On Wednesday 03 July 2002 01:27, Terence McCarthy wrote: - It appears from the various sites relating to the ECDL that only Microsoft - o/s are supported (vide winzip and Acrobat for Windows as the only downloads - in support of ECDL materials). - - Can you please assure me that: - - a. The ECDL is not a front organisation for Microsoft (as it appears to be), - - b. That any o/s and appropriate software is (or is to be) considered as a suitable vehicle for ECDL qualification, - - c. That answers to module questions (such as the example at - http://www.ecdl.co.uk/common/sample/module1.htm) "1.1.4 Explain what a - computer virus is and describe two measures you can take to protect your - computer from a computer virus." are acceptable according to the o/s and - software used, - - d. That if b. and c. above are not accepted, then the reasons why they are - not will be made public, and the subsequent limited value of ECDL - certification publicised on all ECDL promotional material(as endorsing a UK - driving licence with, e.g., "Valid for driving Ford cars only"). - - There is an increasing awareness, especially in Europe, of the - undisirability of proprietary, closed software, on a number of grounds, not - least cost, unreliability, and lack of security, all of which Microsoft - exemplifies. Interesting issue, though off topic ;-) I have often wondered about this as well. I wonder how the ECDL decision making process ended up with this formula. This is a good issue for a campaign, particularly in the EU countries that are adopting Linux for administration. Cheers, Brian