Hail Vaguers: This post is in response to Lawrence Keyes <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> a person whom I've respected and whose website I've spent much time following; if more for useful information than not it's microsoft bent. ( P.S. your link "Digital Media Development Laboratory: Create a Digital Media Development Laboratory for developing course material for on-line courses, and to manage courses given online." (http://ctl.uvm.edu/?Page=tech/index.html&SM=tech/tech_menu.html) is broken: UVM Template Errors Error with submenu file: tech/tech_menu.html Failed reading file or file was empty: tech/tech_menu.html Error with `Page' action: tech/index.html File does not exist: tech/index.html )
I don't know why my posts always seem less thoughtful than my other correspondences, more hastily put together and rant-like. I even put this in the 'drafts' folder to stew a bit, hoping for better words and a little richer seasoning. Oh, well; it's post now or [EMAIL PROTECTED] On Friday 24 October 2008, Paul Flint wrote: > Dear Larry, > That said, the sad thing about the Champlain College Media facility > opening I attended was I counted the number of systems running FOSS > systems. > > That number was Zero. At least FF was running on a couple of hosts:) But you're right Paul, there was a noticable absence of anything other than windoz and suits. But don't lets rain on their parade. The fact that Champlain can draw interest and ppl into Tech is a good thing. I also spoke with a few attendees. My question to Ann DeMarle was "why games" and the answer was essentially (actually, exactly) "games are hot". The thought that education had devolved to a point where a game becomes the best learning tool in the box is somewhat depressing. But more salient was the fact that (note i did not play any of the games on display) these games appeared not to be flash-based, but required windows to run on. I grabbed whatever lit was on the tables and the headline of the "Champlain Current" read: "EMC Charts future with Grants" - which just about says it all. One doesn't create programs and get students w/out OPM. The fact that they are "Information Literary games" notwithstanding. 200K from UN Population Fund to create the PMC and a game to raise awareness of violence towards women in Africa (South Africa). Granted, the UN agency probably spends more on radio and 'feet-on-the-ground' initiatives and that's money well-spent. Noble as that is, this game ignores the fact the FOSS (and linux) plays a growing role in the developing world. If kids do get access to computers, I'd prefer it be on a linux box. All the other games followed suit, the biofeedback kid game, Catastasis, the collab game to resolve disaster response, even the "Army of One"; non-window users need not apply. Though I had a much more savory talk w/Jon Ferguson about education and the role of gaming to address (some of) it's shortcomings; it struck me as telling that EMC would be creating games based more on what big money interests will pay for rather than 'outside-the-box' creativity on systems that anyone can develop and build on. (at least one student raved over blender, though:) Also noteworthy in our conversation was the point that linux/FOSS development and adoption is a greater phenomenon in the developing world and more socialist countries (germany, brazil...) and what that implies: that THEY see the value even if most of us in the US dont. Moving on: > > > Also: > > Come to the Career Tech Jam tomorrow! > > Come join us at vtSDA! > > > I hope to see you tomorrow. I looked at the lineup for the event in 7Days and came to the conclusion that it wasn't worth my time/gas. Perhaps as sponsors, the vtSDA stated mission: "support and promote a thriving software community in which members can share ideas, expertise and strategies for success" applies mostly to their intended audience: "...focuses more on common business interests", than to those who make them a reality. So what of the lineup? Hopefully a cross-section of the best-n-brightest the State has to offer? Well, track1 (Arts/Communications) didn't seem to offer more than one could read on /. Not much to comment on with Track2 (Science) but for the narrowness of represented fields. So, what about the Exhibitors and the presence (or lackthereof of FOSS)? The webshops are FOSS implementors, but what about the rest of the lineup? I can't say for certain, but I'd wager 8 to your 5 that they're all, like mxdesign, microsoft beholden. teksystems - aspx http://empowermobility.com/ - windows mobile mywebgrocer - c# m$ http://be-pragmatic.com Java, .NET and LAMP http://piematrix.com/ - well, the .do extensions and prior conversation indicates microsoft jsp but maybe websphere/struts competitive - pure M$ I could go on, but the point is not much of a FOSS presence in VT as software goes despite that use of FOSS, both nationally and internationally, is on the rise. So, is/was the jam representative of the best Tech vermont has to offer? More salient, can the introduction and promotion of FOSS contribute to make it more vibrant? Check out jobsinVT.com, or burlington.craigslist or the state website; most all IT jobs are in microsoft shops. Now take a look at FOSS jobs nationally: http://www.devbistro.com/servlet/jobs?keywords=linux+sysadmin+&type=all http://jobs.com/jobsearch.asp?sq=sr%26unix%26system%26administrator&aj=unix+system+administrator http://www.myjobhunter.com/ http://www.getafreelancer.com there is an abundance of FOSS/Linux jobs in business both large and small. We talk about the difficulty of finding adequate talent for hi-tech jobs. It's become the mantra for the Douglas administration and LC chamber. Well, that's hogwash. Ancedotally, when I wanted to move here, there were no jobs available. Like most places you had to move here w/a cushion big enough to hold out until the right job became available. People would move to vermont in a heartbeat if the jobs were here; for that chance at the 'simple life' near lakes and mountains and being the only car on most roads. So, what was missing from the lineup? For starters, how about "Lowering you TCO (is FOSS right for you)", "Continuity and Disaster Preparedness", "Going green, virtually and thin", "Why ODF is good for you".... Heck, I could go on but you get the drift. Take-away: dear vtSDA - if FOSS advocates ever get their act together, they just might eat your lunch. That said, It's become apparent that this might not be the forum to express these thoughts. So I apologize to all and will desist from future threads on the subject; reserving vague for shop-talk and everything free-as-in-beer. Rion > > Kindest Regards, > > > Paul Flint > (802) 479-2360 > -- echo '16i[q]sa[ln0=aln100%Pln100/snlbx]sbA0D4D465452snlbxq' | dc This will help you for 99.9% of your problems ...
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