Better if those who actually working in schools write to Becta, but perhaps someone looking to sell laptops could also explain the cost implications. In case anyone missed it, below is Garry's note about the E-envoy's policy on OSS: 1/UK government will consider OSS solutions alongside proprietary ones in IT procurements. Contracts will be awarded on a value for money basis. 2/UK government will only use products for interoperability that support open standards and specifications in all future IT developments. 3/UK government will consider obtaining full rights to bespoke software code or customisations of COTS (Commercial Off The Shelf) software it procures wherever this achieves best value for money. 4/UK government will explore further the possibilities of using OSS as the default exploitation route for government funded R&D software. http://www.e-envoy.gov.uk/Home/Homepage/fs/en John Ingleby ************ Webmaster - www.schoolforge.org.uk