Interesting commentary by Carla Schoder about user habits, etc. :-)


And it appears that the fall is going to be a very interesting time, in the computer world...Google is working on, and will release their own version of a linux OS, Google Chrome OS, and it will not only work on the standard x86 platform (standard desktops and laptops), but with ARM processors (CPU common in mobile devices, etc.) as well! Thank you, Google! :-) Yet another slow but steady chipping away at M$. (Remember who won the race? The rabbit or the turtle? ;-)) Let the OS wars begin! :-)

So, there is at least one competent, informed, genuine leader in the world, who is serving his people, rather than serving corrupt corporations. Apparently, the speech given by the President of Brazil, the world's fifth largest economy, is now available on Youtube. And then there is this article, with a wonderful quote from Walter Bender:

The next talk was given by Walter Bender, who took a rather different approach. He's head of Sugar Labs, the software team that broke away from the One Laptop Per Child project when the latter decided to put Microsoft software on its machines, thus ensuring that young minds were enslaved by Windows even earlier.

Indeed, it was evident from Bender's presentation, albeit quite low-key, that he believes passionately that children have a right to free software, for the simple reason that they cannot truly learn with any other kind.

As the Sugar Labs site puts it: “emphasis on learning through doing and debugging: more engaged learners are able to tackle authentic problems.” That is, free software gives the unique possibility of allowing students to explore and modify their tools, whereas Windows- based solutions are simply used as given, with little flexibility.

I think this is a crucial point that not enough people in the world of education grasp. For them, software is simply a dumb tool, like a pencil: you just use it. For Bender, it's something much more exciting: it is part of the educational experience. If a learner can't hack it, it's not fit for the purpose.

He also emphasised how important the Sugar on Stick offering was. This is simply the Sugar software environment provided on a USB drive that can be plugged into any PC, and run without affecting the latter:

Soooo...is an unaccountable, undemocratic corporation controlling your children's education, getting them addicted to junk software, and unable to think for themselves, and dependent on their software drugs (the first M$ software fix is free when you buy a computer (actually, it's just included in the price when you buy a new computer...), corrupt school boards, governments, etc. Does any of this sound familiar to you? I.e. viruses, computer problems, etc. are good for business, bad for you trying to get anything done. Make the decision to choose freedom today, and start learning about the world revolution of those in the know, using linux! :-)

Well, it seems that the London Stock Exchange has finally come to its senses...and ditched both windows and the incompetent CEO that defended it. My guess is that they'll follow the NYSE, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, etc. who competently moved to linux YEARS ago, and have been chugging along nicely ever since. Comments in the article are especially enlightening...:-) Now if we could only see that kind of enlightenment in education...:-)

As a very strong believer in the following quote:

A child's exposure to technology should never be predicated on an ability to afford it.

I work constantly to instruct people about linux. Sometimes, I've been punished for my views, by incompetent, illiterate power abusers (BTW, here's an excellent book about power abusers found in organizations, including schools, etc. ;-)). But like many others, I'll never give up. I've spent many years listening to the excuses and propaganda about why it can't be done, etc. Well, as shown by the many references on this blog, it IS being done, around the world, in all languages (more languages than windows, because MS considers some language groups, etc. "too small" or "not profitable, not worth the effort, the market is too small, etc.". In other words, don't let the nay sayers, and those who wish to exploit others, win the game! :-) Help spread the word.

And yet another huge, famous company is moving forward with linux...;-) Running over 30,000 desktops on linux! :-) And then there are the police in France, who have saved over 50 MILLION euros by switching from windows to linux. And they mention how all the FUD (Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt) about " oh, it's too difficult. It requires training, etc. " that I hear all too often from windoze addicts, etc. to be nonsense. Meanwhile, back in corrupt, incompetent Ontario...And want more references about competent schools, organizations, etc. moving to linux? Take a look, here for a sample. Especially note the "Related stories" links at the bottom of the article for more, etc. :-)

Well, it seems that in over 140 countries, 20,000 schools, and millions of school children are using linux! :-) And that is just one linux company! :-) Meanwhile, back in incompetent, corrupt Toronto and Ontario schools...sigh...are your children being left behind, forced into using monopoly, criminally expensive, unreliable junk technology?

