FOSS Resources: “the big stuff”
(servers, operating systems, database management)In
addition to the large number of FOSS applications such as word
processing, internet browsers, multi-media and design programs, etc.
which are available to educators, there are also FOSS resources
available for educators who do not have access to the necessary
technology for creating networks, connecting students to the web, or
running the aforementioned applications.
Operating Systems and Workstation Software
Every computer needs an operating system to run. Microsoft Windows and MAC OS operating systems can be very costly.
LINUX is a free operating system that educators can use instead.
- Comments about Linux from the General Information section of the Linux website.
-
“Apart from the fact that it's freely distributed, Linux's
functionality, adaptability and robustness, has made it the main
alternative for proprietary Unix and Microsoft operating systems.”
-
“…there are now a wide range of applications that run on Linux and it
can be used by anyone regardless of his/her knowledge of computers.”
Most of the FOSS software that I came across while browsing the web,
such as the word processing applications, web browsers like Mozilla,
and multi-media applications were all compatible with Linux.
- In the Linux Website’s Applications page
we find what I would call a fairly comprehensive list of FOSS
applications, tools, and utilities, divided into categories such as
“Administration” or “Networking.” There is also a link to find
distributors for the various applications listed.
- For those who struggle with computer technology, there are free online Linux courses, accessed from the Linux website, which are available to help familiarize users with the OS and
its applications.
This is Tux, the Linux Mascot ...awww -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Servers/Setting Up Networks
In
media labs or classrooms with a number of computers, instead of
installing applications on every workstation, which is both
time-consuming and expensive, it often easier and much less expensive
to set up a network and use “thin clients,” which are, according to the
FOSS Education Primer “computers with a network card, graphics card,
monitor, keyboard and mouse,
but without
hard disk, CD-ROM drive and operating system” that are run by a server
(FOSS Education Primer, p. 6). There are FOSS resources available to
educators who wish to set up such a network system.
- Linux Terminal Server Project (LTSP)
- LTSP provides the free necessary software for setting up a network and in turn saving time and money.
- This is the website: ltsp.org
- The
website’s description of LTSP: “LTSP is an add-on package for Linux
that allows you to connect lots of low-powered thin client terminals to
a Linux server. Applications typically run on the server, and accept
input and display their output on the thin client display.”
- A real life example of how this technology can be used: Linux in Kanuur, India Schools. (this example is also referred to in the FOSS Education Primer, p. 6)
- In
general, we would also like individuals on a network to be able to
print from their own workstations. There are also FOSS resources
available to make this possible.
- Samba (www.samba.org)
- Samba
helps with interoperability, that is, if a network is using a Linux
server and individual clients that are running Windows operating
systems, samba allows users who are working at Windows workstations to
print or send files over the network even though they are not running
Linux at their workstations.
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Database Management Systems
A database management system is: a
collection of programs that enables you to store, modify, and extract
information from a database. There are many different types of DBMSs,
ranging from small systems that run on personal computers to huge
systems that run on mainframes.
(definition from webopedia.com)
Examples of DBMSs: school/university library systems, databases of research/information sources such as ERIC, JSTOR, etc.
v MySQL (www.mysql.com) 
-websites such as Craigslist, Wikipedia, Ticketmaster, Yahoo (article on Yahoo's use of MySQL) and even NASA (NASA switches from commercial to free source management system) use MySQL
v PostgreSQL (www.postgresql.org)
