Transcript Utilizing Open Source Software in Schools of Hong Kong

Utilizing OSS in Schools of
Hong Kong
Joey Chan
July 10, 2004.
Utilizing OSS in Schools of HK
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What Is Open Source?
Administrative Issues
Educational Issues
Research Findings
Conclusions & Recommendations
Major References
What Is Open Source?
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In the 80’s, programmers in the “hacker”
community liked to compete their skills
A programmer distributed his/her own
program with its codes on Internet
Interested users read the codes and
made improvement (occupies less
memory, runs faster, etc.)
They also fixed bugs and added new
functions
Everybody in the process could enjoy the
result of this cooperation
What Is the Difference?
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Proprietary Software
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Freeware & Shareware
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Conventional software with source
codes closed as secret
Can be obtained freely, but not with
source codes
Open Source Software
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Source codes are freely available
What Is the Difference?
Open source doesn't just mean access to the source code.
The distribution terms of open-source software must
comply with the following criteria:
1. Free Redistribution
2. Source Code
3. Derived Works
4. Integrity of The Author's Source Code
5. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups
6. No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor
7. Distribution of License
8. License Must Not Be Specific to a Product
9. License Must Not Restrict Other Software
10.License Must Be Technology-Neutral
http://www.opensource.org/docs/definition.php
What Is the Point?
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Open source is an innovative
method for developing reliable
software (Eric Raymond, 2001)
The availability of source codes lets
people from all over the globe
participate in the process of
debugging and improving software
(Richard Stallman, 1998)
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Open source represents the
recognition of social cooperation in
the information age (Steven Weber, 2003)
Administrative Issues
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Budget Challenge
Flexibility in Control
Opening the Quality of Software
Total Cost of Ownership
Proprietary Software Price List
Application
Proprietary Alternative
Operating System Microsoft Windows XP Pro
Cost
$780
Office Suite
Microsoft Office XP Pro
$1,380
Anti-Virus
Norton Anti-Virus 2004
$295
Graphics
CorelDraw 11
$1,050
Photo Editor
Photoshop 7.0
$2,190
Video Editing
Adobe Premiere 7.0 Pro
$1,780
Development Tool Microsoft Visual FoxPro 8
Total
$900
$8,375
Proprietary Software Price List
Application
OSS Alternative
Cost
Operating System
Fedora Linux Core 1
$ 0
Office Suite
OpenOffice.org 1.1
$ 0
Anti-Virus
Clam AntiVirus 0.7
$ 0
Graphics
GIMP 2.0
$ 0
Photo Editor
GIMP 2.0
$ 0
Video Editing
JahShaka 1.9
$ 0
Development Tool
MySQL 4.0
$ 0
Total
$ 0
Budget Challenge
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OS + Office Suite + Anti-Virus
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Primary School
$2,455 x 91 computers = $223,405
Secondary School
$2,455 x 247 computers = $606,385
Technology Upgrading
Hardware Lifespan
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Schools may develop a thinner version of
Linux, like the K12LTSP, running on the
obsolete computers
Flexibility in Control
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Adoption and Adaptation
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License Management
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Not an “all or nothing” selection
OSS application on proprietary OS
Proprietary client connects OSS server
Storage of license
Inventory control and audit
Legal trap for administrators
Scalability
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No software purchase red tape
No CAL needed
Quality of Software
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Reliability
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Security
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Large firms and governments are
investing in OSS
Market shares are increasing
Less attacks and fewer viruses
Bugs are transparent
High configurability may cause problem
Usability
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Used to focus on power & function, not
usability
Total Cost of Ownership
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Introduced by IT Research Agent,
Gartner 15 years ago, TCO is a
concept of considering “all costs
associated with computing when
making management decisions
about computer acquisitions,
upgrades, support, and
administration”
Total Cost of Ownership
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“Taking TCO to the Classroom”
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helping school leaders in understanding
the long-term costs involved in
constructing and operating a network
of computers
Checklist includes six elements:
1. Retrofitting
2. Connectivity
3. Software
4. Replacement
5. Professional Development
6. Support
Total Cost of Ownership
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Professional Development
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Teachers may be gridlocked into old
patterns and perceptions (McKenzie, 1991)
Opportunity to restructure the previous
software specific, technique based
training course for teachers
Support
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Because of the lack of qualified
personnel, the cost of technical support
can be greater for open source
Open source, open support source
Educational Issues
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Knowledge Sharing
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Dynamics and Innovation
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Information Literacy
Knowledge Sharing
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OSS demonstrates that Internet opens
the pool of collaborators to the world
Programmers around the world are
building knowledge products with
