[Wolves] Red Hat Enterprise Server

[Peter Cannon]

On Saturday 20 November 2004 19:07, sparkes wrote:

> > Except  for ease of installation? :-)
>
> lol, I personally think the installation is one of the quickest and
> easiest out there ;-)

Not true I've tried twice and failed I still have the eight disks (Woody) 
sitting here on my shelf.

> > But the stats are about software sales.
>
> but there is no central seller of debian software so it's impossible to
> judge sales ;-)  It's about use.

And how do you gauge the amount of users by the amount of posts for help?

> > Debian is not going to be used by
> > my employers in the next 2 years. SUSE and Red Hat stand a chance. The
> > alternative is to lose all Unix and move to Windows.
>
> I understand that many employers just don't understand free software but
> what I am saying is those that don't attempt to understand it are going
> to be ripped off with inferior products for ever.  There's no value in
> something for nothing but free software doesn't come for nothing, it
> comes with freedom.

Sparkes me old mucker, put Thomas Moore's Utopia down your starting to believe 
it :-) 

Since when has an application or piece of software that has been written by 
someone in their mums bedroom been more acceptable than something purchased 
from PC World?

I agree with you there are equivalent Linux type Windows applications 
available the problem is no one in business will trust them because they are 
free and because they may have been created in some guys mums bedroom. 
everyone can bitch about it as much as they like the cold fact is very few 
businesses are going to throw their computer systems lot in with something 
that is free.

All businesses think they are being ripped off anyway when it comes to IT 
stuff but then they expect that so, strangely, if you offered them something 
for free the first question would be "Whats wrong with it" its the same train 
of thought if I said "here you go me old mate heres a 42" inch plasma screen" 
your first thought is "It must be stolen" next "It must be faulty" everyone 
aspires to getting things for free life teaches you very little is free. I've 
said it before and I'll say it again just because its free dose'nt make it 
better.

> They don't know they don't know the difference.  This is where things
> like open advantage come in.  they allow IT guys to point bosses to
> someone to answer questions and they will be able to see how open source
> and free software will help them.

Thomas Moore! Most managers have to show they make the decisions they are not 
going to let some IT bod prove that their faith in Microsoft was misplaced 
even to the detriment of their company.

At the risk of doing myself out of business I can think of at least 15 of our 
customers who are pleading poverty who would benefit from open source I have 
even mentioned one or two apps to them (Risking my job in the process) all 
have turned their nose up, why, because its free.

The only way to do it is the way some people on this list have done it get it 
installed run it for a couple of months let people see its as good as Windows 
then they will accept it but it will take longer than if you plonked 2003 
Server on their desk.


-- 
--
Regards
Peter Cannon
peter at cannon-linux.freeserve.co.uk

"There is is every excuse for not knowing
but there is no excuse for not asking"