%include "default.mgp" %default 1 bgrad 0 0 256 0 1 "black" "blue" %page %nodefault %center, size 7, font "standard", fore "white", vgap 20 Linux in Universities %center, size 5, font "standard", fore "white" LILAX 9 Dec 2006 %center, size 7, font "standard", fore "white", vgap 20 Dan Kegel www.kegel.com www.lalugs.org %page Linux in Universities Linux in the real world (Still) Poised to take the desktop The case for Linux in universities What should schools do about it? Building a better infrastructure with Linux Summary / Questions %page Linux in the real world Universities prepare students for the real world, \ so let's look at how Linux is doing there: Linux runs 75% of top supercomputers Linux has 12% of server market Linux on 25% of new smartphones Linux on <2% of new desktops %page Linux on 75% of top supercomputers Linux is cheap, reliable, easy to manage remotely, fast, and \ standards-compliant. This makes it easy to build supercomputers from clusters of cheap PCs. According to IDC in 2006, %fore "yellow" Linux has 65% of revenue in the high performance computing market \ and is "increasingly dominant" %fore "white" According to top500.org in Nov 2006, %fore "yellow" 75% of the top 500 supercomputers run Linux %page Linux has 12% of server market According to IDC in Dec 2005: %fore "yellow" Market share: Linux 12%, Windows 37% Annual growth: Linux 21%, Windows 5% %fore "white" According to an AMI-Partners survey in 2005: %fore "yellow" 24% of small-to-medium companies are now using Linux servers %fore "white" IBM, HP, and Dell all push Linux servers. Even Oracle and Microsoft sell Linux now! %page Linux on 25% of new smartphones Linux is highly reliable and customizable, and is royalty-free -- \ which makes it ideal for embedded systems. For example, the TiVo personal video recorder is controlled by Linux About 25% of the smartphones shipped in 2005Q4 ran Linux Motorola expects half of its cellphones to run Linux by 2008 %page Linux on <2% of new desktops Linux's market share on the desktop has probably been increasing steadily, but is still under 2%. That's hardly a dent in Microsoft's monopoly. Problem is, application vendors write programs \ for Windows, since that's what everyone uses. This Catch-22 is called "the applications barrier to entry" for new operating systems. %page Poised to take the desktop The numbers say Linux has failed on the desktop, \ but major events have conspired to prepare Linux for another leap forward: %%pause Computers getting cheaper %%pause Microsoft getting more expensive %%pause Free software maturing %%pause Trend towards hosted applications %%pause Microsoft alienating businesses %%pause Governments want independence %%pause Linux vendors aiming for the desktop It was a joke, but it's not funny anymore: %fore "yellow" "World domination. Fast." - Linus Torvalds, 1994 %page Computers are getting cheaper, but Windows is getting more expensive %fore "white", size 5 %%pause 1983: 4.77MHz 8 bit IBM PC $2800, DOS $30, MS Word $300 %%pause 2006: 2.6GHz PC $350, WinXP Home $100, MS Office $300 %fore "white", size 5 %%pause Computer speeds increased 35%/year, computer prices fell 8%/year, but total Microsoft software prices increased %fore "white", size 6 Microsoft now makes ~40% of the price of an office computer %page Free software maturing %%pause High quality Free* software (and what it replaces): %%pause OpenOffice (Microsoft Office) %%pause Firefox (Internet Explorer) %%pause Thunderbird (Outlook) %%pause Apache (IIS) %%pause PHP (ASP) %%pause OpenLDAP+Kerberos (ActiveDirectory) %%pause Linux + Wine (Windows itself) %size 4 (*Free = available under an Open Source license that lets \ users fix bugs in the software, and share it with other users for free) %page Trend towards hosted applications Web browsers can now run big Javascript apps People learning how to write those well (AJAX) Use your data anywhere you can find a web browser Uncouples application from client operating system, making it easier to replace Windows with Linux %page Microsoft Alienating Businesses %%pause %fore "white", size 5 US News and World Reports says: %fore "yellow", size 4 "Chafing under the 'Microsoft tax' -- license fees collected \ each time they upgrade personal computers and server networks -- customers \ from the government of China to Europe's Ford Motor Co. division are \ switching to free software systems." %%pause %fore "white", size 5 Bloor Research says: %fore "yellow", size 4 "It looks as though the battle for the server market is being won by \ Linux... most