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Bringing the Kootenays the Robust, Stable and Secure Gnu/Linux Operating System
At RCK Computer Services, we are here to maximize the value of your computer investment and to minimize the ecological consequences of your use of technology. One way we do that is by installing powerful and stable open source computer applications.
Linux is not just for geeks anymore. Over the past ten years a growing choice of graphical desktop environments and 'point-n-click' front-ends to the power of linux have become available. Linux offers games for kids of all ages, scientific and educational applications, office productivity tools including word processing, spreadsheets, databases, presentation software, calendars, email clients, browsers, project planning tools, GIS mapping tools, business and personal accounting applications, pdf viewers and a full array of multi-media tools for sound and video.
A wide array of software development projects have adopted the Gnu/GPL and other approved open source licenses to protect their software from being denied to the public by proprietary development and monopolistic practices. These licenses also protect you, the end user, by respecting the "four fundamental freedoms: (1) freedom to run the software as you wish, (2) freedom to study the source code and modify it to do what you wish, (3) freedom to make and redistribute copies, and (4) freedom to publish modified versions."
And projects like Abiword and OpenOffice have figured out how to read and write the proprietary file formats of the MS Office suite so you need not be isolated from the rest of the computing world. Even so, they offer open native file formats which are standards compliant and designed to 'play well with others'.
Intrigued, but not quite ready to make the leap? We can build or rebuild your computer as a 'dual-boot' machine capable of starting and running your old operating system while affording you an opportunity to try out the new one. Or we can also offer a live-CD version of Debian which will run your machine on Gnu/Linux without installing the new system or touching your hard drive and existing user data.
Gnu/Linux was developed by a global community of computer users and programmers.
"Linux is a free Unix-type operating system originally created by Linus Torvalds with the assistance of developers around the world. Developed under the GNU General Public License, the source code for Linux is freely available to everyone," according to linux.org. This operating system "is causing a revolution in the world of computers."
And according to gnu.org, "The GNU Project was launched in 1984 to develop a complete UNIX style operating system which is free software: the GNU system. (GNU is a recursive acronym for 'GNU's Not UNIX'; it is pronounced 'guh-noo.') Variants of the GNU operating system, which use the kernel Linux, are now widely used; though these systems are often referred to as 'Linux', they are more accurately called GNU/Linux systems."
That is because many of the utilities which are packaged with the Linux kernel (and which make it trully useful) were developed by the Gnu project.
Eric Raymond is described as an evangelist of open source computing tools. Writing of the collaborative work that produced the Linux system, he points out that: "The three and a half decades between 1969 and 2003 is a long time. Going by the historical trend curve in number of Unix sites during that period, probably somewhere upwards of fifty million man-years have been plowed into Unix development worldwide." Enough we hope to offer you a stable and diverse set of computing tools to empower your work and play.
Linux is available in a growing array of 'distributions' or 'flavors'. At RCK Computer Services we recommend debian.org for its maturity, its standards compliance, its commitment to open source licensing and its conservative policies for promoting new packages into it's stable distribution. Debian now boasts 15,490 packages as available through its user friendly packaging system, APT (Advanced Packaging Tool).
The apt suite of software packages make keeping your machine up to date with the latest security patches as easy as running two commands. Running 'apt-get update' tells your machine about the latest changes available. Running 'apt-get upgrade' updates every package on your machine for which a security patch, bug fix or new feature upgrade may be available. And when you are ready to install new software, a simple 'apt-get install _package_name_' will handle the installation of both the new application and all of its dependencies, as well as providing for the base configuration of the new software. For folks not comfortable with a command line, there exists graphical 'point-n-click' tools, like aptitude to make using these tools easy for the unitiatied.
Gnu/Linux and the thousands of software applications written to run in this mature, secure and stable operating system are available now at no licensing fee for any computer user ready to free themselves from the monopolistic pratices of its competitor. Whether you are ready to make the switch, or simply want to explore what open source tools have to offer, please give us a call.
Or, if you are not yet convinced, ask us about our bootable CD, which lets you try out linux on your existing* computer without disturbing your existing installation. We use the Knoppix bootable CD for diagnostic work as we test and rebuild machines. But it also includes a complete suite of graphical computing tools, including: office suites, databases, web browsers and email clients, multimedia players, servers, etc. Its a great way to check out linux on your machine before you make the switch.
Or consider seeing what these folks have to say about the matter:
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