Re: [Community_studios] Re: [seul-edu] Re: Unified Front...

[William Abernathy <william@inch.com>]

Alex wrote:

 > I think Linux is easier to deploy and manage than Windoze. In my experience 
(going
 >  on 10 years now) with Windoze, the problem isn't Linux's difficulty in
 > installation, deployment or maintenance. The biggest problem with Linux breaking
 >  into a new market is everyone's perception of how difficult it is. Sure,
 > Windoze is easy to install on a new PC. The problem is when it hits a new
 > piece of hardware, or finds incompatable code in someone else's product, or
 >  something else that is out of the ordinary. Troubleshooting Windoze is
 > where you run into the problems, which most people who make the buying
 > decisions never see. They see "even I can install this on my computer at
 > home."

I believe this is a mischaracterization of the problem. The average user has no
idea or concern about installation of Windows, because it's already there when
he or she buys the computer. That's marketing. If people gave a fiddle about
installation ease, Tux would be eating Bill's lunch.

 > I think we're going to always hit this wall as long as we only focus on "this
 >  needs to be easy to install" or "we need an Office compatible suite" or
 > "we need a company that can provide a support contract".

Linux already *is* easy to install (certainly easier to install than Windows).
It *is* important to have an Office-compatible suite (and we do). Many school 
districts *do* need a support contract with a company. You can't airily dismiss 
that last fact with dollops of elbow-grease and a can-do spirit, and it's what 
Red Hat and others base their business models on (though I suspect they have 
bigger fish to fry than school districts). We need to be willing work closely 
with *any* company that is willing to provide a support contract to a school 
district. Let's say Red Hat puts together a contract for a school district to 
defenestrate (throw Windows out the window). I think we should be able to 
marshall volunteers on the ground who can help with the transition, and then 
step back a bit and let Red Hat earn their money.

 > We already have all that, the thing we keep missing is everyone's perception.
 >  When some giant corporation can steal, appropriate and bully their way to
 > an unreliable, insecure product, and still get people to pay way too much
 > for it, that's got to be nothing more than a perception issue.

Nothing succeeds like success. The best way to show people Linux isn't scary is
to set them down in front of a working Linux box. The best way to show school 
district CTOs that Linux isn't scary is to show them another school district 
that works just fine on Linux.

 > We need to come up with a way to change people's perceptions, that's all. We 
already
 >  have the ease-of-use, beautiful GUIs, security, reliability, hardware
 > support, technical support and cost effectiveness.

We are doing that. Like any revolutionary technology, we first have to go after
early adopters. After these people demonstrate to their peers that you *can*
live without Microsoft, they will eventually get their pitchforks and torches,
and surround the Castle Gates. The reality is that we're dealing with 
slow-moving bureaucracies, and bureaucracies recoil from perceived risk like 
vampires from a cross. Think of them as penguins on an ice floe. They all mass 
at the edge until one jumps (or hast the misfortune to be pushed) into the 
water. If blood comes to the surface, they back off, not wanting to become seal 
bait. If there's no blood in the water, they'll all jump in.

 > Any marketing people out there? :)

I used to work in the marketing department, but I sure wouldn't call myself a
"marketing person." Anyway, I think it's more important for us to get a few
districts working well than to worry about conquering the world. Total World
Domination takes time, after all...

This list is for folks putting together one aspect of TWD, which is applications 
  (and the matter at hand, an ISO) for schools. One step at a time.

--William