OSEI: Linux in Schools Plan for Summer

[Warren Togami]

Due to some unfortunate circumstance, we had only 2 weeks to write the TLCF grant by the time we heard of it.  We scrambled to put together the partnership and documentation, but we simply did not have enough time.  We lost that opportunity, but that doesn't make this any less powerful of an idea.

Funding
Without funding, we are proceeding with the help of the local volunteer community, and following leads on funding from other sources.  This is a powerful model that has the potential to allow for low cost computer labs in schools around the world, so I'm confident that we will find many sources of funding.

$6,000 for a powerful school computer lab will turn heads.

Thin Client Lab Pilot Schools
Mid-Pacific Institute, and I'm hoping Kalani High School, will be the initial pilot schools of these Linux Thin Client computer labs.  Our two schools have the staff, student, and facilities infrastructure that would be necessary to support such trial runs.  Through these pilot programs we will gain the knowledge in the configuration, usage, maintenance, and support that would be necessary for other schools to implement and sustain similar computer labs.  I hope that school technology coordinators, system/network administrators, and students can be involved in the construction, testing, and maintenance of these initial test labs in order to bring their experiences back to their own schools.

MPI is proceeding during early June with the Thin Client project, along with two weekly Linux seminars/sessions to be held at MPI and the UH ICS department beginning June 12th.  The seminar schedule will be finalized and posted soon.

Linux Firewalls for Schools
Want an extremely low cost but highly effective firewall for your school?  E-mail me, and I'll help you convert any decent Windows PC into a powerful firewall.  Full featured monitoring, logging, bandwidth usage graphs, performance enhancing proxy caching and content filtering are all possible with FREE software.
Only catch: you must attend our Linux sessions and eventually learn how to configure and maintain the server for yourself.

How can you help?
1) Volunteers
Anyone in the community willing to help schools with computer technology.  This is perhaps the best advocacy of Linux and Open Source for the established local Linux and Unix experts.  This is also a great opportunity for anyone of any experience level to learn about systems, networking, and operating systems while helping to build a model that will potentially benefit education worldwide.
2) Funding
We need sources of funding through donations, and contacts who know people within companies who may potentially support this type of idea.  I suspect that the Linux companies doing well financially may be interested, especially IBM with their $1 billion Linux investment.  Other possibilities are local companies and educational grants that support educational initiatives.  Due to the extreme low cost of Linux based networks, even small donations by parents or alumni can be enough to build computer labs in schools.
If anyone knows anyone within organizations or companies that you think may be helpful, please e-mail me with their contact information.
3) Donated Machines
We need many donated machines, parts and peripherals.  Generally, any machine Pentium 100 and higher will be useful.  Faster machine donations will make great firewalls and other small Linux based servers for schools.  Any Apple, Alpha or Sun hardware with a PCI bus is usable.
These donated machines (and volunteers to help refit them) are the secret behind the extreme low cost of school computer labs.  If we must buy new machines as the thin clients, lab cost per school is around $12,000.  Still very cheap.


More to come soon....

Warren Togami
warren at togami.com

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