Xkalibur wrote:Besides Windows there is actually nothing else to use here. However, I saw Linux CD's in sale in a shop, but I never bought it and I can say nobody buys it. I don't know why. Perhaps, Linux needs a good PR, advertising...We have a Microsoft's official distributor here. And the government of the country where I live has discussed a strategic plans with Microsoft in Davos economical forum 2008. They're planing to develop an informational technologies here besides oil and gas sector of our economy. If they will succeed their goals, I think there is no future for Linux as a competitive player in the market here.
I think those linux CD's they sell in shop is no point to buy for personal use anyway. It's almost same expensive as windows, but you don't bay for software since I think GNU software can't sell. It's free. They sell user support, that you can call to them and ask help if you get suck.. or there might be some documentation or books included. Some shop might also sell cd's that they have self made and charge for hardware (compact disk) and the trouble they have had to make it.. then those cd's arten't so expensive.
Governments just want to get Microsoft's Investments, but people are still free to use what they like. In many countries governments yet chose Linux.. for many reasons.. to be independent (not to depend on a single company), to decrease expenses.. Here they seems only to talk a lot, but when someone need to send some document to government. They might not accept "odt"(open document format) format.(It might be changed by now, but a year ago they sometime send it back, by asking "what we supposed to do with this file") They surely accept Microsoft doc and also pdf format. I guess It's against constitution to ask citizens to buy expensive software.. to communicate with gov. well they accept pdf that can generate with Open Office too but still... I would still like government set more in linux and Open Source Software. It might be expensive first for schooling users and so, but in end it would be investment for future.. I think it would pay back many times.