So, here's a story about someone who has finally seen the light of freedom...a Microsoft employee and programmer of 11 years, noless, has now switched to linux and written a book about his experiences at MS, etc. Quite interesting...:-)
And now MS is putting the squeeze on charities...personally, I don't donate to any charity running MS software. I prefer my money goes to helping people in need, not Bill Gates. And check out the Los Angeles Times articles, if you need more reasons to quit using windoze, and switch to linux! :-)

Well, I think this article is looking a bit too optimistically into the near future, but hey, it's Taiwan, where a very large chunk of our computers are made...they must have some idea of what is going on...:-) In any case, I hope they are right! (i.e. 50% of netbooks will be linux based! :-))

Recent post summarizing linux in some school systems around the world, etc.

So, checkout how some people are really LEARNING using linux! :-) Rockets, space science and other cool stuff...
And then there are intelligent schools, who are not locked into schemes by proprietary software, thanks to corrupt/illiterate politicians/bureacrats, etc.

Seems I'm not alone in fighting incompetence and corruption in schools...:-)
Take a look at this article, and the comments from various people in various school boards in the U.S.
Our children are being denied the opportunity to learn about alternatives, and billions of tax dollars are being wasted. No wonder our schools don't have enough teachers, textbooks, lab equipment, etc., when we are sending millions upon millions to a convicted monopolist.
And it is getting worse in Canadian schools...recently, we've been required to use a MS only marks program, at a cost of $300 per license (even though intelligent schools are using the much better, much more flexible and FREE marks programs that are easily available). Oh, and that's $300 per school per YEAR. Yes, tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars wasted every year. Just for a marks program. And don't get me started on the tremendous waste of teacher's time this has created (and continues).
Want a concrete example of brain dead? The "Marks" program we are using will crash if the computer is not connected to a printer...that's right, hours upon hours were wasted as teacher's networked and standalone computers continually crashed if they were not connected to a printer. And the software is apparently written in Visual Basic (that's BEGINNER'S All purpose Symbolic Instruction Code). About as far from 'professional' as you can get...and it shows...again and again...sigh...
Your wasted tax dollars, not at work...

An excellent site for keeping track of how the world is changing to linux! :-)
Danish government IT is now offering linux.
And 50% of surveyed businesses are considering moving to linux! :-)

So, are your skills (and those of your students) going to be ready for the future? :-)
Linux deployments are expected to TRIPLE in the next 5 years or so!
(e.g. from a 12 billion dollar linux market in 2008, to a 35 billion dollar linux market in 2013...:-))

Why heck, it's expected to grow 21 percent, just this year, 2009, alone! :-)

Fire up that KDE/GNOME/XFCE GUI or cli today! :-)

And all 2,400 educational institutions in Tatarstan are changing completely to linux! (Find it on a map...)
And the better known government of Hungary, is now spending half of its IT budget on Open Source!

The world is changing...:-)

Seems the famous New York Times is encouraged by the rise of linux! :-)

Well, no great surprise here, but some new numbers about linux adoption...

And here are a few random samplings of why the world is switching to linux...:-)
And yet more schools are switching. Here's the latest example from Germany...:-)

Want a concrete example of a major government saving millions of dollars (euros), while our government continues to waste millions? Then check out this.

So, are you being held back by a school system that refuses to offer linux courses? They are denying you (and your children) future opportunities.

Well, great news for students and children...in Brazil! :-) Apparently, the largest number of virtual PCs in the world (356,000 workstations!!!!! using Linux, of course! :-)) will be installed in many locations for the benefit of millions of children in Brazil...meanwhile, back in Canada, I have to beg and wait months to get a SINGLE computer for more than 50 students in science classes!!?! Yep, we are rapidly becoming a 3rd world country in terms of education, while other countries leapfrog ahead.

