James G. Sack (jim) wrote:
Seems like it contains useful ammunition. (from a lwn.net link)
Linux in U.S. Schools: Why the Resistance?
September 4, 2008
By Matt Hartley
Well, the article targets the technical side, again. And ignores the
people side, again.
Schools now have a bunch of federal regulations that they must adhere to
"to protect the children." This means that there are Federally blessed
software packages that you can point to when being sued as claim
"standard practice."
In addition, schools aren't buying software for performance so much as
"blame transfer." At SDSU, I was guilty of this as well.
I *hate* Blackboard (a course management system). Really, really hate
it. The students hate it, too. Guess what I put all their grades into?
Blackboard.
Why? Because the security of Blackboard is an SEP--somebody else's
problem. If it gets broken into, not my problem. Of course, this holds
at all levels, if it gets broken into, not the admin's problem, it's
Blackboard's problem. And Blackboard has enough revenue to be lawyered
up so that it isn't even really their problem.
And, when you are buying software as protection money, it costs the same
amount of money whether you use Linux or Windows, so why switch?
-a
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