"desktop" is a very broad term. For government agencies, perhaps all most office workers need is network connectivity, an office suite, and a web browser (to access web-based applications). I'd bet most of the windows boxes are already "locked down" to only support the core apps. Users don't have admin rights to screw up their own machine, install software/spyware, etc. If that is the "desktop" we're talking about, Linux is totally ready, IMHO.
In all the Peruvian gov't agencies, they probably have hundreds of Win32 apps that would not be easy to run on linux. It would take years to move everything, but at least they know it's possible. And so does Microsoft. So if it is just a strong arm tactic, i say good for them. Microsoft has been strong arm'ing everyone else for 20 years. Government is BIG business for Microsoft, and they can't keep giving out software for free to all governments......the feds would eventually get pretty mad (lost tax revenue). ray On Fri, 11 Feb 2005, Andrew Baudouin wrote: > I don't think that's necessarily "cool" at all. As I have said > previously, as a hardcore GNU/Linux user, hacker, and full time > Windows user/hacker, I'm not of the opinion that Linux is ready for > the desktop. Some think otherwise... but I can assure you that the > government of Peru (if this passes at all) is not going to deploy > downloaded ISO's of Gentoo on systems and compile from source like you > or I might. They are going to get RHEL or something with support, and > they will sign support contracts. > > IMHO, all that the government of Peru cares about is money. They > don't have kernel hackers or large amounts of programmers on staff to > really need or use the complete source to GNU/Linux. This is a > strongarm tactic to get MS to lower their prices, IMHO. > > > > On Fri, 11 Feb 2005 09:41:53 -0600, Alvaro Zuniga <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > This article has some paragraphs of a letter to microsoft from a > > politician in Peru regarding a bill that leaves Microsoft out of the > > picture unless they become open source. Is that cool or what? They are > > also critiziced about not fixing bugs quickly enough, as opposed to the > > open source comminity. > > > > Not the core of the articule but the coolest news of the day so far. > > > > http://www.it-analysis.com/article.php?articleid=12563&SESSID=7b619e8a12e8cec3aa6c9f39abce9096 > > > > _______________________________________________ > > General mailing list > > [email protected] > > http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net > > > > _______________________________________________ > General mailing list > [email protected] > http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net > -- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ray DeJean http://www.r-a-y.org Systems Engineer Southeastern Louisiana University IBM Certified Specialist AIX Administration, AIX Support =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