collaboration, and the result is significant
OSS guarantees the freedom for the
public to study how software works, to
adjust for individual needs, to redistribute
copies to others, and to improve it and
share the improvement to benefit others
(Stallman, 1996)
Dynamics and Innovation
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Schools must not bind itself with single
off-the-shelf proprietary software and let
students explore the infinite possibility of
OSS (Moyle, 2003)
The opened source codes have
established a user innovation network to
counter problems (Drakos, 2002)
OSS demonstrated “the viability of a
massively distributed innovation system
that stretches the boundaries of
conventional notions” (Weber, 2003)
Information Literacy
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Helping to solve digital divide (Dravis, 2003)
OSS facilitates students to question both
within and outside the boundaries
imposed through the use of closed source
code systems (Moyle, 2003)
Application-specific training provides little
opportunity for students to apply their IT
skills solving the real-life problem (Perez &
Uline, 2003)
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OSS has given a significant advantage to
educators and students to understand the
details (Pfaffenberger, 2000)
Research Stages
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Acquire OSS opinions from
computer users in school
Observe the utilization of an OSS
based staff intranet server in school
Record the experience on the OSS
desktop system setup and usage
Research Findings (1)
Common Believes
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The majority of computer users has little
understanding and has misconceptions on
OSS
They usually believe that the lower cost of
OSS may eventually exchange the quality
of the software
Participants also concern that the change
in software will affect their efforts on
existing files
Most of them prefer not to change from
familiar software existing in their work
place
Research Findings (2)
OSS Based Staff Intranet
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Some successful OSS utilization
ingredients are identified:
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Technology transparent (no bias)
Strong professional IT support team
Soft launch with patience
Availability of training
Deliver new functions with technology
(not just a change of current habit)
Research Findings (3)
Desktop Trial
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Not quite like the used Microsoft language
Need time to find operating procedures
Some common proprietary software has
not yet had any OSS alternative
File format conversion has problem
Some desktop peripherals and website
support only Microsoft products
The acceptance of pirated software is
higher than OSS
OSS tends to yield its users to have
better understanding on computer
operation
Conclusions - Pros
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Lower software acquisition / upgrade cost
Keeping latest software in school
Prolonging lifespan of hardware
Greater flexibility and scalability
Easier software inventory control
Can be partially adopted
Solving digital divide among students
Real-life sample of collaborative learning
and knowledge sharing
Promoting innovation
Advancing information literacy
Conclusions - Cons
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Not easy to configure
Lower usability
Requiring extra training for staff
Higher support and maintenance costs
Low acceptance from computer user
Lower software availability, e.g. FrontPage
alternative
Lower peripherals / website support
Need patience to adapt and adopt
Recommendations
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School must have more than one
technical personnel who are familiar with
the operation of OSS
The OSS adoption may be started with
new file servers, the Internet server, or
Intranet server providing new services to
users
Rush or hustle often results reluctance
Partial utilization does no harm, and the
school can still benefit from OSS
Opportunities for Teachers
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Utilize donated computers with Linux
operating system and other OSS
applications as information stations
Building new school intranet server
with hands-on OSS like phpBB and
Open WebMail
Sharing software with students
Looking for software with no budget?
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http://sourceforge.net/search/
http://www.schoolforge.net/software.php
Major References
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Birk, J., Horluck, J., Jorgensen, N. & Pedersen, M. K. (2003).
Open-Source Software in Digital Management in the Public
Sector (Sun Microsystems, Trans.). Retrieved December 27,
2003 from
http://wwws.sun.com/software/whitepapers/staroffice/Open_Source_050803_v4
(Original work published 2002)
Fink, M. (2003). The Business and Economics of Linux and
Open Source. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall PTR.
Moyle, K. (2003). Open Source Software and Australian
School Education, An Introduction. Australia: @education.au
limited. Retrieved December 27, 2003 from
.pdf
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http://www.educationau.edu.au/papers/open_source.pdf
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Dravis, P. (2003). Open Source Software, Perspectives for
Development. Washington, D.C.: The World Bank Group.
Retrieved December 27, 2003 from
http://www.infodev.org/symp2003/publications/OpenSourceSoftware.pdf
Major References
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Raymond, E. S. (2001). The Cathedral & The Bazaar:
Musings on Linux and Open Source by an Accidental
Revolutionary. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly.
http://www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue3_3/raymond/
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Stallman, R. (1994). Why Software Should Not Have
Owners. Retrieved October 1, 2003 from
http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/why-free.html
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Weber, S. (2003b). The Success of Open Source. Retrieved
December 27, 2003 from
http://brie.berkeley.edu/~briewww/people/SWChapter%201fi
nal.pdf