Why Your Library Needs Open Source

A friend who is taking in the Special Libraries Association conference, sent me this article, based on a session at the conference.

Why Your Library Needs Open Source from LibLime.com.

Severe budget cuts. Increased demand for services. Lack of adequate staffing. Sound familiar? At LibLime, we realize that your library is facing these challenges--and we can help. We're not just your average library vendor in a highly competitive and heavily saturated market. We're different, our products are different and our business model is different. That difference is open-source.

Open source is the difference

Open source has been a buzzword in the library community for several years now. You've heard the hype: open-source software is free, more reliable, more secure, boasts faster development cycles, and is just plain cooler than proprietary software. Here are just a few of the reasons why open source is an especially attractive solution for libraries.

Reduce costs

Open-source software is free (visit our downloads page to see for yourself). You pay only for the product support and training (if any) that you need. When an open-source user sponsors development of new functionality, the whole community of users benefits. Software functions are paid for only once making open-source software extremely cost-efficient. Libraries using open-source software benefit from many advanced technology solutions that they otherwise could not afford to develop themselves yet they still have the option to steer development if they so desire. Moreover, since open-source software developers like LibLime use a business model that relies on providing support and training for software rather than selling the right to use the software, the per-library support costs go down. Just think how you can re-allocate monies currently tied up in high annual licensing fees.

Innovate and collaborate

Open source empowers libraries to innovate and collaborate. Not only can you download and use open-source software for free, you're free to alter it in any way you see fit, provided you redistribute the result for free. This isn't just a theoretical model: as you read this, libraries worldwide are actively involved in improving open-source software. In early 2002, the Nelsonville Public Library System (NPL) determined that in order to switch to Koha, an open-source ILS, they would need to sponsor development of two lacking features: MARC support and a Z39.50 server. At the time, NPL didn't have the resources to develop the MARC support in-house, so they hired a professional software developer, Paul Poulain (who was also the release manager for Koha 2.0). On the other hand, NPL did have the means to develop the Z39.50 server for Koha. Since NPL's contributions, many libraries have benefitted from the MARC support as well as the Z39.50 server for Koha. In turn, NPL would never have been able to sponsor those improvements had the stable code-base not been available. Libraries like NPL are collaborating together to develop software that suits them. You can too.

Choose your support

In a proprietary software development model, you pay high license fees to use the software. If your vendor isn't providing you with adequate support or isn't allowing you the freedom to customize and improve the software to meet your needs, switching vendors means switching software. And then there's the matter of migrating your data from one vendor to the next: with open-source software, since all you're paying for is support, switching to another service provider or migrating to an in-house solution is simple. In fact, at LibLime, if managing your library software in-house is an eventual goal we can help you achieve that goal. Further, an open-source software development model means that your data is YOUR data. Our customers have unfettered access to all of their data all of the time in standard formats at no additional charge.

The future is 'open'

Open source in libraries has its challenges as well. Till now, library software vendors have built their businesses around a proprietary software development model, and, as a result, libraries have been slow to adopt open source. Many libraries simply do not have the in-house expertise to support open-source software development, and also don't have the ability to train staff on the use of the new technologies. They rely on software vendors to provide them with solutions. This is where LibLime comes in. We're informing libraries about the superiority of the open-source development model so they can provide their patrons with better technology services, faster and cheaper. And we make it possible for vendor-reliant libraries to use open-source software by providing them with outstanding support and training options.
Open source is here. It's growing. You can be a part of it.

Linux in Government

http://www.linux.org/info/linux_govt.html

Linux is now more than a decade old. Throughout its history there have been many government entities that have decided that Linux was the ideal operating system to handle their mission-critical computing needs. This list gets larger every day. Here are a list of some of the more notable migrations to the Linux platform in the public sector.

