Toronto Municipal Open Source Revolution, anyone ?

[fcsoft-rxKNY4w4koG3ikBYyZqyVg at public.gmane.org]

Here's the link to that Beonix (Sun Microsystems Belleville) installation at 
the City of Toronto.

http://www.itworldcanada.com/index.cfm?ci_id=48508&target=46194

Unfortunately this site requires a registration to see the full article.

I've reproduced some hilites below.

============================
City rolls out desktop Linux
By Ryan B. Patrick
ComputerWorld Canada

When the City of Toronto's Children's Services Division (CSD) recently 
decided to migrate 450 of its PCs over to Linux client workstations, it 
really didn't raise a lot of eyebrows. According to Jody McConkey, an IT 
configuration specialist at CSD, the municipal organization has always 
garnered a rep for running against the pack.

<snip>

CSD looked into acquiring PCs with Microsoft Corp.'s Windows XP but found 
that cost-prohibitive. "It was about $1,600 (each) to buy a PC and (a) couple 
hundred to license XP," McConkey said. The division also looked at new Neo 
PCs, which were essentially running a stripped down version of Red Hat Inc. 
In the end, CSD built its own thin clients. 

It cost $250 a pop, noted McConkey - all of the client workstations are 
diskless PCs running a customized "live" CD-ROM-based Linux desktop and 
feature a modified version of Red Hat 7.3.

"There's no moving parts
nothing to break down," McConkey said. "Everything 
is centrally looked after - we run VNC (virtual network computing) to go into 
the boxes, everything goes into a central server for home directory, and with 
no hard drive to bugger it up."

<snip>



On November 12, 2003 02:19 pm, you wrote:
> A good place to start would be to postpone hardware upgrades and upgrade
> Open Office instead of Office XP.
>
> PS.
> I know the department of Children services has already gone to a thin
> client solution supplied by Sun's Belleville facility.
>
> On November 12, 2003 12:57 pm, you wrote:
> >     We have a new Mayor. Rumour has it that he uses linux. Whether or
> > not that is the true, the time is ripe for a shakeup of municipal
> > software usage. Who would spearhead such a move ?
> >     Oh..I donno.. the Toronto Lunux Users Group ?
> >     Mayoral candidate John Tory suggested that he could save seven
> > million tomorrow simply by getting Microsoft to refund license fees that
> > the previous Mayor (Mel) had over purchased. Apparently Mel bought
> > ordered twice the licenses actually required. I suggest that Mel
> > overspent by more like 90%. Why just return unused licenses, when open
> > source solutions are ready to go.
> >     Here's what I propose;
> > If the consensus, here at the LUG, is that Toronto is ready for open
> > source (and vice versa)
> >     Lets;
> > - set up a wikki, where we can collect our thoughts, arguments, links
> > and suggestions.
> > - find out where the thin edge of the wedge might best be placed, within
> > the Miller government.
> > - set up a special meeting/ presentation to pitch the idea and
> > demonstrate software candidates. (and let's not repeat the Globe & Mail
> > software installation fiasco; hide the pocket protectors and
> > propeller-beenies, OK ?)
> >     If we can get our collective stuff together and sway the new
> > Municipal government to go open source, we will save our city millions,
> > make our city more open and secure, and set a big example, with Canada's
> > largest city.
> >     whatdya say ?

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