Linux is the clear winner out of a dispute between the Russian legal authorities and schools over who should carry the can over the use of pirated Windows software, The Inquirer magazine reports. Rather than attacking mobsters who peddle pirated copies of Windows directly to companies, the Russian coppers decided to lock up a Sepich headmaster who bought hot Windows software which came from Perm region's Capital Construction Administration. Microsoft says that the incident has nothing to do with them, but it appears that Russian schools in the area are so scared about being shipped off to a Siberian Gulag, that they are buying Linux gear instead.
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Member since:2005-07-08
Member since:2006-02-09
Member since:2007-01-30
Why would anyone from Eastern Europe go to Siberia?
From the Article:
"Microsoft says that the incident has nothing to do with them, but it appears that Russian schools in the area are so scared about being shipped off to a Siberian Gulag, that they are buying Linux gear instead."
Also from Wikipedia Eastern Europe is defined as:
"The region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Central Europe and Russia."
Member since:2006-07-01
'There might just be more to this situation than the article lets on. By using (Gnu/)Linux (or BSD or variants of either) you not only free yourself from the possibility of being jailed, you are also not relying on a foreign (for them) company to provide you with your software and dictate to you how you are allowed to use it and how much you will pay them for the privilege of being able to use their software.'
I'm sure the teacher pleased to hear this while he's sitting in gaol. :-)
Jokes aside, I'd mod you up 1 point for a good post but your already at +5!
Member since:
2007-01-30
I'm sure there are many people in Eastern Europe who would rather use Open Source than face the possibility of being put in a Siberian Gulag. There might just be more to this situation than the article lets on. By using (Gnu/)Linux (or BSD or variants of either) you not only free yourself from the possibility of being jailed, you are also not relying on a foreign (for them) company to provide you with your software and dictate to you how you are allowed to use it and how much you will pay them for the privilege of being able to use their software.
There is the possibility that this switch (however painful it may be for the teachers and students in the short run) may spur a wealth of new software that is specific to that market, and interest some Russian kids in programming or other computer-related activities.
If people try to think outside the box a little bit they may discover that this is not automatically a BAD thing.