Government/Public Sector
Entity	Background
French Ministry for Education	The ministry has migrated over 3,000 servers to Linux - nearly all of their servers - with the majority running Red Hat.
Library of Congress, USA	Thousands of rare historic documents housed by the Library of Congress are being digitalized using Linux clusters and other Linux-based systems and the open source Scribe system.
Portuguese Ministry of Justice	The Ministry of Justice of Portugal is implementing a plan called LISA to incorporate Free and Open Source software into their IT infrastructure as a way to be innovative while also cutting costs.
Swedish Armed Forces	The Armed Forces of Sweden announced in February of 2007 that they would be migrating their servers from Windows NT to Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
Government of Switzerland	In mid-December 2005, the Swiss government announced that it would be carrying out a large-scale migration of servers to Novell's SUSE Linux.
Berlin, Germany	The city government of Berlin announced in early December, 2005 that they would be migrating most of their 58.000 Windows desktops to Linux.
New Zealand's Inland Revenue	The Inland Revenue Department of New Zealand announced in late October 2005 that they would be migrating 7,000 desktop systems to Linux.
Munich, Germany	Munich's city government announced it was migrating its entire IT operations to the Linux platform in 2002. Despite a personal visit from Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, the German city is continuing with its plans to switch 14,000 desktops to Linux.
The Government of Japan	The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications announced in early October 2005 its plans to key government systems to Linux in order to decrease its dependency on Microsoft products.
Junta de Extramadura, Spain	The Junta de Extremadura, the regional government of Extremadura, is a pioneer in the use of Linux in the public sector. They have also developed their own Linux distribution called LinEx. The have embarked on a large-scale migration of their IT infrastructure, which includes switching 14 hospitals and over 400 local health care centers to Linux. The have also installed Linux in 80,000 computers in their public schools.
Vienna, Austria	Officials in Vienna's city government announced at the beginning of 2005 that they would be migrating one third of their desktops to Linux. Other desktops, though still running Windows, would be using OpenOffice. They are also reportedly developing their own Linux distribution, called Wienux.
Bergen, Norway	Norway's second largest city announced in June, 2004 its plans to migrate its core IT infrastructure to Linux. A combination of Unix and Windows servers will be phased out and replaced with servers running Linux.
South African Revenue Service	The South African Revenue serviced announced in April of 2005 that it was moving its SAP system on to Linux servers running Novell's SUSE Linux.
Ministry of Health, New Zealand	New Zealand's Ministry of Health announced in February 2005 that they were migrating servers running Windows to Linux.
Largo, Florida, USA	The city of Largo, Florida was one of the first high-profile migrations to Linux in the public sector. The switch began in 2000 when David Richards, the systems administrator for the city began switching webservers to Red Hat Linux. He followed in 2001 by beginning the change to thin clients running Linux.
Pinellas County, Florida	Public access to county court records database is provided by servers running Linux.
Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana	The city of Bloomington's emergency dispatch system runs on Linux. Police and fire crews are managed by the system.
United States Postal Service	One of the earliest known Linux adoptions was the U.S. Postal Service's switch to Linux in 1997. A Linux-based system was set up to run OCR equipment that recognizes the destination addresses on letters.
Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts	It was announced in November of 2003 that PEC Solutions of Fairfax, Virginia would be taking on the task of migrating the Federal Judiciary's entire national IT infrastructure to Linux. The system will handle case management, finance and accounting, probation and pretrial services, and case-tracking management.
The Federal Government of Brazil	Linux and Open Source software will be mandatory for government agencies in Brazil according to a presidential decree being drafted in early 2005.
Mexico City, Mexico	The capital of Mexico has been migrating its IT infrastructure to Linux since the election of Mayor Andrés Manuel López Obrador in 2000.
National Security Agency, USA	One of the pillars of the intelligence community of the United States, the NSA developed its own custom enhancements to the Linux kernel, known as Security Enhanced Linux or SE Linux.
Department of Human Services, New Jersey, USA	State IT officials migrated the Child-Welfare Implementation System to Linux, greatly speeding up the time it takes case workers to access records.
The State of Nebraska, USA	The State of Nebraska has migrated some of its key IT infrastructure to Linux.
United States Census Bureau	The Fast Facts website is a Linux-based web application.
United States Department of Energy	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory uses a Beowulf cluster powered by Linux servers. In 2002, it was the most powerful Linux-based system in the world.
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), USA	The FBI's Dallas, Texas office uses a LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP/Perl/Python) solution to provide an Emergency Response Network. The system links federal, state and local agency and insures fast response times in the event of emergencies.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), USA	NASA has been a long time user of Linux and Open Source software. Debian GNU/Linux was used to control experiments on the Space Shuttle mission STS-83 in April, 1997
State of Mississippi, USA	The state's Automated System Project, which runs on Linux servers, coordinates state, local and federal law enforcement agencies' access to information. The project, funded by the US Department of Homeland Security, serves as a model for a future nationwide system.
Ministry of Information and Communication, South Korea	The ministry is funding projects within the South Korean government that use Linux and Open Source.
The Government of Venezuela	President Hugo Chavez issued a decree in December 2004 that calls on the Minister for Science and Technology to draw up a national plan for transition of Venezuela's public administration to Open Source software. The Ministry of Sports and Education, which has already made the switch, saved up to 4 billion Bolivares in 2004 on their IT costs.
Government Open Code Collaborative, USA	The states of Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia share Open Source applications through a repository at the University of Rhode Island. GOCC hosts these applications for sharing among government entities and non-profits.
Central Scotland Police, Scotland, UK	Central Scotland Police have developed a Linux-based system to facilitate the public's access to government data as mandated in the Freedom of Information Act.
Centrelink, Australia	Centrelink is the government agency that distributes social security payments in Australia. The agency's 27,000 staff will use a Linux-based system to distribute $55 billion AU to over 6 million users.
Ministry of Finance, Denmark	The Ministry uses a JBoss application server running on Red Hat Linux to exchange XML data among ministries in Denmark.
United States Navy	The US Navy employs Linux clusters to run sonar systems on nuclear submarines.
Federal Ministry of Education, Nigeria	Education officials in Nigeria had migrated 35 high schools to Linux in 2003.
Northern Territory, Australia	The government of the Northern Territory has pledged to increase the use of open source technologies. As of May 2005, $35 million AU has been spent already migrating desktops to Linux.

If you know of any government or public sector Linux deployment that we haven't listed here, please contact the webmaster: webmaster**AT**linux.org

Linux Creeping into Mainstream Computing

The Asus eee PC (below.)

Linux is all over the place. It’s in servers, cell phones, and even the PS3. However, most people don’t use linux for desktop computing. Why? It’s different and it requires some learning. The possibility that someone might have to use the command line is enough to scare most people away. (We do not miss you DOS). It seems like every year- every day?- linux users suggest that it will be ”The Year of Linux” when the computer users of the world come to their collective sense and start using linux. I’m not going to make that claim, but I will make the claim that linux is making some serious inroads and it might not be where you think.

Cheap PCs. Linux runs great on all kinds of hardware and better than XP, Vista, or OS X on old or slow hardware. Couple that with the fact that linux is also free and suddenly there’s reason to think that linux might have a formula for success. Recently many major manufacturers, including Dell, have started selling computers with Linux installed, but I believe the real revolution is taking place in the low-end of the PC market. In comes Everex and ASUS.