Wall Street trading operations \ are converting to the open source operating system." %%pause %fore "white", size 5 The Butler group predicts: %fore "yellow", size 4 "Linux is expected to dominate the server market by 2009" %fore "white", size 5 ZDNet says %fore "yellow", size 4 58% of companies would switch to Linux on the desktop \ immediately -- if applications were available. %page Governments Want Independence %%pause Microsoft can disable Windows remotely! Foreign governments hate this. %%pause Governments would rather support local talent than send money to Redmond. Linux is perceived as a local alternative. %%pause Germany's Interior Minister said moving to Linux \ would help cut costs and improve security %fore "yellow" "We are raising computer security by avoiding a \ monoculture..." %fore "white" Government use of Linux will help drive improvements to Linux %page Linux Vendors Aiming For Desktop %%pause The major Linux vendors (Red Hat, Novell, Ubuntu) are \ preparing for the desktop %%pause Several smaller Linux vendors (Linspire, Xandros) are focusing \ solely on the desktop %%pause Their goal: make Windows users comfortable, and give them easy \ access to thousands of Free software packages Many vendors are including Codeweavers Crossover Wine, which runs \ Microsoft Word and Excel seamlessly and well %page The case for Linux in universities Linux's growing popularity in the real world means \ a growing need for Linux-savvy graduates, so \ universities should create Linux-based programming courses, right? Yes, but the university should use Linux elsewhere, too, since: Linux costs less to acquire and run Linux eases software license management Linux is robust and secure Linux helps discourage piracy Free Software helps teach %page Linux costs less to acquire and run The Robert Frances Group says: %fore "yellow" "The cost of running Linux is roughly 40% that of Microsoft Windows... \ Linux... also came out ahead of Windows in terms of administration costs, \ despite the fact that it's less expensive to hire Windows system administrators." %fore "white" According to TheOpenEnterprise.com, %fore "yellow" 81% of corporate IT departments believe that Open Source \ software such as Linux has lower TCO than proprietary software. %page Linux eases license management Microsoft offers huge educational discounts -- but not on the \ right to use Windows %%pause Microsoft recently reminded UCLA and other colleges they MUST purchase \ PCs with Windows preloaded, regardless of any deal with Microsoft %%pause The LAUSD was fined $300,000 for not being \ able to prove they had the right licenses Free software, on the other hand, is free to use, customize, \ and distribute, forever. No need for complicated bookkeeping! %page Linux is robust and secure Gartner said in 2002: "Due to legacy code and resistance to cultural change, Microsoft will \ not deliver necessary security ... before 2004". TechWeb says: %fore "yellow" "IT pros navigating a minefield of insecure software and \ systems are finding safe ground in Linux. \ ... In part due to its very openness, it has become a model of security. %fore "white" IBM says: %fore "yellow" "The retail sector is interested in Linux because of its \ stability and security, [not because] it is free." %page Linux helps discourage piracy 40% of students surveyed at two public universities \ admitted to having pirated computer software. Universities could help fight piracy by encouraging the use of \ Free software like OpenOffice, The GIMP, or Linux instead \ of proprietary software like Microsoft Office, Photoshop, or Windows. Then students could install the software anywhere, anytime \ without violating copyright laws. %page Free Software helps teach Jeff Williams of Concordia University says \ exposing students to alternate office software packages helps \ teach concepts rather than just applications John Howland of Trinity University says \ Open Source software is good for computer science courses because \ it lets students read and understand the source code for great software Western Carolina University uses a Linux server to provide a \ uniform programming environment for an unlimited number of \ high school students -- without worrying about client access licenses %page What should schools do about it? Universities can and should: Monitor the state of Linux closely Include Linux in strategic plans Deploy OpenOffice everywhere Include Open Source in CS curriculum Begin migrating servers to Linux Use Linux to build better infrastructure Support