[Fsf-friends] ]Open IT - Govt to rewrite source code in Linux

[Arun M]

On Thu, 2002-10-10 at 03:37, Frederick Noronha wrote:
> Inspite of all one's enthusiasm about Free Software and Open Source, it's
> hard to be too sure or optimistic about the story below.
> 
> If government decides on such policies (i) shouldn't the policy decision
> be taken openly, on the record and without the possibility of any later
> hanky-panky? (ii) is nobody willing to take responsibility for such a
> stand -- which is very welcome -- and say so publicly? (iii) if not, why
> should we not conclude that this is just some kind of kite-flying, which
> actually may be intended to pressurise some 'proprietory solutions'
> vendors to come up for equally behind-closed-doors negotiations?

I share your view. Following para clearly tells it. We have seen our
"great" representatives begging with CEOs of MNCs. 

BTW, IT@School project is going more and more to Free Software. 
Hope we will have some good news in few months. Also govt seems to be
going for Open Office. 

<snip>
> Microsoft, in what many observers and reports say is an attempt to
soften
> the Chinese government's stand, recently committed to investing $750m
in
> China in three years to help set up a software college and put its
money
> into Chinese education.
> 
> In comparison, Microsoft has announced investments worth only $75m
over a
> three-year time frame in India. Howver, the Chinese company Redflag
> Software, which was set up by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the
country's
> most prestigious research institute, has often come out with low-cost
> software based on Linux, in direct competition to Windows-based
software.
</snip>