Everex is a company that makes ultra-cheap computers. How cheap? How about $200? The Everex TC2502 is a $200 linux computer that you can buy at Walmart. (Yes, I just made a plug for a corporation I deeply loathe). Do they sell? When they were released, they sold out immediately and they continue to sell with a return rate lower than Windows Vista computers. This phenomenon isn’t relegated to the desktop either. The hottest notebook news is not about the Macbook Air. It’s about the ASUS eee PC.

The eee PC is tiny. When I say tiny, it’s about the size of a paperback book. It runs linux and retails for $200-$500. There are no laptops in this ultra-compact market, besides the eee PC, that cost less than $1000. Of course, that will change in two weeks when Everex releases the Everex Cloudbook. For $399, the cloudbook competes head-to-head with the eee PC and that can only be good news for linux. Furthermore, the Cloudbook will be selling at, you guessed it, Walmart. If that’s not mainstream, I don’t know what is.

Is it the year of Linux? Probably not. Yet, it seems like Linux is becoming more mainstream. People are starting to opt out of using expensive proprietary software and rely on free internet-based and open source software for web browsing, email, maps, calendars, documents, social networking, and entertainment. Everex’s distribution of Linux, called gOS, seems to point to exactly that. I’ll be doing a review of gOS in the near future (I’m using the Beta version as I type this) and I hope to take a look at the Cloudbook hands-on after it hits Walmart stores.

http://nkelber.wordpress.com/2008/02/02/linux-creeping-into-mainstream-computing/

Triniman's Step-by-step installation guide for Ubuntu 7.10

Step-by-step installation of Ubuntu 7.10

2 February, 2008.




PC: 2 GHz Pentium 4, 1 GB RAM

Ubuntu 7.10 alternate install cd-rom used (downloaded.) Note, this is the text-based install of Ubuntu, not the live CD. The live CD version runs from RAM and doesn't install on your hard drive, a great way to see what Ubuntu is about without committing to it.

1. Insert the CD-rom into the computer.

--> [Boot the PC with the install cd-rom: hit the reset button or just turn the computer off then on]


2. In the first screen, you see a list of options.

--> [select “Install in text mode,” from the list of options. You can also select “Check CD for defects,” to make sure the CD-ROM is not corrupted.]


3. A “Choose language” screen appears.

--> [select “English – English”]

4. A second “Choose language” screen appears.

Select country, territory or area.
--> [select “Canada”]

5. The “Ubuntu installer main menu” screen appears.

“You can try to have your keyboard layout detected by pressing a series of keys. If you do not want to do this, you will be able to select your keyboard layout from a list.

Detect keyboard layout?”

--> [select “Yes”]

6. Another “Ubuntu installer main menu” appears.

Keyboard layout detection complete. Based on the keys you pressed, your keyboard layout appears to be "us:intl." If this is not correct, you can go back and select your keyboard layout from the full list instead.

7. "Detecting hardware from cd-rom drives" message flashes by quickly, followed by "searching CD-ROM drive," then "loading additional hardware," and ”Configuring DHCP."

8. The “Configure the network” screen appears.

Please enter the host name for this system. The hostname is a single word that identifies your system to the network. If you don't know what your hostname should be, consult your network administrator. If you are setting up your own home network, you can make up something."

--> [you can accept the default name "ubuntu"]

9. The “Detecting disks and all other hardware” message flashes by.


10. The “Partition disks” screen appears.

The installer can guide you through partitioning a disk (using different standard schemes) or, if you prefer, you can do it manually. With guided partitioning, you will still have a chance later to review and customize the results.

If you choose guided partitioning for an entire disk, you will next be asked which disk should be used.

Petitioning method:

--> “Guided - use entire disk” [select this one]


11. Another “Partition disks” screen appears.

Note that all data on the disk you select will be erased, but not before you have confirmed that you really want to make changes.

Select the disks to partition.

--> [the highlighted hard drive is selected, hit Enter]


12. Another “Partition disks” screen appears

If you continue, the changes listed below will be written to the disks. Otherwise, you will be able to make further changes manually.

--> [select “Yes”]


13. The message “Creating the ext3 file system” flashes by.


14. The “Configure time zone” screen appears.

Select your time zone.

--> [select "Central"]


15. The “Configure the clock” screen appears.

System clocks are generally set to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). The operating system uses your time zone to convert system time into local time.
This is recommended unless you also use another computer operating system that expects the clock to be set to local time.

Is the clock set to UTC?

--> [select “Yes”]



16. A “Set up users and passwords” screen appears.

A user account will be created for you to use instead of the root account for non-administrative activities. Please enter the real name of this user. This information will be used for instances as default origin for e-mails sent by the user as well as any program which displays or users the users' real name. You full name is reasonable choice.

--> [enter a name]


17. Another “Set up users and passwords” screen appears.

Select a username for the new account. Your first name is a reasonable choice. The username should start with a lower-case letter followed by any combination of numbers and more lower-case letters.

[enter username]


18. Another “Set up users and passwords” screen appears.

A good password will contain a mixture of letters, numbers and punctuation and should be changed at regular intervals.

Please enter the user password again verify you have typed it correctly.

--> [type in your password]

Re-enter password to verify.

[type in password again]


19. An “Installing the base system” message flashes by.

20. The “Configuring xserver –xorg” screen appears.

Please keep only the resolution you would like the xserver to use. Removing all of them is the same as removing none, since in both cases, the xserver will attempt to use the highest possible resolution.

--> [select 1024 x 768]


21. The “Finish the installation screen” appears.

Installation complete.

--> [Reboot the computer]


22. The Ubuntu splash screen appears.

--> [Type in user ID, then on the next screen, type in password.]


