Mr Spock <Spock@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
>
>>
>> In the end, it's the parents/tutors that decide if they buy a laptop for
>> their child. I know several parents that are still undecided as to what is
>> best for their child's educational path.
>>
>
> It seems to me that its all political with serious money behind it. Unless
> Linux is going to be the global OS of the future,
It already is. Just ask Google.
> then people are going to
> stick with Windows. Whether you love it or hate it, windows is the OS in
> the office, its whats used. So why teach kids how to use Linux when
> Windows is being used ?
Because Windows isn't being used. Not just a few days ago, that bastion
of capitalism in the UK, the Daily Telegraph, moved all its staff to
google office.
>
> Ive always said, if your a big company, you want to buy software that does
> the job, like accountancy software. And kmymoney2 or gnucash just doesnt
> cut the mustard.
You would appear to be quite incorrect with respect to the availability
of accounting software: http://www.aaxnet.com/design/linuxacct.html
Obviously, most of the companies here are looking for commercial deals.
A one-man business like yourself is probably looking to fry rather
smaller fish, but you might try one of the several different packages
which are mentioned which are suitable for small to medium enterprises.
There's even some open-source there, but I don't think that you're
really looking for open-source, are you?
> Plus companies want support, then want someone on the end
> of a line, or an engineer who is going to come to site and fix the problem
> within a 2 hr SLA. Trust me, Ive been there, done it, shagged the dog, got
> the t shirt. Companies are going to refuse to go to a forum and ask
> for free help "Try this, it worked for me, so it might work for you.".
Open platforms are way superior in this respect, because support can be
sought independently of the original "vendor". Open source is not
locked in, so the kind of support which is presently unavailable for
proprietary software, like bug-fixes, becomes available to all in the
foss world.
>
> The only two programs I have used that could piss off Microsoft is
> Openoffice aand Scribus, which match MS Office & Publisher. Oh plus of
> course, Evolution email and Firefox.
And of course linux itself. And then there's bind, and mysql, and
postgres, and the gimp, and apache. In fact, apache alone is massively
way ahead of IIS adoption, and has been for years. Vista's continued
failure is exemplified by the latest round of adverts for Laptops in the
UK from PC World - for the first time in years, probably a decade or
more, they avoid mentioning either Microsoft or Windows, let alone
Vista. It would appear that nobody wants Windows any more.
>
> So unless businesses are prepared to install Ubuntu and pay Canonical for
> support,
Or any other support house - which is the major advantage of foss over
proprietary software like Windows, and something the world is waking up
to.
> then I fear Linux will never get the upper hand in a lot of
> European business,
It's already doing rather well.
> unless its purely used for firewalls.
Oh yeah, linux's domination of that market was established long ago.
> And I believe
> (but I could be wrong)
Really? You think so?
> but linux was originally for firewalls, and never
> intended for the desktop
Your level of understanding of Linux is suddenly very low indeed, isn't
it?
> with its fancy GUI's to rival the fancy shite of
> vista. But this is a post for thought and serious, polite discussion.
>
Sure it is, that's why you've appeared in Cola pushing Windows. Now run
along to the Windows groups, where you belong, please - this group is
for Linux advocacy, which is not what you're doing. Your post is
off-topic and anti-charter, as well as being mostly quite wrong.
--
| mark at ellandroad dot demon dot co dot uk |
| Cola faq: http://www.faqs.org/faqs/linux/advocacy/faq-and-primer/ |
| Cola trolls: http://colatrolls.blogspot.com/ |
| Open platforms prevent vendor lock-in. Own your Own services! |
|
|
