what makes the world go round.....

Before I quit my job and went to live in Spain, I was a staff member at the IT department of a big university. We didn't do anything with Linux, and partially, I was to blame. So now you can all hate me.... I'll explain though. It was my responsibility to devise a technical concept for the university's IT needs. Those of you who know a bit of how universities work will know it requires a good deal of politics to maneuver your way around, and at the time, our main issue was knowledge, support and standardization. And we were a Microsoft shop. The fastest way for the IT department to get a firm base was to come up with a standard set of integrated solutions and MS helped us to achieve that goal (together with Novell Active Directory, but that was another political choice I won't get into...).

Anyway, I'm now a Linux user and very happy with that. I don't wanna go into discussions whether I 'regret' the way I operated in my former job (which I don't... come to Spain and we'll talk it over with a glass of Glenlivet..). I just started this entry the way I did because I want to point out something that is relevant to me as a person.

I'm using Linux right now, basically because there is a huge 'feel good' factor to it. I know and understand the technological advantages, I am very happy with the current absence of viri/uses, it 'just works' for me, but Linux, or better said, Open Source, represent a major breakthrough in the way this world is organized. Look at it any way you want, but no distro could survive today if it weren't for the huge army of people out there that are working together to create solutions for others. They have forced upon the world a new business model that is only beginning to develop its contours. It will spread out onto other sectors, it will grow and it will contribute greatly to overcoming the current state of affairs in a world that is suffering greatly. People working on open source products are actually sharing their knowledge in an effort to contribute to an achievement, and their only satisfaction is obtaining appraisal from their peers.

Within a year or so from now, the 100 dollar laptop dream of Nicholas Negroponte is going to be a reality. And it runs Linux.... I hope it will be a significant step in the development and emancipation of people in countries that for so many reasons cannot seem to erect themselves today. Making people smarter has proved to be a guarantee for success when it comes to improving the quality of their lives. And by making others smarter, you become smarter yourself.

I recently visited a web page that showed the first demo model of the 100 dollar laptop. Maybe I'm wrong, but this effort is the first large scale implementation of an infrastructure in the third world that actually reaches those that need to be reached and taught. And right there and then, while viewing that page, I realized that we, in a very small but significant way, are part of that. How's that for a change....

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