23. At the desktop.

--> [Click on the "star" icon to bring up the Update Manager.]

--> [Choose to install 185 updates]


24. Adding programs.

--> [Click on Applications, Add/Remove to bring up a list of applications that can be selected for install.]

The list of huge but is broken down by category and you can search easily for specific applications or capabilities. This is essentially a GUI for Synaptic Package Manager, which previously required command line entries to use.

Cool new features in Ubuntu 8.04

These features are showcased for your attention. Please test them and report any bugs you find. If you want to see what the developers have cooking for the next alpha release, take a look through the Hardy blueprints page: https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/hardy

Upgrading from Ubuntu 7.10

To upgrade from Ubuntu 7.10, run "update-manager -d" using the update-manager package from Gutsy.

Xorg 7.3

The latest Xorg is available in Hardy, Xorg 7.3, with an emphasis on better autoconfiguration with a minimal configuration file.

Linux kernel 2.6.24

Alpha 4 includes the 2.6.24-5.8 (2.6.24-rc8-based) kernel. This brings in significant enhancements and fixes that have been merged in the last few months into the mainline kernel. Among these is the introduction of dynticks support for amd64, bringing the same power savings already available on 32-bit systems to 64-bit laptops and desktops.

PulseAudio

Alpha 4 includes PulseAudio enabled by default. Some non-GNOME applications still need to be changed to output to pulse/esd by default and the volume control tools are still not integrated. https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/cleanup-audio-jumble

PolicyKit

With Alpha 4, PolicyKit integration is visible in the administrative user interfaces. PolicyKit makes it possible to run administrative applications as a normal user, and have them get a particular set of extra privileges for certain operations, which allows fine-grained control over user permissions and enhances usability, as well as eliminating the security implications of running the whole application as root.

For details of PolicyKit integration in Hardy, refer to the policykit-integration blueprint.

Firefox 3 Beta 2

The latest Firefox 3 beta is packaged in the repositories, bringing much better system integration including icon and colour theming that matches the system, as well as GTK2 form buttons and open dialog.

You can read more about the work on the Fox and Penguin blog post by Michael Ventor, a Mozilla intern.

Transmission

The GTK version of the popular Transmission BitTorrent client comes with Alpha 4. It's set to replace the Gnome BitTorrent downloader.

Vinagre

The new Vinagre VNC client is installed by default in Alpha 4, replacing xvnc4viewer.

Vinagre allows the user to view multiple machines simultaneously, can discover VNC servers on the network via Avahi, and can keep track of recently used and favorite connections.

Brasero

The Brasero CD/DVD burning application, which will complement the CD/DVD burning functions of Nautilus and replace the Serpentine audio CD burning utility, is installed by default in Alpha 4.

World Clock Applet

Integrating the features of the intlclock applet, the GNOME panel clock in Alpha 4 can display the time and weather in multiple locations.

GVFS

Nautilus 2.21.6 in Alpha 4 uses GVFS, the virtual filesystem abstraction layer that's set to replace the aging GnomeVFS in GNOME 2.22, as its backend. In the near future, GVFS will make it possible to fix shortcomings of Nautilus such as the inability to restore files from trash, pause and undo file operations, and make it possible to escalate user privileges for certain operations using PolicyKit for authentication. It also brings a significant performance boost to many operations.

You can read more about the transition to GVFS at Nautilus developer Alexander Larsson's blog.

GNOME System Monitor

The GNOME System Monitor has a revamped "Resources" tab, with Cairo graphs that scroll and scale smoothly, and brand new widgets.

Virtualization

• KVM is now officially maintained within the Ubuntu kernel.

• libvirt and virt-manager have been adapted to Ubuntu. They allow for easy guest creation and basic management out of the box. Virt-manager can be used to remotely administer guests on a remote server. They also work with XEN, even though it is not officially maintained.

• The kernel also includes the virtio modifications which should greatly improve guest I/O access.

Firewall

ufw (Uncomplicated Firewall) is a new firewall application designed to make administering a firewall easier for end-users while not getting in the way of network administrators. Currently, ufw is a command-line interface for administering host-based firewalls.

For more details, read the UbuntuFirewall specification.

Sick again, bad Rolling Stone Magazine, new computer desired.

I was just dying last Friday at work, going from feeling fine to knowing that a cold was on its way. I was sick on the weekend but still managed to make it out to an important meeting at the CLL. I made it into work on Monday to complete some timely paperwork to procure some printers, a new super-thin laptop (actually, the thinnest with an optical drive) and some A/V equipment. I still have to figure out some software purchases, more A/V ewquipment including a five-figure touch screen, more laptops, desktops and monitors, not to mention some very pricey graphic arts workstations.

I renewed my subscriptiion to Rolling Stone and was surprised to see that my last issue actually arrived last July! I can't believe that I hadn't noticed not receiving it, since it arrives every two weeks. What upset me about them is that on their checkout page for backissues, you can only select "United States" as the country for your address! This is crazy! They already charge a fortune to buy their issues, but not allowing Canadians to buy them is downright crazy. Needless to say, I e-mailed them to find out what is going on.

I spent part of my evening making inkjet labels for several CD-roms. I have a few different versions of Linux that I want to try. I downloaded screen shots and made really colorful labels from them. It's alot nicer than using a Sharpie. I now the next step is to use Lightscribe technology to draw a label directly on the surface of the label, or... get a printer that prints directly onto the surface of white discs. I have a Lightscribe burner at work but I haven't had the time to use its drawing feature.

My computer is showing its age. Even as I am typing this, it's taking a moment for the letters to appear on the screen. I could spend a lot on a custom PC and get one that has everything I want, or I could spend a lot less and get one that I need, but the latter wouldn't be as much fun. There are some technologies thatI really want but they may not show up until next year.

