Linux Desktop for university staff

[Dotan Cohen]

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 14:55:53 -0700, Hodgins Family
<ehodgins at telusplanet.net> wrote:
> Good afternoon!
> 
> > This is backwards. In my university, myself and a few other linux
> > users are respected because we use linux. We are thought of as the
> > computer-guys. Even if I've been on linux for about three months and I
> > continually ask newbie questions. No one will thing that you cant
> > afford windows if you dont use it. They will think that you've
> > outgrown it.
> >
> > Dotan Cohen
> 
> You might want to toss in the use of Macs. Lots of academics use Macs
> because it gives them comfort to hate/abuse Microsoft. And, Mr. Cohen,
> you are, indeed, in a enviable position! Other academic environments
> might have your pioneering mindset being written off with less desirable
> titles!
> 
> Of interest to you, there is another thread developing in this list
> under the subject of: Re: Vulgar posts by novell email address? was: OT:
> Incredible Rudenessin Evolution Bugzilla
> 
> What is of interest is the following snippet from that thread:
> 
> > In addition to the other examples I already mentioned: I am trying to
> > introduce Linux as a desktop where I work (big corporation, no garage
> > shop), to save money. I am saying come on, let's try this and that
> > app, so we can cut virus downtime and service costs (the "public
> > forums are fast and helpful" argument). Evolution and its Exchange
> > plugin would be great in our corporate environment, but I *must* step
> > around it very carefully because if *one* tester or boss happens into
> > a situation like this, I would be told exactly (see your words above)
> > "You're an engineer, not a sysadmin. This wasn't your business, and
> > you have little justification for involving yourself in the issue.
> > Stop playing and go back to slooowly accessing Linux remotely from
> > Windows".
> 
> This poster has the same vision as our own OP. And obviously, this
> poster is encountering "issues".
> Personally, I want to know how our OP will face these issues. Substitute
> engineer for student and sysadmin for professor/chairman in the above
> snippet.
> 
> Now, for what it is worth, for the OP who is still monitoring this
> thread, I have had an off-list communication with an individual who is
> enthusiastic about a distribution called Scientific Linux (The web site
> is www.scientificlinux.org). It is based on RedHat. Some of the
> applications  that it has are available for viewing at:
> www.distrowatch.com . I know nothing about it. I have no idea how many
> universities/departments have actually embraced this distribution. I am,
> however, quite happy to recant my earlier statement that suggested that
> *nix departments were unable to get faculty interested in using Linux.
> Here, obviously, is ONE group that WAS successful. Might be worth
> contacting the admin group to see how they got faculty to switch.
> 
> As well, I have encountered a distribution called: Skolelinux. Its
> website is http://www.skolelinux.org/. Its packages are also available
> for viewing at distrowatch.com. Again, I have no idea how extensive is
> use is in the academic world, but it seems to have a lot of the software
> that you might need. Note, that it is a Debian distribution, not a
> RedHat/Fedora distribution.
> 
> Please, Mr. Tepegoz, keep us updated on your progress.
> 
> Rob
> 
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> 

I am not aware of any mac users here, but I can assume that there are
some. Or there may be troubles with Hebrew support in the mac, which
is what prevents me personally from broadening my experience with
different distros. I have never tried, so I do not know.

I stopped following the 'vulgar' post because I found it to be another
whining post, and has nothing to do with pantera.

But my intention in replying now is to add to the 'specialty' software
language support. In that respect, Fedora is very far advanced. It is
one of the few major (is it major?) distros where you have hebrew
support out of the box, which is why I chose it.

And as for users of scientific instruments who need software to
communicate with them, I think that this is EXACTLY the type of crowd
who could push the software developers (which are probably the same
guys who developed that specialty hardware) to make linux versions.
They are not selling special scientific equiptment to millions of home
users. So each and every scientist who says 'I need linux support'
makes up a larger percentage of the total market for that software.

I should probably point out that I have written to the developers of
my favorite windows software to ask about linux versions, and even
switched ISP's because my original ISP would not help me connect to
the internet with linux. If I could boot XP and he could walk me
through a wizard, he didn't care to walk me through pap-secrets and a
hundred ther things that I did not understand. So I found an ISP that
did. I think is is important that linux users should be visible. Not
rude, but visible. Otherwise, no one will know that we exist.

Dotan Cohen
http://English-Lyrics.com
http://Song-Lyriks.com