Linux on the desktop %page Monitor the state of Linux closely For concise weekly analysis, read Linux Weekly News (lwn.net) Example item from LWN: %fore "red" A recent MITRE study on Free and Open Source software said %fore "yellow" "FOSS plays a more critical role in the DoD than has \ generally been recognized... banning FOSS would have \ immediate, broad, and strongly negative impacts on the \ ability of [the DoD] to defend against cyberattacks." %page Include Linux in strategic plans Because Free software like Linux has so many advantages \ for universities, strategic plans and policy documents should \ specifically recommend its use. University policy should state that software should be chosen \ on a value-for-money basis. Free software like Linux \ should not be discriminated against. Master plans for information infrastructure should encourage the use \ of Free software like Linux to promote security, flexibility, \ and vendor independence. %page Deploy OpenOffice Everywhere OpenOffice is a free alternative to MS Office Save students money: recommend OpenOffice instead of MS Office One school standardized on OpenOffice, and sends \ OpenOffice CD-ROMs to students before they first \ come to school, so they can get their laptops prepared -- \ regardless of whether they run Windows or Linux. You just can't do that with Microsoft Office. %page Include Open Source in CS curriculum UCLA's CS130 (Software Engineering) has students contribute to \ existing open source projects, e.g. Wine This is a challenge for students, as they're not used to: Reading other people's code Writing unit tests Social aspects of engineering Other people reviewing their code -- and rejecting it! Challenges are good %page Begin migrating servers to Linux Software for Unix simply runs on Linux without change, \ thanks to the POSIX standard That means you can use Linux to run Unix software on IBM mainframes, \ and oddly enough, many businesses are! But it also means it's easy to migrate from expensive RISC systems from \ Sun to fast, inexpensive servers from IBM, HP, and Dell %page Building a better infrastructure with Linux User directory and authentication File services Zero-Administration Workstations One Administrator per 1000 PCs? %page User directory and authentication Universities want to move all services to the web, which means \ they need a universal way of checking usernames and passwords Kerberos and LDAP are free, open standards that meet this need Essentially the entire industry is moving to Kerberos and LDAP Microsoft's Active Directory is just their brand of Kerberos and LDAP UC Berkeley uses Kerberos and LDAP to implement CalNet, \ which is used to grant access to many services -- even \ student elections %page File services Users should have access to their files no matter what computer they log \ into -- no matter what operating system it's running. NFS and Samba together are Free software that \ lets users do just that, securely and conveniently. Many businesses use NFS/Samba appliances from NetApp; Linux should be able to fill that role by end of 2007 %page Zero-Administration Workstations The universal cure for PC problems: reboot! If that doesn't work: reinstall! Why not reinstall every time you reboot? Or run without a hard drive, and never install! Then every workstation is identical, and needs no configuration. 2GHz 256MB PCs with 17" monitor: $250 Boot server: $500 Total cost for lab: $300/seat Net booting is insecure. Use local boot server! %page One Administrator per 1000 PCs? Boot servers for workstation clusters can be \ read-only mirrors of a central master A single administrator can update a thousand PCs \ just by putting new files on the master Use encryption to secure communications between boot servers \ and central master! %page Begin supporting Linux on the desktop Faculty and students are already using Linux, \ but many university IT departments only support \ Windows First step: start supporting Free software that runs \ on Windows (e.g. OpenOffice, Mozilla) Second step: start supporting that same software on Linux Third step: start supporting Linux itself %page Summary Free software has achieved critical mass Universities should prepare themselves and their students \ for a world in which Linux coexists with Windows Universities should use Open Source as a laboratory \ for teaching Computer Science Universities should use Linux and other Free software \ to improve their infrastructure %page %center Questions %center Slides at www.kegel.com/linux/edu %size 6 Questions?