I ordered the new Whitley Striber book, The Grays whichi I will pick up later this week, along with the new Chris Rutkowski book about UFOs outside of Canada.

If I can find the time, I think I'm going to really use this blog as a record of what's new with me, rather than just a repository of articles that I have found to be interesting.

23,000 Linux PCs forge education revolution in Philippines

Linux still cheaper than heavily-subsidized Microsoft products

Rodney Gedda 29/01/2008 10:53:27

http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;1163450117;fp;;fpid;;pf;1

Providing high school students with PCs is seen as a first step to preparing them for a technology-literate future, but in the Philippines many schools cannot afford to provide computing facilities so after a successful deployment of 13,000 Fedora Linux systems from a government grant, plans are underway to roll out another 10,000 based on Ubuntu.

Visiting Australia to discuss Linux and open source software in education at this year's linux.conf.au in Melbourne, independent open source consultant Ricardo Gonzalez, said there were a number of factors that led to Linux being chosen over the venerable Microsoft Windows.

Gonzalez, based in Manila, told Computerworld Linux became popular in the Philippines soon after the 1997 Asian financial crisis when open source was investigated for its value proposition to organizations.

"Open source was a viable business alternative because no one was doing it commercially," Gonzalez said.

While Gonzalez was teaching the IT dealer network how to profit from open source, Microsoft launched its anti-piracy policy in the Philippines, so he told the government there was an alternative.

Also at the time, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Education launched the PCPS program, or PCs for Public Schools with the aim of providing one PC for each of the 10,000 public high schools in the country.

With funding from the Japanese government, the PCPS program started around the 2000 timeframe when the contractors installed Windows PCs, but five years later it was discovered a lot of the computers were not being used because nobody knew how to use them.

A company by the name of Advanced Solutions Inc (ASI) asked Gonzalez to come on board as a consultant as it was preparing to do bids for 1000 schools. However, this time it would not be only desktops, but one server, 10 desktops, and Internet connectivity in every school.

"We wanted to use Fedora 5 and it went all the way to office of [the Filipino] President and they kept passing it around saying 'why would they offer something for free, and how would they support and teach it'," Gonzalez said. "The project dragged on for four to five months to a point where Microsoft matched the price by offering Windows XP for $US20 a copy and throwing in Office for $US30, but we still came out cheaper. Microsoft was also providing free training to high school teachers."

---

After "jumping through all the hoops", including having the Department of Science and Technology evaluate the Linux solution for its usefulness, ASI got the contract and all 10,000 computers were delivered at the end of December, 2007.

"Because we saved so much we gave the government 3000 additional units, so now another 300 schools have Linux networks," Gonzalez said.

However, the Philippines' Linux education story is just beginning and the "reward" for the successful initial deployment was before Gonzalez left for linux.conf.au, the company got the contract to do another 1000 high schools over the next 12 months.

"The flavour this time is Kubuntu and Edubuntu," he said, adding the old questions about Linux's suitability aren't being asked any more. "They have also asked us to install the Joomla! and Drupal content systems on the server so students can create content," he added.

People in the government now understand Linux can do so much for so little outlay

ASI had initially requested the then IBM, now Lenovo, to factory-install the Linux images, but Gonzalez said since IBM had no experience with Linux deployments, and there were too many errors, some 60 percent of the operating system images had to be deployed after the PCs arrived.

"We were only three people, but during the next contract they put in more people to make sure it gets out the door faster - they doubled it to six people," he said. "There will be a phase four, five and six -- it just depends on funding."

With 7000 islands in the Philippines, the task at hand is no mean feat as the team had to install the systems, test them, do integration work, ship the computers out, ensure it was installed correctly, and provide training to the schools' principal and head of IT.

"If you look at it from a third-world perspective I'm very pleased," Gonzalez said. "For us it's one of the biggest Linux installations in the Philippines. The question is if it's free does it work, but with Linux it does work and it's free."

Gonzalez believes the project has helped begin a mindset revolution for accepting the power of free software.

"People in the government now understand Linux can do so much for so little outlay," he said. "In a brand new computer 50 percent goes to the operating system and office suite, so how many people can afford that?"

---

When asked why the popular One Laptop Per Child, which ships with Linux, was not used instead, Gonzalez said at the time it was not feasible due to the sheer number of units that needed to be purchased all at once.

To analyze the results of the program, Gonzalez is conducting a survey and he intends to study the flow-on effects to people's home computers, which may take some time to eventuate.

"There are 80 million Filipinos who are sending 20 million text messages so I'm thinking how to get SMS into the education market and tie it down with open source," he said. "I'm looking for the guy who has already done that."

Regarding the country's universities, Gonzalez said they are very much "tied down" to Microsoft, and course material is still tailored for the proprietary world.

"If Linux and open source wants to take hold in the education market it must deliver course material for high schools and elementary schools."

A Guide to Ubuntu Linux

'Open source' means lots of people and resources can help, but here's a reference for both beginners and the experienced.

Don Marti, LinuxWorld

Sunday, January 27, 2008 7:00 AM PST

From

http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,141752-c,linux/article.html

With all the people out there willing to offer help on Linux, getting started should be pretty easy. But with many options in introductory books and easy-to-install distributions, choosing a place to start can be the hard part.

Where to Find Support

Picking a distribution gets a lot less challenging when you remember to choose based on where you plan to go for help. Your local user group mailing list will be a lot more useful when other members know the locations and utilities you're talking about. Just subscribe to your local user group mailing list, and lurk for a while to find out what distribution the most helpful people there use. Then pick up a copy of a good Linux book, burn an install CD, and jump in.

