January 14, 2008

Should schools use free software?

It would initially seem to be the obvious choice of schools to free software, it gives the school the freedom to use as many copies on as many computers as they want, which is something that cannot be done with a licensed brand.

Essentially it makes no difference what the status of the school is, there are costs involved with software products which can cripple the finances if it is left out of control.

So should schools use free software? It would seem the answer has to be yes, it will free up finances, all students will be using the same product and it will also teach staff and pupils that just because free software costs nothing, it does not necessarily mean that the product is not as good as the branded software.

Source [GNU]