Endre
Grøtnes writes:
Statskonsult (The Norwegian directorate on public management)
have prepared a report on the usability of Linux in the Norwegian
public sector.
The report can be found here:
http://www.statskonsult.no/publik/publikasjoner/2001-07/index.htm
http://www.statskonsult.no/publik/publikasjoner/2001-07/r2001-07eng.pdf
The main conclusion is that Linux and other open source software
are well suited in the education sector and that the government
should encourage schools to take up Linux:
“Linux is a product that the public sector should
support in order to promote the development of a potential
alternative to Microsoft s operating systems. Linux is currently
best suited for use as a server operating system.The state should support the development of open-source software
to promote alternatives to current software. New open-source
software could promote the enhancement of current software and
prevent the public sector from becoming too focused on one
direction. Support could be offered in the form of research and
development funding.In allocating research and development funds, the state should
require that the software developed be made available as open
source software.The public sector should also consider whether it could publish
source code that it currently has ownership rights to as
open-source software.The state should urge schools and the education sector in
general to use Linux and other open source software. This is
because schoolchildren and students must acquire as much knowledge
as possible about a variety of products in order to build up a
solid foundation on which to be able to choose at a later date the
products they believe are the most suitable.”