There is lots of useful online documentation for specific tasks. But so far, books offer the best introductions to basic concepts such as file permissions or working with the shell. And looking for the distribution's name in the title of your first Linux book can be a time and frustration saver for new users. Instead of telling you to do things this way on one distribution, that way on another, or worse, telling you to find things for yourself, a book that concentrates on one distribution can point you straight to the file, tool or feature you need.

Lately, though, there's been a catch. The most helpful introductory books for beginners, Mark G. Sobell's "Practical Guide..." series, cover Red Hat Linux and its descendants Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux, but many of the participants in user groups and mailing lists that offer the best help for new users are running Ubuntu. Sobell's new "A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux" closes the gap.

Ubuntu's Advantages

Part of Ubuntu's popularity among user group members is because it nails down and documents many of the best system adminstration practices. For example, many administrators recommend that you never log in as root. Just log in as yourself, and use a properly configured sudo to run individual commands as root when needed. Ubuntu actually disables the root account, and forces you to use sudo.

A new user who installs Ubuntu and does things the Ubuntu way will find himself or herself acting in many ways like a cautious, experienced sysadmin without realizing it. Now, in A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux, you can get a thorough Linux intro book that works the Ubuntu way, while still drawing on the author's long experience with old-school Unix and older Linux environments to cover the basics that haven't changed.

Philippine Construction Company Shifts to Linux

Philippine Construction Company Shifts to Linux for Cost-Effective Infrastructure

From http://www.theopenpress.com/index.php?a=press&id=26917

(OPENPRESS) December 30, 2007 -- EEI Corporation, one of the Philippines' leading construction companies, has opted to shift to Linux for their operating system (OS), joining several other industry giants in the country who have already turned to open source.

The firm initially used proprietary systems for both OS platforms and various application packages utilized in its operations. However, due to increasing costs of licensing, the company started considering open source applications in order to minimize expenses.

“Other concerns, such as virus infection and the increasing cost of hardware also became factors as to why we decided to use Linux,” said Mr. Andy S. Sarmiento, assistant vice president for the MIS department.

EEI Corporation is only one of several industry giants in the Philippines which are already using Linux and open source software. Other firms include Jollibee Foods Corporation, Mercury Drug Corporation, International Family Foods Services (Shakey’s) and Nippon Paint Philippines Inc. Several schools, notably the University of the Philippines, are also making use of open source in place of proprietary systems.

To ensure smooth transition with no major disruptions on daily operations, EEI sought the expertise of local Linux solutions provider IPSYSTEMS Inc (www.ipsystems.ph).

“As one of the country’s leading enterprise, EEI needed a system which it could trust to be stable and scalable. We therefore transformed the company’s enterprise level systems to make use of Linux as their operating system. At the same time, we introduced making use of several other software and applications also based on open source,” said Mr. Carlo Celis, systems administrator of IPSYSTEMS.

Free and open source software (FOSS) is called such because its source code is made freely available for modification and redistribution by anyone – thus the term “free” software. An example of such free software is Linux, which is an open-source operating system and is one of the alternatives to the Windows operating system. Linux is distributed under the GNU General Public License which guarantees the freedom to distribute copies of free software.

This freedom allows for the software’s cost-effectiveness, as compared to proprietary ones. For example, commercial software licenses such as Microsoft Exchange 2003 server today have an initial cost of around Php 69,000.00 (approximately USD 1,600.00). This price allows up to five licensed computers to connect to the server, while additional computers will need additional licenses (called Client Access License or CAL) to be legally connected to the server. This price also only covers the initial software license cost, and does not include the cost for the hardware or its yearly license maintenance.

The cost of having a file server system based on Linux, on the other hand, will cost only a one-time payment of roughly Php 25,000.00 (about USD 580.00), with no other recurring costs for CALs or for license renewals.

Since turning to Linux, EEI has experienced improved performance due to the system's increased stability. “Linux has proven itself to be a fast, reliable and stable operating system. The shift has also required our systems to consume fewer resources and much cheaper licensing costs,” said Mr. Sarmiento.

About IPSYSTEMS Inc
IPSYSTEMS Inc is a Linux solutions provider specializing in Open Source technologies for the server requirements of Philippine enterprises and organizations. Incorporated in April 1998, its technical team consists of seasoned experts in systems integration, development and maintenance, with over ten (10) years of experience in open source.

IPSYSTEMS provides the Linux advantage – the benefits, convenience and security of a Linux server - along with the appropriate Linux-based solutions that best answer customers’ communication and network needs.
For further details, please visit: www.ipsystems.ph

Top Linux Headlines of 2007 - A Year In Review

From http://www.fsckin.com/2007/12/28/top-linux-headlines-of-2007/

Looking back at 2007 and seeing this website as a fruit of the cesspool that we affectionately call Vista really warms my heart.

I started using Linux as a full-time operating system in September, because I was really fed up with Microsoft. As an experiment, this website was launched simultaneously to document my adventures in Linux.

If you told me that when I started this blog that this site would see a half-million visitors in four months and be featured on sites like Lifehacker, TechCrunch, TechMeme, Linux Journal, Linux Today, OSNews, LXer, Webb Alert, etc, etc…. and have near every social news media website feature fsckin.com on their respective front pages… I wouldn’t believe you.

When the Metapixel article became popular this website used 60GB of bandwidth in a day (Note to Self: DON’T post gigantic image hyperlinks on website in future). The original article was Dugg, then hours later, Lifehacker’s article linking back to me was Dugg as well!

