Walking Through a Linux Wonderland

Anyone checking my blog can see that I've been taking it easy. Aside from slacking off from my posting and occasionally checking my mail, I've been playing around with all kinds of Linux distros. I'm fortunate to have a reputation for being a guy who takes worn-out PCs. I got a lot of old laptops and desktops to experiment upon in my quest for tried and tested tools for free computing. When I get aging machines I enjoy loading the hardware with all manner of open source and free software. For the last five days I've been working my way through all of the flavors of Ubuntu.

My wife, bless her, has been very accommodating with my holiday hobby. Antiquated computers adorn my home like scattered toys. My floors may be messy but they bear witness to my zeal. I've been installing, examining, reviewing, and testing stuff like:

• Edubuntu
• Xubuntu
• Kubuntu

I've known about and used these resources for a few years and I'm still eager to explore their potential. The kind individuals who invest time and knowledge in refining all of these variations of Ubuntu make the prospect of using the systems irresistible. That's why I'm on holiday from Windows and thrilled about touring an alternative operating system or two. Why not take the plunge and see what Ubuntu or one of its cousins has to offer? Better yet, burn a few Ubuntu CDs and give them to your friends!

Opening Up to Open Source: IBM's Progressive Move

My good pal Joe rang me up today and brought something supremely interesting to my attention. He told me about a news story that caught his eye. While exploring Google News, he discovered that IBM is launching a line of computers that do not use Microsoft's Windows operating system. Instead, IBM's machines will combine its own open source Lotus Symphony desktop package with the Linux operating system. According to the news story,

"IBM claims the system can save businesses $500 to $800 per user on Microsoft software licenses and an additional $258 per user "since there is no need to upgrade hardware to support Windows Vista and Office."

That's important. Why? Even before the recent economic downturn, many schools lacked the funds necessary for maintaining Windows-based computers. Money was scarce even before money was scarce. With the added stress of the loss of what little funds they had, it's no wonder that many schools are coming around to the possibility of using Windows-free computers.

For the last three years, Joe has been investigating and using a variety of open source programs and freeware. He knows his stuff. Whether it's Inkscape, Audacity, or TuxPaint, Joe has been carefully researching all manner of computer programs that students can use for free. He fervently believes that the tools of learning can and should be free. With IBM's bold move, maybe they will be.


Related links:

• Interested in pursuing Linux as an alternative? Chances are you can find more than 10 reasons to choose Linux in a bad economy.

NECC 2008: Opening Up to Open Source

Too cool!

Here I am in San Antonio, Texas at the Gonzalez Convention Center sitting in the Open Source Lab session listening to Steve Hargadon discuss free resources. I've heard Steve present before and, as always, it's a pleasure to get access to his fresh ideas and opinions. This post--the one you're reading--is being written on an old, IBM ThinkPad that has no harddrive. It's a PC that's part of a thin client network. There's a room full of these normally useless, obsolete machines that are being used for blogging, word processing, multimedia, and other tasks. Imagine what might happen if a system or school decided to make better use of its old machines rather than tossing them out or surplusing them.