Archive for ‘December 2008’

A very interesting post over at that Helios blog about how his kids' Linux CD was confiscated in class and an email sent over to Ken from Helios Solutions about how free software can't be legal and how "putting linux on these machines is holding our kids back." Its an interesting read, however I don't agree with the anti-Microsoft tone in it.

Well, I do, but the way it was conveyed will probably shut the teacher off to what he is trying to say. Being supportive of both sides to the argument I know how hard it is to convert someone who is a huge Windows fan to even understanding some of the philosophy behind and benifits of Linux. Attacking the teachers belief in Windows and Microsoft in general won't help, neither will attacking her Union. It will most likely shut her off to understanding the reason behind the Linux movement and the advantages of using Linux over windows, especially on lower-end hardware and for lower-income families. Instead of attacking he should have given examples; Evertek Linux PC at Wal-mart, Asus Eee PC, XO Laptop and school boards that have or are starting to embrace Linux across the country.

This is my biggest gripe about most hard core linux supporters. You don't gain people to your cause by attacking them or their beleifs, you gain them by giving them compelling reasons and examples.

Helpdesk can be annoying, even more so if your using spreadsheets or text files to manage what you're doing. Back in June of `07 I was tasked with finding a helpdesk package to use. In previous lives I've used custom web apps, excel spreadsheets, trackit and many, many other solutions. Each had their own drawbacks and annoyances. I finally settled on a free one (the boss loved that) called SpiceWorks. Its an ad-supported free helpdesk software that runs on rails. Seems there is an ability to install on linux (with a lot of work) but more meant to run on a windows based system. It does have its own issues but for the most part, it works better than some of the paid solutions that i've used and tested in the past. Now almost 1.5 years into using it, we have well over 2,000 tickets tracked in the system and while we've had hiccups from time to time, its been for the most part rock solid. We've never lost any data, even during the upgrade process and at most the service has stopped resonding during very heavy usage. We haven't had this problem since the 3.0 upgrade, however.

If you are low-budget, or even high-budget I reccomend spiceworks. Their community is a big help, if you want you can get ads removed by paying a $100.00/yr fee and it just plain works. Not only does it do ticket tracking but high-level reporting, software and hardware inventory, basic vendor (called Service) tracking and email integration for easy auto-logging of tickets and up-to-date information being sent to the requestor as the ticket is worked.

Overall, a great little package and highly reccomended!