🚀 go-pugleaf

On Tue, 9 Feb 1999, Ben Russo wrote:

> klaatu wrote:
> > 
> > David Lesher wrote:
> > >        <---Excerpt...>
> > >
> > > Come to the DC-LUG/NOVALUG InstallFest and prove that *your*
> > > OS does not need Internet Explorer to work!
> > >
> > >       <---Excerpt...>
> > >
> > > <http://www.tux.org/fest> has all the details. No subpoena
> > > needed.....
> > 
> 
> > Tres cute! But aren't you hitting the law of diminishing returns yet? Seems to
> > me that everyone with the intelligence to see the need for a free open-source
> > operating system, complete with source code and compiler, has already got a
> > Linux box, while everyone who doesn't see the need is working for or selling
> > to the DC government and could not be pursuaded to give up their Windows3.1 or
> > NT machines if you stuck a gun to their head and buried them in gold pieces.
> >  <---Excerpt...>
> 
> Not so.  I work in a large company, and there are lots of DBA's and
> Programmers and application administrators that work with software
> on commercial UN*X's.  These individuals may know boatloads about
> programming, but just enough of the OS specific things like file i/o
> and network i/o to get by.

I absolutely believe it. 

> 
> When I hear/see them getting frustrated with their flaky, instable,
> unpredictable MS WinXX  PC, (many of them have had Sun or IRIX
> workstations in the past).  I suggest that they try LINUX.
> 
> Almost all of them know what Linux is, namely a free UNIX for PC's.
> But they don't know squat about partitions and MBR's and
> /etc/printcap<s>  and /etc/resolv.conf<s> and some of them don't 
> know a thing about DNS servers or IP networks or netmasks.

Hrm, I have to hit the 'man pages' now and then for some of the more
abstruse elements of that stuff myself. 

> 
> However I offer to set them up with an old 400MB second IDE hard-drive
> that has RH5.2 and KDE set up to init-default level 5 and I set up 
> the networking and configure Netscape and Xterm Icons for them.
> I set up a Gimp Icon. I install plugger-3.0 and xanim and mtv and
> such. I enable dir-color and create an Icon on their desk for 
> "helptool".  I configure their printers and set up SMBA shares for
> them.
> 
> There are now 8-9 people in my office who eschew their NT/95 PC
> except for when they are sent some bloated document in a proprietary
> MS-Office format.  These newbie users *LOVE* their stable reliable
> predictable documented open OS!!!
> 
> Linux can be on the desktop.  WinXX is actually harder to install and
> configure, it's just that most people get their WinXX machine with 
> the OS preinstalled.

I absolutely agree. However, this has been my experience. 

For the last three years I have been offering to install fully configured
Linux systems for the District government, for free; I have provided them
reams of hardcopy documentation, stressing the completely open and free
nature of Linux; I have even offered to simply _give_ them a harddrive
with Linux pre-installed and set up ready to go for any 486-or-better
machine with an SVGA card [1]. The system was a clone of a Slackware-based
system that I've had running without software fault for nearly four years,
mostly rebooting for hardware upgrades. It's loaded with security,
firewalls, masquerades, and in fact could have done Virtual Private
Networking.

The only time I have ever gotten a call returned was once. I have never
received any paper responses, other than a rejection of a bid as a
vendor, which was rejected solely because I'm not a commercial vendor
with a Dunn & Bradstreet listing. The only returned phone call I got, I
told the guy that I was ready to give a freeware operating system and
applications, harddrive included, and all he could ask was "what do you
intend to get out of this?" and when I told him "civic pride and taxpayer
savings" he hung up on me and I haven't heard a word from anyone since.

What I'm saying is this, and in fact I would make it a challenge to the
entire Linux community. The rank-and-file government of the District of
Columbia has decided that they would not run Linux, not even if you give
them not only the software but the hardware as well and 100 hours of free
personal training per employee to boot. In my personal and not-humble
opinion, they think they've got wads of money to waste on expensive NT and
expensive NT apps. I furthermore will come right out and say that either
local vendors and vendor wannabees are spending cash and personal hours
profligately spreading Fear Uncertainty and Doubt and paying people off in
a very big way, or the Linux community, myself included, is doing
something incredibly wrong in attempting to "sell" Linux.

So maybe we should all get together and figure out a way to not violate
any laws, and still pitch in ten bucks each to deliver to the office of
the appropriate people with much media fanfare, a perfectly done
ready to go loaded-to-the-gills Linux system - absolutely free and with no
encumbrance or oblication implied or intended, complete with starter ISP
account and ethernet connector. And whoever we can rustle up to be the
best salesman for the product, let's get him on up there too.

Now I want to stress that I am speaking not as a Linux enthusiast nor as
someone who intends to make a jillion dollars hosing the District
government as a consultant (there are enough leeches in Washington
already). I am speaking as a taxpayer who would very much like to see the
city move forward into the information age, from their very-backwards
present position - without spending huge amounts of money for a crippled
set of software that doesn't work well.

Given the amount of information on Linux, the robustness, the free open
source code, the astounding amount of UNIX software on the 'Net available
for the taking, I can only assume that whoever has made the decision to
steer clear of Linux at all costs must be greedy/bribed, stupid, or evil.

[1] 850 meg harddrive, Slackware 3.1, custom kernel, XFree86, 'xdm'
OpenLook 'olvwm' virtual-windows manager, 'PostgreSQL', 'Harvest-1.5'
multisite search-engine and webcrawler, Apache webserver, xforms, OffiX,
and 'tycoon' application-launch buttonbar, 'tcp_wrappers', ACE, Python,
the full Developer's Kit with the stable and proven 'gcc-2.7.2', 'JAVA
developers kit, etc etc etc... of course fun things like the 'nedit' text
editor, yadda yadda... all still available free for installation into the
486-or-better SVGA-equipped computer of the DC government's choice.

> 
> -Ben.
> 

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