Feature:GNU/Linux Desktop Alternatives

Lyno Sullivan has begun researching the GNU/Linux Desktop alternative for more mainstream usage in government. Click the link below and read what he has to say. It's a work in progress, but it's definately worth a read. Throw in your 2 bits and hopefully he can convince more than just Minnesota.

The following was written by Slashdot Reader Lyno Sullivan

I am advising a friend, who is planning a major upgrade of thousands of desktops, in a major department of Minnesota state government, that he ought to insist on a cost-benefit analysis that includes GNU/Linux and the GNU Office Suite (I need the list of these products). Windows NT and Microsoft Office seem to be a shoe in choice but are very expensive because of the software licensing cost and the cost of re-training support staff.

I am doing this as volunteer work. All of my writings are licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL) and may be freely copied and modified provided that any derived works are under the GPL.

THE HELP I NEED FROM YOU

Please recommend URL's that show cost-benefit analyses of the GNU/Linux desktop alternative. Also, it would be helpful to have URL's for major installations that currently use GNU/Linux. Finally, if you were trying to persuade my friend of the efficacy of this choice, what would you say?

I intend to collect up the feedback I receive and forward it to my friend, post it on the web and, perhaps, inject it into an upcoming conference that looks at the technology futures for the department.

BACKGROUND

The major thesis of my argument is that, since the department must re-train all their support staff anyway, that cost could be considered a wash. Therefore the decision should be made on other factors. I use the "good money after bad" argument to help diminish any residual value of previous training in "non-free software" .

I contend that the real needs of the government workers, in terms of where they spend their real computer usage time throughout the day, are primarily:

• TN3270 mainframe connectivity
• email
• occassional intranet browsing
• occasional, simple word processing outside email and document creation
• for some people, intensive web document preparation

I argue that the specialized workers doing desktop publishing will be converting to an HTML solution (I actually encourage SGML but that is another story). That is but one example of a specialized need. As we look at each kind of specialized worker's needs, I hope to identify usable, if not excellent free software alternatives. Where a non-free solution simply does not exist, I support using existing non-free products under the GNU/Linux DOS and Windows emulators.

I contend that the addiction to non-free software is costing state government, in his agency alone, hundreds of thousands, if not millions of taxpayer dollars per year. The cost for all of local, state and federal government is staggering but I am not making that legislative point at this time. I hope, instead, to persuade one major agency of government to make the transition and become a showcase that proves to the rest of government that becoming free (from their non-free software addiction) is possible, attainable and has wonderful side-effects. There is benefit in investing in human resources rather than pouring money out of state. There is a wellspring of net accessible volunteer talent waiting to be tapped.

If I fail to bring about this transition (from the non-free to the free) from the bottom of government upward, then I will ask the Legislature to declare a moratorium on all software and software training expenditures until the matter can be investigated. I believe that tens of millions are being needlessly spent each biennium and I am pretty sure I can prove it, if given the chance. I prefer bottom up solutions, rather than top-down solutions imposed from orders on high, and I hope to persuade one department to, at least, do a fair cost-benefit analysis and develop a prototype. If that gentle approach fails, I will go for the cold turkey, Legislature mandated withdrawal.

Let me say very clearly that I am in no way intending to disparage the fine work being done by any government employee. Any informed person you talk to in government is gravely concerned about the escalating costs of technology and wants viable solutions. They didn't sit down one day, a decade ago, and decide that they were going to become addicted to the latest whiz-bang technology. It just happened, fix by fix, and now they are addicted. I admit that there are people in the game to build their resumes. For the most part, I have observed that government managers have long been gravely concerned but have believed they had no alternative. It used to be that nobody in government could ever be reprimanded for recommending IBM. Today the same holds true for Microsoft. Tomorrow, I want the same to hold true for GNU software. This is the quintessential issue.

Nobody wants to stand out there and face the risks of recommending an unproven technology solutions. Any recommended solution must consider many things like: the stability and usability of the software, the cost of the software, the availability of adequate support and the cost of adequate support. I contend that GNU/Linux is proven technology and that the GNU/Linux development and support infrastructure is the best. It has the advantage that much support is donated by the GNU volunteers. It has the advantage that commercial support is available for the same price as the alternatives. If I can prove these assertions, then I may be able to persuade one manager to stand out there a little bit. I am recommending two steps to precede the final choice: 1) perform a cost-benefit study of the Common Desktop alternatives and 2) create a prototype of the primary alternative Common Desktop solutions (Windows NT, GNU/Linux, platform independent Java clients, and other reasonable alternatives).

Just so you know, I am also recommending consideration of a thin client, platform independent Java enabled browser solution. The department has lots of old hardware around that would get a lot of extra life with this solution. Also, I am trying to persuade them, in terms of their information and processes, to open themselves to the taxpaying public and the public they serve and the advocates. Many members of the public have older technology that could utilize a Java enabled browser to conduct a dialogue with the department's mainframe computer system. To my knowledge, only Java has this particular ability. This is a side issue to this posting but I thought I should disclose it.

That's kind of a thumbnail of this initiative. Those who remember my other writings will see this as a small piece of a bigger work that intends: 1) to bring copyleft to government information and software development, 2) to connect up the free software community with government, 3) to open photonic government to the people and 4) to help build photonic democracy. (Note: photonics is merely my preferred transport mechanism; you can substitute "electronic" if you prefer.)

Thank you for your time spent considering this matter and for any help you can provide.

August 27, 1998, posted to comp.os.linux.misc regarding The GNU/Linux Desktop Alternative by "Lyno Sullivan" [e-mail] Posted to [e-mail]