[ale] Killing Off Linux: It's All Academic

Glenn Stone taliesin at babcom.com
Sun Sep 19 20:02:27 EDT 1999


J. Reeves Hall cited an article, quoth which:
> "They're getting it. For example, Indiana University (IU) recently
> announced a $6 million deal that enables the university to freely
> distribute Windows software to all students and faculty."

The argument here is simple:  Free software is _free software_, 
it don't cost no six million bucks, it costs exactly squat.  
Oh, it's support you want?  Well, nobody ever got fired for buying...
IBM.  (Anyone with *any* kind of ties to IBM needs to clue big blue
into cut-rate academic support contracts.  Good way to save your 
bacon in the long run.)

Sure, M$ is going to play dirty pool.  Always has, always will.  
With the advent of StarOffice by Sun, however, I think the arguments
for M$ in academia are fast becoming moot.  

Hell, let's play the game: 

Can any of you guys think of an app that was really damn useful to you in
your college days (is, for those of you who are still there) that was
only available on M$?  

-- Glenn Stone 
RHCE
Linux Evangelist






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