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| Non-profit organizations increasingly depend on computers to help with day-to-day activities. Computers are very useful devices, but they are expensive and don't usually work well, thus taking time away from the organization's principal goals. An organization like TecsChange can help other organizations by providing computers and especially technical support to allow them to focus on their core goals. TecsChange has traditionally been a provider of "wintel" equipment and expertise, i.e. they specialize in Microsoft operating systems running on PC-compatible machines. This is a good choice because the hardware is reliable and inexpensive and the software is very commonly used in commercial environments. PC-compatible hardware has very few disadvantages relative to the alternatives, but Microsoft software brings several problems along with its benefits. The most important problem is cost: Microsoft products are expensive and getting more so. Another important problem, though, is control. Microsoft has increasingly tried through various mechanisms (technical and legal) to take control away from the users. For example, the license to use Microsoft operating systems has consistently become more rigid and intrusive as the operating systems became more expensive in terms of cost and hardware requirements. Microsoft's development and support of "Digital Rights Management" also indicate that their overall strategy is to become more closely involved in how people use their computers. | ||||||||
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| There is another area, though, where GNU/Linux is immediately useful: for servers. Because users don't typically interact directly with servers, we can substitute different technologies without impacting the users. In cases where the user community has no servers then they have no investment in administration of proprietary servers, so there is no retraining cost at all. GNU/Linux interacts very well with Microsoft desktop computers on their own terms, so the combination of GNU/Linux servers with Microsoft desktops works very well. | ||||||||
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| > > | GNU/Linux is weaker than Windows, even on servers, in one area: ease of installation. This is where TecsChange brings value as we will configure tens of systems and therefore bring expertise and experience to the process. We will deliver preconfigured systems to customers who can then simply use them. | |||||||
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| > > | All of these services are well within the reach of a basic GNU/Linux system: Samba for file sharing, sendmail/qmail/postfix for email transport, CUPS for print management, etc. Many collaboration tools are available, too; often written in PHP.
GNU/Linux is provided by its authors in source code form, so most users get their software packaged in a form called a distribution. There are many different distributions (hundreds in fact), but the most common are Red Hat, Mandrake, and Debian. Red Hat is the most successful enterprise that specializes in Free Software. Mandrake is a distribution that took basic Red Hat and polished it for desktop use. Debian is a non-profit organization than maintains a distribution using volunteers organized in much the same way that Linux volunteers are organized.
My preference is for the Debian GNU/Linux distribution. It's not as polished during installation, but it's very stable and well-maintained, and the software and infrastructure for distributing Debian are second to none. The apt tool set is very highly regarded and is often cited as a model of how software distribution tools should work in the other distributions. For example, to update my system with the latest security patches only two commands are required:
$ apt-get update $ apt-get upgradeIn addition to the practical benefits of using Debian come the intangible benefits that come from Debian being a non-profit organization. While Red Hat is financially in reasonable shape, Mandrake is in financial troubles and many other distributions vendors have gone out of business. Debian is less likely to suffer from financial problems since it doesn't depend on making a profit to stay in business. So what's the next step? Using a new operating system is not a task to be taken lightly. We need to plan thoroughly - what software to use, how to configure it, how to support it, etc. | |||||||
-- TobyCabot - 13 Apr 2003
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