So, planning to visit one of the new 'Microsoft' stores? Apparently, trying to clone Apple stores is the new MS strategy...well, if you do, do you realize you'll be supporting these kinds of appalling human rights abuses?

My suggestion? Do the right thing and get educated about linux...then go out and purchase a linux netbook. :-)

Well, I have to say that I'm in total agreement with this! :-)

Well, education in the Phillipines is leaping over anything going on here in Ontario...23,000 linux computers in schools in the Phillipines...meanwhile linux is systematically eliminated in Ontario schools?!!! Students are being denied the opportunity to study, learn and share linux in Ontario schools, and instead are being taught to become dependent on costly junk instead, due to computer illiterate "leaders".

Well, seems that more people are learning about how Microsoft has turned millions into addicts. Are you one of them? And as an educator, I hear all the usual propaganda that teachers and students have been programmed to spout all the time, unfortunately. It's unfortunate that so few people are able to think for themselves, instead of just repeating/parroting what they've been told to think/say. Fortunately, there is hope, as one can see here...make sure you read the comments! Many are about schools who have switched to linux, and some of the comments are even written by enlightened school principals?!! I'm shocked, I tell you, SHOCKED! :-) Oh, wait, none of them are in Ontario...sigh... Well, as one commenter submitted, good luck for your students if they want a job in Europe in the future...all are going linux, etc. Yep, the corrupt and ignorant 'leaders' here in Ontario, Ottawa, etc. continue to send millions in tax dollars to one of the world's largest companies, and continue depriving our students of a GENUINE education, rather than dumbed-down addiction to junk.

Well, seems that the government of Vietnam can be added to the list of competent governments moving to open source. Meanwhile, back in corrupt, incompetent Canada...our schools continue to set a poor example, sending millions of taxpayer dollars to a convicted monopolist that continues to abuse the public, with the consent of the so-called 'leaders' in Canada.

Just a sincere wish for a Happy New Year to one and all! :-)

And news of yet another company doing a brisk business selling linux based ecofriendly supercomputers...:-) And take a look at the latest MS bribery antics, etc...

It is unfortunate that so many so-called 'educators' have the mentality of the Inquisition (or perhaps the Salem Witch Hunts, etc.). However, that indeed seems to be the case, as pointed out by this recent event. Is this happening in your schools? Are your children being denied opportunity due to either corrupt lobbyists or ignorant administrators? However, if you read the comments on this story, (and I encourage you to do so), you will be heartened to see comments by many schools who are using linux. Let's hope it continues to spread and shine the light of freedom and knowledge everywhere.
And indeed it is. Now here is a very progressive school system, that is providing the best possible computer education for their students...a one to one ratio! That's right, one computer for every student...in every school...in the entire state...and all running on LINUX! Here's a recent conference about it, that gives some numbers for you. :-) It's called the InAcess project, by the Department of Education of the state of Indiana. Demonstrates the incredible waste going on in Canadian schools.

Sometimes, I'm asked why I only use linux. There are a large number of answers to this question, but perhaps this article sums up a few of them. I use a computer as a tool. I use software(tools) that do what I require, without restrictions, I require access to the complete instructions, (source code) should I choose to change/improve the software, etc. I.e., I love freedom to do what I want to do. I'm not interested in being a POW (Prisoner of Windows ;-)). And I love diversity and choice...;-) Hopefully, we can continue to free the people! :-) And final news tidbit for today: here are some students using Blender (3d modelling/animation software:checkout blender.org)...some 'adults' complain that it is too hard...well look at these ELEMENTARY school students using it without any problems! ;-) Just more examples of open minds (versus closed) in education. :-)

Well, seems IE has slipped below 70% now, for the first time since stats have been kept on this sort of thing. Perhaps the internet will grow more stable with less people using this badly designed browser. We can only hope that word spreads. And of course, more and more people are learning about linux as well! :-) And here is a great summary of what is wrong with the internet...Microsoft et al.! :-) And YAGOL (yet another group of (school) libraries) has switched to linux/open source, etc.!

