Entering Local Politics...

Arlington Public Schools School Board
Chairman Wilson
Vice-Chairwoman Garvey
David M. Foster, Member
Elaine Furlow, Member
Mary Hynes, Member

Regarding the Memorandum from Superintendent Smith, concering the Computer Platform Report:

I have recently read the Memo dated April 30th, 2004 regarding the Computer Platform Report, recommending a move away from the Macintosh platform and toward a Windows Standard. I would strongly recommend that the board reconsider the decision to migrate toward Windows 2000 as a standard. For the last 3 years in my professional career I have worked for the National Center on Education as a computer support specialist supporting primarily OS X computers, but also having participated in a migration from Mac OS 9.2 (the version currently used in APS) to Mac OS X. Having read Dr. Smith's report concerning the migration away from Macs toward PCs, I must admit I was astounded. I found several inaccuracies in the report, and I felt compelled to correct some of their conclusions.

The conclusion that Internet Explorer is "no longer available" on the Mac is patently false. It is still available for free download on the Microsoft website, and each and every new Mac computer continues to be shipped with a working and unimpaired copy of Internet Explorer.

In addition, the software that was listed as "not running" under OS X will in fact not be harmed by OS X's specific "Classic Mode" which runs the OS 9.2 in an emulator mode. Any computer equipped with a current copy of OS X has access to the Classic OS 9 architecture, and thusly, unimpaired usage of the applications that are currently available for your in-classroom computers. Migrating to OS X will not affect this at all.

I would imagine that your classroom training for teachers is also grossly exaggerated for the migration. In my recent experience migrating former teachers from OS 9 to OS X, the amount of training required for each individual rated at between 6 and 10 hours, whereas I would imagine that for Windows it would be roughly equivalent to the 18 hour training mark set forth in the report.

I cannot stress enough the importance of the Macintosh platform in regards to stability and security. For a classroom or lab computer to be effective it has to be nigh on bulletproof, both from outside attacks and the potential for user damage. PCs, unfortunately, are neither of these things. The amount of money you would have to spend for a site-wide license of Anti-Virus software, Anti-Spyware software, and other means of securing your network (up to and including an enterprise level firewall and/or VPN router) far outweigh the costs of securing a Mac. There are no known viruses for OS X. At last count, the number of computer-crippling viruses on the Windows side number well above 1,000. If even one computer is infected by a virus, the damage to your network infrastructure could be crippling, between email sent out bearing Arlington Public Schools IP addresses, or through an overload of local machines with similar viruses. With Critical Updates to the Windows Architecture coming at an ever-increasing rate, the amount of maintenance necessary for your classroom and computer lab workstations could overtake your ability to maintain these computers, rendering them virus-prone and begging for attack. What good is a brand new Windows computer lab if it is virus-laden and frequently hacked?

OS X has not received a chance to be tested according to the memorandum, either as a result of an oversight of those providing support to the Arlington Public Schools, or as a result of a lack of understanding of the capabilities of the platform to succeed in an education environment.

I appreciate that the committee spent a good deal of time deliberating their options, and I would encourage the School Board to adopt the OS X Arlington Version plan, as it provides a degree of continuity and security for your teachers and students. Writing off OS X as unfeasible would be a critical error in judgment. While it is expensive, it is also the option that requires the lowest amount of maintenance, and carries the greatest degree of stability and security, two things that should be paramount to the Board in seeking to support the efforts for education and learning in the Classroom and in the school.

I appreciate the work that you do as Trustees of our Children, and I recognize that the Superintendent and his staff have conducted an incredible amount of research and data gathering, but I respectfully disagree with their conclusions. While it will be cheaper to migrate to a single platform, the only way in which that will continue to be true is if that platform is OS X. I am willing to discuss this with the Board either in closed session, or in open session of the Board, or via email at tbridge@toad.net.

Kind Regards,

Tom Bridge

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Eloquently Put

One of the blogs I visit daily is Adventures in Troubleshooting by Tom Bridge. Today he has penned a letter to the Arlington, Virginia Public School Board regarding a decision they have recently reached to switch from the Macintosh platform to Windows ...

Technology in Education- Microsoft vs. Apple

Eloquently Put

Comments:

What an articulate. poignant and fact-filled letter. You go Tom...maybe there is a career for you in politics. :)

Posted by Denyse Van Leuven on May 3, 2004 — 3:56 PM

According to the memo, it sounds like they have already decided on the issue. Is it too late for them to change their minds?

I, as an Arlington resident, would like to send them a letter, too, but I'm worried I may be too late...

Posted by Derek on May 3, 2004 — 7:30 PM

Derek, I would definitely encourage a letter! The decision has not yet been made, but the recommendations of the committee will weigh heavily. Encourage your friends to write!

Posted by Tom Bridge on May 3, 2004 — 10:35 PM

Good points about OSX being a good potential choice.