It is a miracle Dreamhost (bless their heart) hasn’t terminated my account. I contacted their support about some unrelated issue, and in their response they mentioned reading the Orange Box / Team Fortress 2 article, which helped them get the game running under WINE. Perhaps the fact that my hosting company actually reads my content helps out a little bit.

Let’s just say that fsckin w/ linux is the kind of accident that turns out not being bad at all, kinda like my little brother.

I hope you all had a great chrismahanukwanzakah and enjoy the New Year. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, let’s take a look back at some of the headlines this year.

January
Novell sues SCO for $26 Million Dollars!
OpenMoko Struts It’s Mobile Linux Stuff
Linux Foundation Formed
Microsoft FAT Patent Upheld
Fluendo Snatches Hard-Earned Cash with Proprietary Format Licensing
Adobe Exposes Naughty Bits with Flash Player 9 for Linux
Microsoft Tries to Pay For Edits to Wikipedia ODF/OOXML
Nokida N800 Internet Tablet is Bigger Hit Than Moses’ Tablets
Install Debian From Inside Windows
Windows Vista Released to Unwashed Masses

Febuary
SCO Tries to subpoena Pamela Jones of Groklaw
Nominations for Debian Project Leader
Steve Ballmer Blows Smoke Up Collective Asses Regarding Software Patents
Dell Gets Hint About Linux
NTFS-3g version 1.0 Released
Sweaty Steve Ballmer Rents Smoke Generator and Mirrors
Show Us The Code Brings IR Goggles To Ballmer’s Party
Dell Listens to Linux Consumers
Shuttleworth: Ubuntu is NOT a Charity

March
Linux is Desktop Ready?
Free Software Foundation Asks Sun, HP and Dell to “Check Yes or No” after Vista is “Rejected”
Novell releases Office Open XML translator for OpenOffice.org
Xbox Live Patch for 360 Stops Linux Installations
Hans Reiser Will Goto Trial For Alleged Murder of Ex-Wife
German Patent Federal Court Dismisses Microsoft’s FAT patent
Open Office.org asks Dell to Pre-Load Software on Their Computers
Dell Asks Which Gnu For You
Linus Torvalds Blasts the GPLv3
HP Exec: “Linux Desktop is nearing critical mass”
Robert Scoble, Microsoft Technology Evangelist says Nasty Things
Bruce Perens Doesn’t Care For Novell/Microsoft “Protection Racket”
Microsoft FoxPro goes Open-Source, Nobody Cares
Novell Spoofs “Get a Mac” Ads… Badly

April
Microsoft Sued for “Vista Capable” Marketing
Sam Hocevar is Next Debian Project Leader
Cnet Hints About “Web OS”, Foreshadows gOS
Tux500 Has Eye on Indy 500
Microsoft Admits Vista’s Horizon Cloudy
One Man, 250 Webcam Drivers, Insert Cam Whore Joke Here

May
Ubuntu & Dell Join Forces
Microsoft Siverlight For Linux by “End of Year”
Tux500 Grabs $10,000 in Donations!
Microsoft Patents “Sudo” Command (aka User Account Control)
Zimbra Runs on Linux
SUSE Asks 27,000 Linux Users To Share Porn Thoughts
Microsoft Coupons Have No Expiration Date
Digg Censors HD-DVD, BluRay Decryption Key Needed For Playback On Linux
Microsoft Still Pushing the Patent Button, Bloggers Push Back
Microsoft Wont Sue End Users of Linux
Try To Save A School District $$$ By Switching to Linux, Loose Your Job
Motorola Releases ROKR and RAZR2 Powered By Really Small Mice Linux
Creative Labs: Vista Drivers Really Hard To Figure Out… Linux Pushed to Back Burner
Microsoft Becomes “Linux Distributor”, Liable Under GPLv3
Shuttleworth Debunks Microsoft Patent Claim Threat
Sun CEO Will Use Their Patents To Help Linux
Groklaw Tells Us What We Already Know: Microsoft Cherry-picks Sponsored Survey Results
VA Software Becomes Sourceforge
Ironically The Tux500 Indy Car Crashes First

June
Google Has Microsoft In Half-Nelson, Puts Pressure on Desktop Search Functionality
GPLv3 Released via Carrier Pigeons
Xandros Joins the Dark Side With Microsoft Patent Protection
TiVo complains about GPLv3 “hurting business”
Emacs Version 22 Released, Six Years Since Last Update
Nero 3 Provides HD and Blu-Ray Disc Burning Capabilities to Linux Users
Parallels Ships Supporting Linux, Fake Steve Jobs Dies A Little Inside
LG Signs Patent Pact with Microsoft, Celebrates with Kool-Aid
AppleTV Runs Linux
Politics Plays Part in Google vs. Microsoft Antitrust Dealings
OpenOffice.org Worm hits Linux, Mac OSX, Windows
Linus: Kernel Under GPLv3? Over My Dead Body! Or When OpenSolaris Pisses Me Off, Whichever Comes First
Microsoft Hires Director of Linux Interoperability
Microsoft Patent FUD Debacle
Linspire Signs Microsoft Patent Deal
Google Linux Released is a 9/11 Conspiracy
Motorola Expects 60% of Mobile Phones Will Use Linux
Ubuntu and Redhat Refuse Patent Deal with Microsoft, Kool-Aid Tastes Funny
Vista is Number 1 Reason For Emo Culture
Windows is “More Secure” Because Fewer Vulnerabilities Are Patched
Songbird Sings First Tune
Firefox, Google Team Up for Offline Applications
OpenMoko Promises “Mass Market” device by October
Redhat Talks Dirty With Microsoft for a Year

July
No Joy For Google Desktop Search vs. Microsoft
Nokia Gives Skype & Flash Lovin to N800 Internet Tablet, Biblical Moses Sues
Samba Moves to GPLv3
IBM Releases 150+ Upset Vista Users Patents Into Wild
Apple Buys CUPS Source Code, TUMBLER is Next
OOXML Format Slapped About With A Large Trout
Asus Eee PC Will Run Xandros
Walmart gOS PC Rumors
Skype Convicted of Violating GPL
Businesses Don’t Tango With Vista
Torvalds Sucker Punches Con Kolivas

August
Fewer Companies Planning Move to Vista, Nobody Surprised
Fake Steve Jobs Real Identity Revealed as Batman Forbes Journalist
SURPRISE! UNIX Belongs to Novell, Not SCO
SCOX Stock Plummets
Best (Possibly NSFW) Bug Report Ever!
Novell Wont Sue Over UNIX
Google Pack Adds BitTorrent RSS Downloader StarOffice
Gnome Turns 10, Wants a Skateboard for Xmas
Richard Stallman: Reports of My Death Are Greatly Exaggerated
Convicted Pirate Forced to Use Windows by Court Order
Microsoft “Get The Facts” Campaign Isn’t Working
Windows Genuine Advantage Not So Advantageous
Microsoft Apologizes About Cheating on ISO for OOXML’s Approval
More Evidence of Microsoft Playing Games
Super-Duper New Improved ATI Drivers (Still Not as Good As nVidia)

September
Microsoft Looses ISO OOXML Vote, Ballmer Whines Like Little Baby
Eric Raymond May Reveal He Is a Ninja Loosing Patience with Microsoft Over OOXML
Richard Stallman Taunts Torvalds Regarding GPLv3 Adoption
Linux Voids Laptop Warranty
SCO Files for Chapter 11 Bankrupcy
Creative X-Fi Soundcards Supported. In Other News, Hell Freezes Over
Donate Linux PCs, Get Investigated by California Government
Darl McBride Blames Imaginary Friend Linux For SCO Failure
Gnome 2.20 Released
First Ever GPL Lawsuit in USA
WSU Linux User Group Auctions Off Nerds
Microsoft Pushing Vista, Businesses Demand XP
First Ever GPL Lawsuit Settles, Pontius Pilate Upset!

October
Novell Thanks Microsoft for Patent Agreement
Novell Uses Microsoft FUD as Marketing Material
Linux Journal Runs Offensive Blowjob Ads
Linus Torvalds Gets Pissed Off And Kills People About SMACK
Skype 1.4 Goes Gold
Linux Doubles Market Share
Ballmer Steamy About Patents (Again)
Ballmer Wants Redhat Users to Pay Up
IP Innovation Files Patent Suit Against Redhat & Novell
Mark Shuttleworth Fires Back. Ballmer Quoted as Saying, “You Sunk My Battleship!”
Nokia 810 Internet Porn Device Tablet Released
Oh SNAP! TurboLinux signs with Microsoft
Mandriva Club Isn’t A Champagne Room
Linux Loosing Market Share
Linux Not Really Loosing Market Share
NY Times Publishes Swimsuit Edition Opens Up Codebase
Microsoft Really Wants Windows on XO PC
Laptop Magazine Reviews Eee PC Laptop, 4/5 Stars

November
Turn Webapp Monster into gOS
Mandriva Upset with Microsoft/Nigeria 419 scam Classmate PC Linux Reversal
Microsoft Denies Involvement in 419 Scam
Say Hello to Chumby, the Linux Clock!
IBM & Novell Block Sale of SCO Assets
Google’s Android (aka gPhone) Gives Street Cred to Mobile Linux
Symbian CEO LOLs When He Heard About Google’s Android
Novell Sells Bunch More Microsoft Support Coupons
Six Floor Labs LLC Launches (Hoax?) Ransom Model for Linux Video Games
OMG! New Theme for Hardy Heron!
Only 600 UK Visitors to BBC Website
BBC Rethinks Linux Visitor Numbers
Mandriva Wins Back Nigerian Classmate PCs
OLPC Forgets Simple Math.. Buy Two One, Get One,
Walmart gPC Sells Out
Walmart Will Restock gPC at “Really Low Prices”
OpenMoko Pushes Mass Market Date Back
Obama Supports “Open” Document Format
Amazon’s Kindle Launches
Torvalds: Strength of Linux Lies in Contortionist Ability Flexibility
BusyBox Sues Xterasys and High-Gain Antennas
Asus Eee PC Laptop Violates GPL
One Year In, Vista Still Not Budging in the Business Market
Cheap Laptops Perfect Fit For Linux, Vista Miffed
Torvalds: Microsoft Can’t Stop Linux
One Laptop Per Child Sued for Patent Infringement
Asus Releases GPL Code
Lucky Fresno Kids Get Asus Eee PC Laptops

December
nVidia and ATI Users Green With Envy
KDE 4 Is Late To Dinner
Verizon Sucks Down GPL Lawsuit, Belches Loudly
MPAA University Toolkit Violates GPL
OLPC Does the Needful in India
OpenOffice.org in a Browser
Bazaar Version Control System Released
Opera Thinks Microsoft Should Distribute Their Browser
Dell Offers Ubuntu with Legal DVD Playback
Xterasys Settles GPL Suit
BBC Website Compatible With Linux
Schestowitz Interviews StallmanMicrosoft Hands Over Protocol Documentation to Samba
Redhat CEO Removes Red Hat
Ex-Delta COO Has Redhat Flying High Again
350,000 Tiny Eee PC Laptops Sold This Year