[PLUG] LInux Clinic and you avg P-town computer user?

Mike Connors mconnors1 at gmail.com
Fri Jan 22 22:24:40 UTC 2010


Michael Moore wrote:
> That's kinda what I see as the rub:  what's the use of getting the
> word out if they people you're getting the word out to are satisfied
> enough with what they have?  As a total rank amateur Linux user -- not
> a programmer, not a software professional, almost no idea what goes on
> in IT departments -- it seems to me the fastest road to Linux
> visibilty is to make business cases for Linux adoption by businesses,
> whether profit-making business or non-profits.  Then the employees of
> those businesses get exposure and experience and realize Linux can
> work for them as well as (or better than) Windows or OS X.  (Or, no
> doubt, some decide they like one of the others better, but at least
> they make an informed decision.)  So my question, for those who are
> professionals, is why isn't this happening more than it is?
>
> Michael M.
This is the pest control model. You put the poison out to the worker's 
(MS Win & Office) and then they take it back to the nest/home and infect 
family, friends and neighbors with it.

There are a plethora of reasons why some companies and orgs drop M$ for 
Linux / FOSS and there are just as many why they don't. I'm surprised 
every time there's some headline about a company or municipality 
switching to Linux and then after I read the article I'm dumbfounded why 
other's don't.

I think Linux / FOSS is going to work the other way around. I just found 
out from an ex-colleague that a large hospital I worked switched from 
the Blackberry to the iPhone because so many people had them and were 
using them at work that IT eventually caved in and supported them.

A lot of consumer tech is using non-M$ software. This is why I think 
it's so important to work from the outside/in or bottom/up. Besides, 
Linux / FOSS is for the people by the people!



More information about the PLUG mailing list