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Re: [school-discuss] Re: BSA Software audit
Leon Brooks wrote:
> On Wednesday 29 May 2002 22:43, TJ Miller wrote:
>
>>If installed software has not been legitimately
>>purchased, they can fine up to $100,000 per incident and possible
>>federal prison time for the guilty party(ies).
>>
>
>>IT will be in contact with every department and Instructional Program
>>this week, Thursday and Friday, to ensure proper software licensing
>>procedures have been followed.
>>
>
> Did you remember to tell them that they're dreaming? And that even if they
> make lab supervisors, students, the janitor or the archchancellor responsible
> for properly following the rules, inconsistencies will still be found?
After working as a sysadmin for quite a few years, it's a no-brainer
that we're out of compliance; my own classroom (40 machines or so) is
way out WRT MS Office. It's one of the things we teach here, so I'm sort
of stuck with it... meanwhile, the budget request has gone in; they can
either spend a couple of thousand bucks to get compliant with licensing,
or they can let me teach Open Office... I gave them the choice. The
school decided to go with the MSDNAA charade, which gives us site
license for everything (and I do mean everything) but Office... go figure.
> No organisation with more than about 20 MS desktops can seriously hope to be
> 100% compliant. When it comes down to the wire, the BSA is a rort.
>
> You might also do well to remind them that the BSA is disinclined to further
> irritate organisations which are obviously investigating products that
> compete with their supporters' (the rationale apparently being that the BSA
> looks bad when they're openly blamed for driving away sizeable customers).
Yep... already passed word up the chain. If they ever show up in this
classroom they will be greeted with my RH 7.2 laptop (a Dell Inspiron
8100; I bought it myself so I can get some work done at home) and
numerous Linux machines running on our Internet workstations.
> In other words, they should at least have OOo and/or StarOffice obviously
> under trial before the BSA arrives. A few Linux desktops scattered around
> would do no harm either.
Already got 'em (we also teach Linux here, after all :)
--
TJ Miller jr
OS/Networking Instructor
Utah College of Applied Technology - Davis Campus
http://ww2.datc.tec.ut.us