[vox] [fwd] OpenOffice campaign: Cotati-Rohnert Park results

[Lincoln Peters]

I seem to recall that I posted a URL to an OpenOffice flyer recently.  It 
contains a few screenshots of OpenOffice that you might be able to use to 
suggest that learning OpenOffice is far easier than she thinks.


I encountered resistance to putting OpenOffice on school computers, but the 
justification was (supposedly) that the school technician was already 
overworked and so he did not want to add anything extra to the computers.  
However, he was perfectly willing to let me pass out CD's to students.

I can't say for sure if what you encountered is particularly common, but 
I've never encountered anyone who so obviously held such an attitude.  In 
any case, it does not speak well that someone who is paid to help others to 
learn new things is so unwilling to learn new things herself...




Lincoln




>From: Norm Matloff <matloff@laura.cs.ucdavis.edu>
>Reply-To: vox@lists.lugod.org
>To: vox@lists.lugod.org
>Subject: Re: [vox] [fwd] OpenOffice campaign: Cotati-Rohnert Park results
>Date: Mon, 13 Oct 2003 17:40:35 -0700
>
>
>I live in Walnut Creek, supposedly an upscale school district, but like
>all districts these days, they are short of funds.  When their computer
>teacher told me she was very worried about the cost of Microsoft
>products, I mentioned OpenOffice.  She was aware of it, but refused to
>even consider using it.  She said, "I don't want to learn anything new."
>To me, as a parent in that district, that was an amazingly unpolitic
>thing for her to say, but it may be a common attitude.
>
>Norm
>
>On Mon, Oct 13, 2003 at 04:08:05PM -0700, Bill Kendrick wrote:
> > [Posted to the NBLUG list; fwd'd cuz it's interesting]
> >
> > ----- Forwarded message from Lincoln Peters <lincoln_peters@hotmail.com> 
>-----
> >
> > During Rancho Cotate High School's regular lunch break, I had a table 
>set up
> > in the quad (where most students hang out during this time) with 100 
>CD's
> > and 11x17" enlargements of each page of the school flyer.  Although 
>there
> > was occasional skepticism (mostly over whether or not it would crash 
>their
> > computers), most students who stopped to ask what I was promoting were
> > interested enough that they took a CD.  Overall, I passed out 64 CD's in 
>the
> > span of the 40-minute lunch break.
> >
> > The IT person at the high school was unwilling to install them on the 
>school
> > computers, as he was worried about support issues (he seems interested 
>in
> > OpenOffice, but he's overworked).  However, he was willing to let me 
>pass
> > out CD's to students.
> >
> > At one elementary school, I was able to put five CD's and a copy of the
> > flyer in the hands of the principal, who said he'd be willing to install
> > them on school computers and to loan them to teachers and parents.  At
> > another, I was able to leave one CD and a copy of the flyer.  I was not 
>able
> > to visit any other schools in the district.
> >
> > I was able to talk to the district superintendent, who was interested in
> > OpenOffice and was willing to have someone look at it.  However, I have 
>not
> > heard back from them yet.
> >
> > It is possible that there will be support issues with OpenOffice, so 
>I'll
> > keep an eye on the schools for a while.  I'll also recommend that they 
>join
> > some of the OpenOffice mailing lists.  Eventually, they may develop an
> > interest in other open-source products, at which point I can recommend
> > joining the NBLUG.
> >
> >
> > I have 32 OpenOffice CD's remaining, and I seem to remember that LUGOD
> > wanted OpenOffice CD's to distribute at ISSA.  Is there someone who 
>plans to
> > attend both the NBLUG meeting tomorrow who could bring the CD's to 
>LUGOD?
> > If so, I'll bring the CD's to the meeting tomorrow.
> >
> >
> > Does anyone else have anything to report about open-source advocacy in
> > schools?
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Lincoln
> >
> > ----- End forwarded message -----
> >
> > -bill!
> >
> > --
> > bill@newbreedsoftware.com                           Got kids?  Get Tux 
>Paint!
> > http://newbreedsoftware.com/bill/       
>http://newbreedsoftware.com/tuxpaint/
> >
> > _______________________________________________
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