The Debian Edu and +Skolelinux distribution have users and contributors all around the +globe. And a while back, an enterprising young man showed up on +our IRC channel +#debian-edu and started asking questions about how Debian Edu +worked. We answered as good as we could, and even convinced him to +help us with translations. And today I managed to get an interview +with him, to learn more about him.
+ +Who are you, and how do you spend your days?
+ +I'm a 25 year old free software enthusiast, living in Romania,
+which is also my country of origin. Back in 2009, at a New Year's Eve
+party, I had a very nice beer discussion with a
+friend, when we realized we have no organised Debian community in our
+country. A few days later, we put together the infrastructure for such
+community and even gathered a nice Debian-ish crowd. Since then, I
+began my quest as a free software hacker and activist and I am
+constantly trying to cover as much ground as possible on that
+field.
A few years ago I founded a small web development company, which +provided me the flexible schedule I needed so much for my +activities. For the last 13 months, I have been the Technical Director +of FundaÈia Ceata, which is a free +software activist organisation endorsed by the FSF and the FSFE, and +the only one we have in our country.
+ +How did you get in contact with the Skolelinux / Debian Edu +project?
+ +The idea of participating in the Debian Edu project was a surprise +even to me, since I never used it before I began getting involved in +it. This year I had a great opportunity to deliver a talk on +educational software, and I knew immediately where to look. It was a +love at first sight, since I was previously involved with some of the +technologies the project incorporates, and I rapidly found a lot of +ways to contribute.
+ +My first contributions consisted in translating the installer and +configuration dialogs, then I found some bugs to squash (I still +haven't fixed them yet though), and I even got my eyes on some other +areas where I can prove myself helpful. Since the appetite for free +software in my country is pretty low, I'll be happy to be the first +one around here advocating for the project's adoption in educational +environments, and maybe even get my hands dirty in creating a flavour +for our own needs. I am not used to make very advanced plannings, so +from now on, time will tell what I'll be doing next, but I think I +have a pretty consistent starting point.
+ +What do you see as the advantages of Skolelinux/Debian +Edu?
+ +Not a long time ago, I was in the position of configuring and +maintaining a LDAP server on some Debian derivative, and I must say it +took me a while. A long time ago, I was maintaining a bigger +Samba-powered infrastructure, and I must say I spent quite a lot of +time on it. I have similar stories about many of the services included +with Skolelinux, and the main advantage I see about it is the +out-of-the box availability of them, making it quite competitive when +it comes to managing a school's network, for example.
+ +Of course, there is more to say about Skolelinux than the +availability of the software included, its flexibility in various +scenarios is something I can't wait to experiment "into the wild" (I +only played with virtual machines so far). And I am sure there is a +lot more I haven't discovered yet about it, being so new within the +project.
+ +What do you see as the disadvantages of Skolelinux / Debian +Edu?
+ +As usual, when it comes to Debian Blends, I see as the biggest +disadvantage the lack of a numerous team dedicated to the +project. Every day I see the same names in the changelogs, and I have +a constantly fear of the bus factor in this story. I'd like to see +Debian Edu advertised more as an entry point into the Debian +ecosystem, especially amongst newcomers and students. IMHO there are a +lot low-hanging fruits in terms of bug squashing, and enough +opportunities to get the feeling of the Debian Project's dynamics. Not +to mention it's a very fun blend to work on!
+ +Derived from the previous statement, is the delay in catching up +with the main Debian release and documentation. This is common though +to all blends and derivatives, but it's an issue we can all work +on.
+ +Which free software do you use daily?
+ +I can hardly imagine myself spending a day without Vim, since my +daily routine covers writing code and hacking configuration files. I +am a fan of the Awesome window manager (but I also like the +Enlightenment project a lot!), +Claws Mail due to its ease of +use and very configurable behaviour. Recently I fell in love with +Redshift, which helps me +get through the night without headaches. Of course, there is much more +stuff in this bag, but I'll need a blog on my own for doing this!
+ +Which strategy do you believe is the right one to use to +get schools to use free software?
+ +Well, on this field, I cannot do much more than experiment right +now. So, being far from having a recipe for success, I can only assume +that:
+ +-
+
+
- schools would like to get rid of proprietary software + +
- students will love the openness of the system, and will want to + experiment with it - maybe we need to harvest the native curiosity + of teenagers more? + +
- there is no "right one" when it comes to strategies, but it would + be useful to have some success stories published somewhere, so + other can get some inspiration from them (I know I'd promote + them!) + +
- more active promotion - talks, conferences, even small school + lectures can do magical things if they encounter at least one + person interested. Who knows who that person might be? ;-) + +
I also see some problems in getting Skolelinux into schools; for +example, in our country we have a great deal of corruption issues, so +it might be hard(er) to fight against proprietary solutions. Also, +people who relied on commercial software for all their lives, would be +very hard to convert against their will.
+