Linux flunks high school

Posted on 22 Nov 2005 at 15:13

David Moss dons his teacher's hat and looks at the cost of switching from Windows to Mac or Linux at his school

I can't think of any business that likes the idea of downtime - hell, we get ratty when our all-singing, all-dancing networked photocopier/fax/printer jams. Selling the idea of wholesale retraining and all the downtime that it would incur (when people forgot how something worked and so on) wasn't quite what I wanted to think about.

Putting the adult working population to one side for a moment, I also had to consider the impact of this change on the pupils. At first glance, you might think this would be quite limited, especially with the younger ones, as they'd happily slip into any new system, would enjoy the experimentation and experience the joy of discovery that marks a happy learning environment. While that's true, looking at the specialist software I've been using right through the Junior school made me realise there's no way I could contemplate a move to Linux unless I was sure I could somehow run those programs in some kind of application compatibility layer. Even if I could do that, there was still a cost element to consider, as while the compatibility layer might be free I'd still have to pay new licence fees for the software. Given that those licences don't come cheap - not everything in education is cheap by any means, and some companies clearly see schools as a giant cash-cow to be ruthlessly milked of government subsidies - and given that we ourselves don't get any government subsidies, being an independent charitable trust, I was going to need a lot of convincing that I could do this in a seamless manner.

I made my way to the Wine website (www.winehq.com), home of an open-source implementation of the Windows API that can run on X and a variety of x86-based Unix OSes including Linux, Solaris and FreeBSD. What I saw there didn't fill me with great joy: the Gold and Silver lists of software that would work 'virtually flawlessly' or 'could hopefully be made to work' weren't overflowing with names or versions of software I used at the school, on either the admin or school networks. Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking Wine, but I have to take a hard-nosed approach when I have my system admin hat on. Noting that, for example, Microsoft Access 2000 was the only Office component to appear in either list - and that at the bottom of the Silver list, which is for applications 'we hope we can easily fix so that they can make it to Gold status' - didn't give me the warm comforting feeling I was looking for.

Perusing other Wine sites didn't make matters much better either. There was clearly a lot of work being done by a lot of people, but if I wanted to be sure my software worked under an OS it was going to have to be the Windows OS, and the only platform that provides a really good compatibility layer for Windows software is the Mac, via the excellent Virtual PC. But that doesn't help me in the cost area at all, and there would be no guarantee that all those specialist school applications would run happily inside it anyway.

It might surprise some people, but schools run a wide range of specialist software - well, mine does anyway, and so do many others I know of. Aside from word processors, spreadsheets and databases, we have paint packages, vector-drawing and CAD programs, branching databases, film and music software, DTP, programming, photography, encyclopedia, turtle control and flow control software, data-logging and interactive whiteboard software, science-, geography- and maths-specific software, and more besides. It's probably a much wider selection than found in the average SME office environment.

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Mr. Moss, you definitely face a hard task to properly service your clients, the students, teaching staff, and administrative staff of the school. Diverse software, diverse hardware, and diverse operating systems.

I'm sorry you didn't find Linux a panacea. Listening to some folks rave about Linux, Macs, or whatever, you'd think they provided some kind of magical cure. Sorry, they're all just tools with advantages and trade-offs.

In a historically Windows-centric environment and you as a Windows-centric person, you'll be hard pressed to escape its clutches. I happen to believe you should stay open to all tools at your disposal.

In working with Linux, you'll need to be open to places where it fits in a non-disruptive manner. As a file server, a web server, a host for virtualizing a couple Windows servers, or as an application server for a school-specific piece of software (e.g., Moodle).

At the same time, you're mixed up environment lends itself to putting Windows applications on Terminal Server or Citrix servers so the desktop the user selects is neutralized. If you're looking at major hardware upgrades to deal with Windows 7 and the cost of provisioning everyone with Office 2010, it might be time for another tool to be considered.

There are other schools in England that have been successful in putting Linux to good use. It's hard to believe you are not aware of any and can't contact them to find out how they managed while you seem convinced you can't. To ignore a valuable tool like Linux seems a bad idea for the school, and for you as a modern-day administrator.

Finally, I hope some nefarious person at the magazine chose the title for your article without your consent. Otherwise, you'll have pulled down upon your head some very distracting grief for no good reason.

Good luck.

By noesam on 23 Jan 2010

It seems that what you've got is a big bundle of interdependent stuff that you can't dare change. That's fair enough if you're ok with that.

By steviesteveo on 14 Jun 2010

It doesn't have to be all or nothing...

They key part to service delivery in schools is, and increasingly will become, the separation of the application and the user experience from the delivery platform. The applications your users require should be independent of the platform they choose to use to access them. Increasingly students have their own laptops on which you can't hope to manage or control software or smartphones on which you might not even be able to install the software. You can allow students to benefit from technology they've invested in (or have because of special educational needs) and you can give them access to school applications or the whole desktop experience including access to data and controlled internet access from anywhere at any time. There are RDP and ICA clients for most platforms both traditional PC, eg Mac Windows, Linux and new iphone, ipod, ipad, android etc allowing access from almost all platforms. Importantly the data never leaves the school and applications can be updated without needing access to the user's platform! In school low power "thin devices" can be used reducing power requirements both for the PCs and for auxiliary services eg air con and extending the lifespan of the hardware. Applications can be introduced one at a time, it doesn't have to be an All Linux or all Mac or All windows environment, the best elements of each can be used to best effect where appropriate.

By cjohnsonuk on 19 Sep 2010

Virtualise

Surely the answer would be to throw in some Ubuntu workstations running VirtualBox hosting your Windows desktops. You can even find tools that will convert a physical machine to a virtual machine.

By Caltor on 12 Aug 2011

Holy old article Batman!

Posted on 22 Nov 2005 at 15:13

!!??!!

By PaleRider on 19 Aug 2011

Holy really old article Batman!

Honestly, latest Real World Computing. This article is SIX years old. Pull it or revisit it.

I don't think I will be renewing my subscription, the new format has highlighted a noticeable deterioration.

By Deadtroopers on 23 Dec 2011

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