[plug] Linux in _home_ education

[Leon Brooks]

Bill Kenworthy wrote:

> Biggest problem faced is compatibility:
> 	Kids will want to share files with compatriots, supervisors etc. if not
> using the same machine etc.  In the education world compatibility means
> M$Office, on Mac's or PC's.

Use StarOffice, end of story. If it won't read in StarOffice, it'll 
probably break a different version of MS-Office anyway. Sometimes a doc 
_will_ read in SO, but breaks different MSOs anyway.

> There are also the games and utilities that
> kids use and share.

Languages like Python are good for this. PySol, for example, runs on 
many things.

> Second problem is who will do the SysAdmin:

Generally, nobody. Small things like adding a new user for a friend or 
relative are simple enough that the mythical Joe Sixpack can do it. 
Otherwise, logs rotate and self-prune, file-systems journal, viruses and 
bit-rot don't happen, and nothing is heard on the help line for years on 
end.

> As an example, think how much
> skill is required to install windows net nanny or similar

Which doesn't actually work (blocks some safe sites and lets through 
some smut and weaponry), but never mind.

> I have met some people who do home schooling for various reasons and
> many (but not most) of the people in this area seem to be wary of
> technology

That'll be SouthWest WA you're talking about. (-:

> a
> market windows with its emphasis on ease of use is still far better for
> someone with limited technical abilities.

Not really, unless you're discussing installing and setting up Linux vs 
just using pre-installed Windows. A modern Linux distro (notably 
Mandrake or Caldera) is no harder to set up than Windows 9x|ME unless 
you have a piece of hardware only supported by those (and even then, 
odds are you'll have a problem with it under Windows).

> After all, they will have
> gone with home schooling because they are not happy with some aspect of
> mainstream education,

...or all aspects of mainstream education... (-:

> not because they hate windows or want to learn
> Linux, or even computers for that matter.

Actually, a significant number of them are just plain non-conformist, 
and Linux appeals to the philosophically more than technically. (-:

> If you
> think Linux is easy to use for the new PC user, you should spend some
> time in the newbie news groups!

And if you think Linux is generally harder that Windows to install, go 
visit from Windows newbie news groups. The 
news:alt.windows95.crash.crash.crash group is particularly helpful, but 
coming from a Linux background, you'd be appalled at how often the 
answer is ``reformat, reinstall.''

> Its getting better, but perhaps a
> special education distro with the right bundled software, and perhaps
> remote admin from someone with both educational and SysAdmin knowledge? 

> Now there's a potentially profitable niche market!

Debian are working on it, and SEUL-edu are toying with the idea.

-- 
Death and taxes are inevitable; but death doesn't get worse every year.