS, so they could get in on the profitable action.
The wonderful result was Windows-286. Ah, what a beautiful piece of work! It had cartoons and ... well, it had a cartoon look and used a mouse. Whooppee! Other than that, it stunk.
Then some unknown called "Corel", decided, lord knows why, to write a little app that used this new Windows thingy. They called it CorelDraw. That folks, is why we have PC's and Windows XYZ today. CorelDraw was sooooo cool, it made WinTel successful.
So Microsoft got slightly better, with Win 3.0... better cartoons. Just so happens the PC hardware began to get good enough to do a few things with those cartoons. And they mostly all still said "IBM" an the front. All together, that's about why we are where we are today.
Oh yeah, that 'Internet' thing helped a bit too. But it runs just as well on Windows, Linux, and Macs. And cell phones.
Many businesses, large and small, are now listening when their geek squad shouts "free software!". Schools hear it too. There are so many useable Linux distros now, that we geeks are going to have to find something else new, to fill our incomprehensibility-esoterocism-superiority_complex-driven needs.
Even Microsoft officially announced it no longer hates LINUX. It's not about the OS. It's about cash-flow. Wherever you and I spend our cash, that's where Apple and MS and Linux-entrepreneurs will go, with the flow.
I wonder what we'll all be info-juggling with a year from now? Bet it'll be fun.
BTW, anybody got a Commodore-64 in the back of their closet? - Lobster, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2EduPuppy
http://puppylinux.org/wikka/EducationPuppy
Open University Support
http://tmxxine.com/Wikka/wikka.php?wakka=LinuxOU - Trevahaha, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3@Dhalgren - I think your statement is true, it is a cycle. Businesses use Windows because 1) other business use Windows, 2) Employees know how to use Windows. Schools use Windows because when they didn't (i.e. Apple days), people said "but everyone in the industry is using Windows!!" and many schools realized they should think about switching over.
I was fortunate to attend a high school that had Macs and PCs (mostly running Windows), but also labs with Linux, Solaris, and Netware. (We had a large technology "experiment" grant).
However, if I was a school with a limited budget, it'd be best to put students on Windows if not solely for the fact that this best prepares them for the "real world." Yes, if someone is taking a computer class, they should get exposed to more, but day-to-day use, why not? It's not the place of a school, or its IT department, to create a movement to use Linux in hopes that one day it may be the most popular. In a perfect world, we'd all attend schools with technology grants that could supply students with every make & model... but we don't ;-) - blakacid, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Im a kid and i use ubuntu too. I gave it to all my friends too. I also gave my friends pirated copies of Office 2003, Windows XP, Vista, Half Life 2, and Civilization 4.
Free stuff is good. - steelmaverick, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@kingace
I don't want to imagine the awkward conversation when she finds out that someone emailed her a sale on cheap herbal viagra. - damienp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2My wife is finishing up her education degree and I helped her set up edubuntu on her laptop so she could do a presentation on open source software in schools. When she presented it to her peers they couldn't believe that it was free. Now 90% of her class wants my help setting up edubuntu on their own computers.
I just think that the word isn't out there yet. No one in her class (all future teachers) had never heard of it. It's great software, and I think it will have a significant impact on schools, especially with non-existent budgets. - hackernofxdude, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Man, I wish Kentucky would just convert already. They probably wont do it because they already have their proxy servers and stuff set up the way they want. :-( They just upgraded to new desktops and servers about two or three years ago.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3@ New
are you forgetting Open Office? - Hamsterpotpies, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I'm one of them students. I'm using CentOS and not Ubuntu. Mostly because I was raised on Redhat.
- Chandon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Even if the employers are still using Windows when the students get out of school that doesn't really matter. That's about five years... it's not going to be the same version of Windows that would be in schools now. It's not going to be the same version of Microsoft Office either.
The difference between Windows XP with Office XP and Windows Vista with whatever the new version of Office is is easily as big as the difference between Ubuntu with OpenOffice and either version of Windows. - darkphan, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Silly rabbit, Linux is for kids!
...
Anyhow, I hope more schools follow suit. If we can show the future adults that there is more to computers that Windows, this world would be a better place, or atleast in my mind it would, but, in my mind, everyone would be running an Apple with OS X, etc. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0dfgdg
- cosequin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The future is a web OS. The latency you see with dsl and cable will have to be a lot lower for it too happen. I can't wait for google's "virtual os".
organic bulgarian rose water:
http://www.royalessence.com/ - kingace, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1OpenOffice isn't a video editor.
- Stonekeeper, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1I'd like to see your grandma work out what wireless card she has on her laptop, search the internet to find the driver, download and install it. I had to do this myself recently and for me it was a PITA. God help your grandmother.
- Naradar, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2Digg has really taken a turn for the worst. When I first started coming here it was nothing but Jon Stewart and Colbert videos on the front page. Nowadays it's nothing but Linux & Ubuntu. WTF happened? Get your priorities straight diggers.
- Dhalgren, on 10/12/2007, -8/+4Sounds good in theory, but didn't Apple already try this route?
- geekee, on 10/12/2007, -7/+3Ah yes, indoctrinate them while they're young.
- monkeyrun, on 10/12/2007, -17/+12Linux was never for grownups.
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