Here's yet another school that has switched almost everything to linux...servers, laptops, etc. And are you a victim of any of these brainwashing blurbs? :-)

Curious about current linux job opportunities, salaries, etc.? Are your schools ensuring that students have the opportunity to pursue these types of jobs?

Take a look (from the article): :-)
"The average 2006 salary for Linux professionals was $77,950, which was higher than the national average for all tech professionals of $73,308. (However, this is somewhat misleading, since the national average includes historically low-paid IT staffers like help desk workers.)

If you’re a Linux specialist looking for the best paying area of the country, your best bet is – no surprise – Silicon Valley, where Linux pros make $96,578 (but a cup of coffee costs $11.25). Other top-paying Linux areas are Washington, D.C. ($86,882), Los Angeles ($86,618), and New York ($86,305).

Female Linux professionals, admittedly a scarce group (but certainly an attractive one), earn less ($74,263) than do male Linux professionals ($78,412).

And ever wonder how many people are using linux? ;-) Well, Red Hat linux currently estimates somewhere between 9.5 and 10.5 MILLION users! :-) And Ubuntu linux estimates at least 8 MILLION using their distro...

Now here is news you can use...:-) Seems the linux penguin is taking off in the states and various other countries around the world in universities and K-12 schools! :-) Fire up that terminal...:-) And it seems that linux runs on more devices than any thing else available now...:-)

Some interesting predictions and summaries of the status of linux in the world! :-)
Exemplis gratis: New York Times suggests that linux will ship on more laptops than windows next year! :-) And read about all the new mini laptops(netbooks?), by different manufacturers, appearing with linux preinstalled! :-)

And here is a linux POS (Point of Sale) system that seems to be doing well, especially at UBC! :-)

Well, seems the German Foreign Ministry is saving their taxpayers millions of Euros...having switched ALL of their embassies (over 11,000 computers), in various countries to linux, at far, far lower cost. When will our computer illiterate, corrupt government, schools, etc. get with the program? :-)

Ah, those Aussies...jumping ahead of everyone! ;-) Seems netbooks are flying off the shelves...with GNU/Linux! ;-) Personally, I just purchased a nice linux equipped netbook, and I'm delighted with it so far. Like carrying a paperback, and it's heaven to surf and email in a coffeeshop at my leisure! :-) And I've seen some estimates that total linux users is about 60 million at the moment (and of course, growing everyday! :-)) Here's an article about Ubuntu linux and Fedora linux specifically.

Could it be that there is a glimmer of common sense breaking out in governments and education? :-) NSW in Australia is considering linux laptops for their students, And ODF is now a national standard in Sweden, joining several other countries moving to open standards, etc. Then again, on the other hand, we seem to be moving to a time of restricting knowledge to those who can pay/control, and expanding ignorance...sigh...Is this your children's future? Only those who pay can learn?

EXCELLENT article by the famous Mr. John Hall about all those so-called "TCO" studies, etc. In a nutshell, schools using linux are doing well, in terms of budget, etc., while MS schools are still being taken to the cleaners...so what else is new? :-) And Ubuntu uptake in the business world is taking off! :-)

Great article about 100 reasons Linux beats windows! :-)

Concise, simple article about some of the reasons for using linux! :-) And Big Money (i.e., the LARGEST amount of money in the world) seems to rely on linux. :-) And seems that Venezuela has ordered one million...yes, 1,000,000 linux computers for their school children! :-) from Portugal. And apparently, Portugal itself has ordered 500,000 linux computers for their school children as well! :-) Japan is bringing superconductors to the home, along with 1G internet...far ahead of Canada, which is falling behind dismally...sigh...But to end on a positive note, please visit Ontario Linux Fest, if you are in Toronto on Oct. 25! :-) And a good overview of 14 different distros of linux.

Wonderful story for you today about a poor school in Pakistan, which now has a computer lab full of...you guessed it, Linux computers! :-) And if you can help, there is a contact email in the article.