I'm surprised, however, that the board is considering going with Win2K instead of Win2003 Server. 2003 server is much more reliable and secure than Win2K. They must be cost sensitive.

For what it's worth, however, I'd hate to have my kid trained on Macs. It's like having them learn Latin or Ancient Greek.

Posted by PC Parent on May 3, 2004 — 11:14 PM

I'm sorry to hear that, PC Parent. As for "computer training" in the schools, it's less the OS than it is the applications that matter. In this case you want the most stable and bulletproof option available, not the most popular. As the committee pointed out, they felt that their educational goals could be met using either platform. All things being equal they could go either way, but when you take the stability and function of the classroom computer, the Mac wins hands down because of the underlying Unix layer, as well as the lack of viruses and other potential hazards that a PC possesses.

Posted by Tom Bridge on May 3, 2004 — 11:27 PM

I'm fortunate enough to work with both platforms. While there are many updates to Windows which must be applied promptly the same is true for Mac OSX, Linux etc.

I like the Mac OS however I do not like the hardware limitations. Tablet PCs have a great potential in the education sector for example. Both platforms have their strengths and can certainly co-exist. Too often I read 'an all or nothing solution'.

A classroom setting is a perfect for network boot images/master images (both Windows and Mac) which provides for a high level of safety and low maintenance.

Posted by Joe on May 4, 2004 — 12:21 AM

I'm also sorry to hear that PC Parent thinks schools would be beter served by switching away from the OSX platform. Ironically, not only are we Mac users, but my son is taking Latin next year. :)

Posted by Denyse Van Leuven on May 4, 2004 — 2:46 AM

Hi Joe, thanks for posting. I do agree that Tablet PCs contain a lot of potential for education. However, that's not what Arlington is standardizing on. Were they standardizing on that specific platform, I think I would have fewer objections simply because that provides an educational advantage.

Posted by Tom Bridge on May 4, 2004 — 7:40 AM

It's not as though training a kid on the Mac will cause him to be completely lost when he gets to Windows. I used Macs for years in school, and got a Win95 laptop when I went to college. The first thing I thought when it booted was, "Gee, this isn't so very different from the Mac..." I had completely figured it out in a week. When I switched back 8 years later... it took me another week, and only because the Mac OS had gone from OS 8 to OS 10.2 in that time. Ultimately, a folder icon is a folder icon, and a double click is a double click, no matter what platform you're on.

Worrying that your kid won't know what to do with a Windows PC if he learns on a Mac first is pretty insulting to your kid, actually.

Posted by Tiff on May 4, 2004 — 7:58 AM

PC Parent,

Your annalogy really does you a dis-service. One of the best things that could happen to kids is for them to learn Latin and/or Greek. They are the largest influences on English, not to mention most other western languages. If you understand them better, you understand many other things better as well; It expands your knowledge of vocabulary, science, history, and government.

If you are equating learning Macs with learning Lating or Greek, I would agree. If you understand OS X better, understand Unix better, understand how filesystems, networking, and collaborative environments work, then you will understand many other operating systems, applications, and work environments much better than if you had not learned the Mac.

Posted by Eric on May 4, 2004 — 9:45 AM

Apple doesn't get the big headlines, but it does play in the same sandbox:

http://news.com.com/2100-1002_3-5189335.html
http://news.com.com/2100-7355_3-5205912.html

Everyone has a security problem. The school will still need each and every piece of 'extra security' you outline above. Lack of headlines doesn't protect against a virus, a worm, or a trojan horse. OSX has lots of great selling points. However no modern day OS can only accomplish the security feats you ascribe to OSX. Maybe if you disconnect the internet, the floppy drive, cdrom, dvd, USB, Firewire and the keyboard it could do what you claim. But there's likely a hacker willing to prove you need to get rid of the mouse as well.

Posted by Steve on May 5, 2004 — 1:54 AM

Steve, thanks for posting the links. However, the article in the first one shows only a proof of concept, no actual viruses have been, or, in fact, could be delivered that way. You really should read John Gruber's response:

http://daringfireball.net/2004/04/crying_wolf

Given the name, I'm sure you can understand where I'm going with this.

The second report is brand new to me, but it seems to be full of Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt, being spread by @stake. Anything labeled as "Security Update" in software update is pretty much gonna lead you toward a new install, Steve.

Posted by Tom Bridge on May 5, 2004 — 6:49 AM

@stake is also the company that fired a guy for working on a security whitepaper that criticized Microsoft. Why? Because @stake makes boatloads of money from Microsoft and Windows-using companies.

Posted by Tiff on May 5, 2004 — 9:23 AM

Microsoft sucks ass ! Linux rules and owns !
Bill Gates can kiss my shiny metal ass!

Posted by Xivio on May 16, 2004 — 3:23 PM