Mailinglist Archive: opensuse-edu (5 mails)

[Thomas Adam <thomas_adam16@xxxxxxxxx>]

--- Luke Maslany <l.maslany@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> In truth is hasn't been that much of a wrench as I have access to a
> Win2003 terminal server so pretty much everything is still available
> should I need it...  

Ugh huh.  There's also a number of other interesting methods to running
Windows-based applications in Linux besides using VMWare or WINE.

> Back to my point:
> 
> I was wondering whether anyone uses Linux in a HE/FE environment?  I
> am

Most people on this list do.  :)  I myself do not -- indeed, it has
been a long time since I have done any work with Linux and education.

> particularly interested in whether you have encountered problems when
> asked to support educational solutions be they installables or
> web-based
> resources (such as Learndirect courses)?

I have heard of a lot of problems, yes.  It basically boils down to a
lack of understanding by the CC (or LEA, or whomever it is that
ultimately overseas such decisions about how computers are to be used
in education) as to the benefits that FOSS can bring.  Thankfully, this
is changing, and more and more awareness of it is introduced, but it is
far from perfect.  Essentially, no one adapts well to change, or to the
unknown.

> Does anyone have a requirement for Microsoft-specific applications
> such
> as Visual Studio?

I wouldn't have thought that secondary schools do --- but the
University (if you can call it one) I attend certainly does.

> How about realistic alternatives for things like Adobe Photoshop and
> AutoCAD?

There's a few in the open source definition that would do equally as
well.  (The GIMP, for instance.)

> While I guess these would be more applicable to Colleges I would have
> thought that schools and Universities may have had to deal with such
> issues?

Indeed they do (see above).  I have been campaigning for some time
whilst at University (I'm a student) to get Linux actually *on* the
damn machines that are available.  After various meetings with some
suits, the ball is finally rolling (with sutiable ratification and
edification via the BCS; the body whom is approving most of the
"transition").  

One nice thing thus far, is that OO.o is installed on all machines that
run Windows --- this means I don't have to rely on the filters in OO.o
(not that I use OO.o, I prefer TeX), but the principle is what I am
proud to see.
 
> How about users on the administrative network?  While OO seems like a
> pretty suitable replacement for MSOffice (I'm still unsure abount an
> MSAccess replacement) how do you deal with the mandatory Windows
> software doled out by Government bodies such as the LEA?

Any way you can, basically.  You push and push, and push.  At some
point (by Christmas?  Hell, maybe hell will freeze over first) the
computers here will use VMWare to allow Linux access.  This has been a
tremendous effort by a number of people --- essentially though, what
had to happen, was to get the support of people from the BCS (and other
parties) so that the LEA took such a suggestion seriously.  I know it
seems stupid, but there's _a lot_ of red tape surrounding all of this.

(Should anything further come of this discussion, I'll CC my level
tutor on this, so that he can at least read it.  :))

-- Thomas Adam


		
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