By centralizing all the school's software on a limited number of servers, K12LTSP can offer both
security (only a few servers to watch over) and convenience (no need to reinstall hundreds of
Windows machines to upgrade or enhance the software). Each client machine controls the display,
mouse, and keyboard, while all of the user's applications and files are stored on and run from
the server.
The K12LTSP distribution contains many battle-tested open source applications, including full
GNOME and KDE desktops, Evolution e-mail, Firefox browser, OpenOffice·org office suite, and
the GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) image application. It also adds DansGuardian
(open source Web content filtering) and educational software (such as Gcompris). Applications
that are not available in Linux can often be replaced with similar Linux applications or may be
run from a Web browser.
Many schools in Oregon have adopted K12LTSP, including those attended by Linus Torvalds'
children in Portland, Oregon. Adoption of K12LTSP has also begun in Atlanta, Georgia and many
other cities across the United States.
Linux in Small Business
Often a small business can consolidate the Web services it needs into one or two Linux servers. It can
meet its basic office computing needs with mature open source applications such as OpenOffice·org,
GIMP, and a Firefox browser. But can a small business run entirely on open source software alone?
When Jim Nanney started his Coast Grocery business (
www·coastgrocery·com
), where resi-
dents of the Mississippi Gulf Coast can order groceries online for delivery, he set out to do just
that. In part, he just wanted to see if he could rely solely on open source software. But he also fig-
ured that cost savings of at least $10,000 by not buying commercial software could help make his
small business profitable a lot faster.
To allow customers to order groceries online, Jim selected the open source e-commerce software
called osCommerce (
www·oscommerce·com
). The osCommerce software is built with the PHP
Web scripting language and uses a MySQL database. Jim runs the software from a Linux system
with an Apache Web server.
On the office side of the business, Jim relies entirely on Fedora Linux systems. He uses OpenOffice·org
Writer for documents, GIMP and Inkscape for logos and other artwork, and GnuCash for account-
ing. For Web browsing, Firefox is used. So far, there has been no need to purchase any commercial
software.
Here are some of the advantages that Jim has derived from his allopen source business:
Community support -- The communities surrounding osCommerce and Fedora have
been very helpful. With active forums and 24-hour IRC channels, it has been easier to
get help with those projects than with any proprietary software. Also unlike proprietary
21
Starting with Linux
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