1. Norwegian experiences making
By Knut Yrvin
and Anders Kringstad Hansen
By relation manager cand.scient Knut Yrvin Oct 10, 2007 Foils to free use when crediting the author

2. Prevent PC's breaking schools budget
Background
Values
Economics
Community and sustainability
Warning: Some of this is not for nerds

3. Problems back in 2001
The computer equipment in schools was scarce, not scaled for running network services
If updating proprietary software older computers was rendered useless
Students was forced to be consumers of certain products
What about sharing knowledge and experiences. What about creativeness?

4. We had to do something: do-ocracy

5. Skolelinux A complete ICT-solution for the schools
network architecture out of the box
operational concept with centralised management
digital user profile
OpenOffice.org and 75 user programs
Presented in the pupils' mother tongue with the school's curriculum in mind
Made for the school budget
Three question – everything out of the box
Try that with RedHat or Windows Server

6. Inspired by the common architecture from UNINETT – the national science network

7. Centralised operation with SkolelinuxTC
1 x File- / Client-server WS LF
Centralised services etc.
1-8 Mbit/s til og fra
> 100 client machines
TC = Thin Client
WS = Workstation
LF = Low Fat Client
Full support of media rich applications and Internet based exams with thin clients
Runs thin clients (w/o hard drive), laptops, low fat clients, workstations etc.
Reduced demands for bandwidth Full reuse of older hardware from 1995 and newer
Simple structure for running user applications
~100 EURO annually to operate every PC
(ICT-contact and hardware are not included)

8. Values

9. Creating the future
One precondition for learning is that knowledge is free and available either it's about Newtons laws of motion or the constitution. Insight gives possibility to build on what other has experienced – making your own future. Full access to the source code enables students to create the future
The possibility to create is much more worth than consuming everything from one source!

10. Languages The traffic signs has to be in our native language
Students needs to understand the road signs at the information highway to drive safely home
The traffic signs has to be in our native language

11. The traffic constantly changes
When you take the drivers licence you learn to travel safe handling constant changes in the traffic
Driving the teachers BMW as fast as possible is not an option

12. About computers in schools
Students sending drawings to school classes abroad. Students learn to express, share and create.
The system is used to make and share music, to read, gather information and decode words (in lower grades).
It's not about office-administration with office-products! 12

13. Economical realities

14. The municipality of Nittedal in 2001
They did not got the money for buying new equipment and licenses in their schools. They decided to keep Windows 98 until After introducing Skolelinux in 2002, they got money to buy new hardware instead of paying Microsoft licenses.

15. Many principles have to choose between hardware or people
Many principles have to choose between hardware or people. Most of the schools must pay expenses that compares to one or two teacher positions, the headmaster says ...

16. Huge differences
Nittedal municipalities supports 400 office PC's. Six employees support 400 users paying Microsft Euro annually.
“Central” operator cost for each PC is 791 Euro annually
3200 users at 10 primary schools got 506 PC's running Skolelinux. Central maintenance with half time position (20h a week).
Central operator cost for each PC is 100 Euro annually
In addition each school got a local contact person with 1-4 hours a week doing easy “helpdesk” support. The municipality also has a pedagogic coordinator on half time (20h a week9. Totally they got 1½ man-year supporting 506 clients and 3200 users.
That's 37 Euro for each user
The regional hospital paid Euro a year to the City Council at Akershus to operate a standard office PC in 2001 (ref: the contract)
Municipalities often spends 5 times more than schools on computer maintenance

17. Experiences

18. Market prices annually
Low fat client (diskless) got half the operational
cost compared to any other client alternative
(This including central operation and hardware and excluding local ICT-contact)

19. What does others say about Skolelinux
«Skolelinux has taken the plan for using computers in schools seriously. They have made a complete product that is tailored to the pupils' daily work and the resources that schools have»
Statskonsult 2003:24 p28
«Thanks to Skolelinux there is a tailored Linux distribution for schools that is easy to install, update and maintain».
Teleplan, October 2003 p24
«More use of Linux in education can contribute to school children being more flexible, innovative and more competent users of computers».
The Norwegian Technology Board, February 2004

20. > 450 schools using Skolelinux now
Skolelinux 3.0 was released July 2007
We are now teaming up with LinEx in Extremadura - Spain

21. Warnings when starting up
Make a realistic user participated plan
Make realistic budgets. When using to little money you do not reach your goals
Increase your procurement skills
Collect experience reports on the web
Buy equipment where everything is put together and tested, both reused and new
Do centralised operation and maintenance
It's a big difference on a deployment plan of hardware, and pedagogic use of computers in schools ..

22. Skolelinux deployment
Learn
Norwegian labor law §12.3 = user participation
Get to know the Skolelinux systemet (20 h)
Get to know the desktop (6 h)
Projecting
Building data net (320 h)
Get reused hardware and new serveres (8 h)
Get the cheapest broadband supplier (8 h)
Deployment
Installation and configuration (2 h)
Set up the klients at whole the school (20-40 h)
Support and upkeep
Teaching
User education of the teachers (6 h)
LærerIKT with OpenOffice (40 h)
Local support (2-4h a week w 50 pc's – 1 ½ day with 150 pc's)
Centralised operation 10 schools (50% position a week)
...

23. And then: Anders Kringstad Hanssen

24. The basic ideas
Pupils interested in technical, under-the-hood things – could learn by example – from source code written by expert programmers
Using our own mother thong when travelling on the information highway
Get more computer equipment and programs, and spending less time on maintenance. Getting more for less. 24

25. Master thesis by Åse Bratthammer
Do you want to learn math, you have to work with it. You need to drill. Then it is no help to make hundreds of Power Point presentations of the theory.
Not all us of computers is bad. We have to be selective.
The Schools must utilise the advantages. Everybody knows the “advantages” with a word processor. That's obvious. But there are simulations and animations that could be a great value for each single student, but it must not take all the time.
Kilde: