[ubuntu-uk] Leaflets [long reply]

[Josh Blacker]

On 5/6/07, norman <norman at littletank.org> wrote:
> I would like to raise another point relevant to all UK citizens. We all,
> in one way or another, pay taxes a fair proportion of which gets spent
> on education. Thus, if schools could be persuaded to change to Ubuntu,
> by how much would our taxes be reduced or cash released for other
> beneficial things such as health? Surely, Ubuntu can do most, if not
> all, of the things needed in schools. So, why are we not targeting our
> local councillors with our propaganda. We have just had theirs in the
> local elections so why not retaliate?
>
> You may accuse me of being Political but then, isn't this freedom thing
> that Linux users preach about, a Political philosophy?

Doesn't the French National Assembly run on Linux (possibly Ubuntu)?

I think the main argument would be the much-reduced cost of licensing,
but then when you're deploying hundreds of PCs I don't think the cost
per machine of Windows is all that high. Plus, the major factor is to
have IT engineers on site with the relevant experience, and retraining
takes a lot of time and money. I know Canonical offer support
services, but how this compares to companies offering Windows support
in terms of cost, I have no idea, and this would be another important
factor.

I do agree wholeheartedly - just thinking through a few of the issues involved!

Josh