On Tue, Aug 19, 2014 at 7:49 AM, Archer75--- via Mercedes < mercedes@okiebenz.com> wrote:
> The German city of Munich, which famously adopted Linux and open source > across its operations, may be about to reverse that decision. > > German newspaper /Süddeutsche/ reports <http://www.sueddeutsche.de/ > muenchen/muenchner-stadtverwaltung-von-microsoft- > zu-linux-und-zurueck-1.2090611> deputy mayor Josef Schmid as saying the > city is considering the move because users often complain about the > functionality available in open-source applications. > > The lack of an integrated contact, calendar and email application is cited > as staff's chief gripe. The /Süddeutsche/ story also mentions a need to set > up an external email server to allow the City's mobile devices to send and > receive messages. > > So vociferous are the complaints that the city council will create an > expert panel to assess the performance of its chosen software. Schmid is > quoted as saying that if the panel recommends a return to Microsoft, he > won't oppose that change. > > There are no German speakers in Vulture South or Vulture West, the /Reg/ > offices working on this story, so we're reliant on machine translation and > its nuance-stripping machinations. But even after we stuffed the story > through three - Bing, Google and Babel Fish - the meaning came across as > reported above. > > If Munich decides to revert to commercial software, the open-source > movement will lose one of its most visible champions. > http://arstechnica.com/business/2014/08/linux-on-the-desktop-pioneer-munich-now-considering-a-switch-back-to-windows/ " These views aren't held universally, with the City Council <http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Linux-in-Muenchen-Stadtrat-verteidigt-LiMux-gegen-Buergermeister-2262506.html> defending the "LiMux" project and suggesting that the coalition administration is using the Linux migration as a scapegoat. The Council says the use of open source software has yielded savings of more than EURO 10 million (more than $13 million). Karl-Heinz Schneider, head of municipal IT services, seems to endorse this view. He says it's no surprise that a new platform should temporarily generate more support requests, and he wasn't aware of any particular complaints. Microsoft announced last year that it was moving its German headquarters to Munich. This move is planned to take place in 2016. While Reiter was involved in the deal that precipitated the move and describes himself as a "Microsoft fan," he says the criticism of LiMux is unrelated. " Best, Tim _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
