[ubuntu-uk] Persuading a school to switch

[Alistair Crust]

On Wed, 2008-03-26 at 13:41 +0000, Cameron Douglas wrote:
> It's kinda interesting with this topic but I think Linux is unlikely
> to get into UK schools anytime soon because most people have never
> heard of it or they like it but when they find out that the software
> in not really compatible with Windows they're not interested.

We found that, hence we run a win2k3 terminal server for "legacy apps".
Still saves money and with the amazing progress edubuntu is making were
at the point where the staff now look for web-based apps and
cross-platform stuff. Our policy is that we must do our bit to lessen
the digital divide and give the possibility of inclusion to those who
can't afford M$ software. Of course that statement implies the anything
other than M$ is technically inferior, which is incorrect, but we also
point out that its normally more secure, customisable, etc etc. 

> It doesn't help either that because of the BSF the LA tenders out a
> contract for EVERY school it runs to a company be it Dell or HP or in
> the case of Education Leeds, every computer in new or refurbished
> schools will run crappy RM machines with the buggy and bloated and
> unsecure administration tools.

Unless your a foundation school, we've virtually cut all ties with our
LA as far as IT goes, even to the point of saving £13k a year on a net
connection. our current setup costs £40~ a month and has a better uptime
that we ever got from them.

> 
> The school I went to had various PC's built from components bought
> from CCL Computers and were all self-builds (to save money probably)
> and they've migrated from NT4 to Win 2k to XP and are currently trying
> out Vista which is what the new school will run on. Although it is a
> Maths and IT Specialist school problems with running Linux (unless its
> the backend) included running SIMS or the timetable resource planning
> as well as drivers for the electronic smartboards they run and some
> speicalist software too. Although the Oracle 10g DB can be run on
> Linux along with Virtualisation software for the Cisco students
> 

This is where we are a little special, we have our own SIMS/Integris
replacement called scholarpack. Based on zope, written to be standards
compliant and taking into account the numerous reports done by BECTA on
MISs it will do everything SMIS will do and is web-based, and will run
on windows or linux (anything zope/python and postgress will run on).
Garry Saddington the writer is currently looking at open sourcing but as
of yet its just an internal project. 

> On 26/03/2008, Dianne Reuby <pramclub at yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
> >
> > On Wed, 2008-03-26 at 13:19 +0000, Stephen O'Neill wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > I hear that a number of network admins are teachers that fell into the
> > > role part time through a coincidence of knowing how to use a computer,
> > > not because of their being specialists. I imagine that it's only the
> > > larger schools that have budgets to staff the role full time, and I
> > > haven't personal experience of how they go about filling their positions.
> > >
> > Not so long ago I did a DTP course - the teacher couldn't help on a
> > question I had, she was a maths teacher. Admin had said basically "DTP
> > is computers, computers do maths, therefore the maths dept will teach
> > this evening class"!
> >
> > Dianne
> >
> >
> > --
> > ubuntu-uk at lists.ubuntu.com
> > https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk
> > https://wiki.kubuntu.org/UKTeam/
> >
> 
> 
> -- 
> See the website for the Microsoft ARC team:
> 
> http://arc.talynx.co.uk
> 


Kind regards
-- 
Alistair Crust <alistair at skegnessgrammar.org>
Systems Administrator
Skegness Grammar School
Vernon Road
Skegness
Lincs
PE252QS
Tel: 01754610000