Excuses excuses
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/42179515@N06/3888905001
What excuses will IT directors who insist on using Windows computers over other operating systems (e.g. Mac and/or Free open source) offer when people ask, “Why are we spending money on Windows computers?”
…companies are giving their employees a choice to either use Microsoft Windows PCs or Apple Inc.’s Macs, the analyst said. And, increasingly, employees are choosing Mac over Windows. To boot, Chowdhry said 70 percent of college freshman are entering school with Macs, up about 10 percent to 15 percent from a year ago.
He also said attach rates for Office 2010 are declining, especially in the public and education sectors and in call centers, which in all make up about 10 percent of the Office business. (Source)
A colleague in a small, rural district once told me how their entire district had been Mac-centric. Then, a new CTO came into town, forced Macs out of the District to replace them with Windows computers locked down with Active Directory/SMS. Why? They were easier to maintain and keep going. And, the best part, “That’s what businesses use now and we have to prepare our children for their work.”
Then, that CTO was pushed out because the superintendent, the Board, the Community, staff wanted him out. They realized he was making his job easier without doing anything for teaching and learning. Now, do you know what hardware that District has? Apple computers that can run Windows, Mac or GNU/Linux.
Of course, these days, most people are just using whatever they want. The issue isn’t an operating system but rather, access to a web full of awesome tools. Now, it doesn’t matter what restrictions school districts put in place…the smart folks—educators and students—will simply go around the obstacles.
We once called them “speed bumps” on that now quaint term, “The Information Superhighway.” It’s not a highway anymore…it’s a neural net that re-routes to meet the needs of the one.
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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin’s blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure