[Gllug] slightly OT - linux consultancy enquiry

[Alain Williams]

On Thu, Oct 24, 2002 at 10:11:27PM +0100, Pavel Bradut Boghita wrote:

> > I hear everywhere the claim that Linux is a cheap alternative to Windows
> > but is it really, considering the consultancly fees? Can someone tell me
> > how Linux works-out cheaper for a small business which is already using
> > Windows (95/98/NT)? Apart from the stability factor, why would some
> > small office with an NT4 server go to the trouble of replacing it with a
> > Samba/Linux machine if it's going to cost £750/600 per day to set-up?
> 
> An M$Office 2000 licence costs about £220 per machine, take into account the 
> fact that any other software that the company may be using, accounts 
> software, graphics, etc... is (or at least should be) licenced. You may still 
> need to hire a MCSE to do work for you and that it isn't exactly cheap 
> either. 
> All in all I think LInux can be a cheaper alternative and more secure, but 
> that's only my possibly not sufficiently informed view

Good Linux people cost more than M$ people. However, the cost calculation is
much more complicated than that. One of the big wins with Linux is that, a
properly configured system (or set of machines), can be maintained more cheaply.

Hill House Hammond (high street insurers) had to have one M$SE for every 50 windows
boxes. They replaced them with Linux ones & they have one guy for every 500 Linux
boxes & the users love them since the dont crash.

-- 
Alain Williams

#include <std_disclaimer.h>

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