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List:       kde-promo
Subject:    [kde-promo] Fwd: Re: Interview request
From:       Tom Chance <lists () tomchance ! org ! uk>
Date:       2004-03-19 16:48:31
Message-ID: 200403191648.31224.lists () tomchance ! org ! uk
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I've got my first round of answers from CT Leung, who runs a computer lab in a 
high school running LTSP with KDE. I'm considering some followup questions, 
so if anyone on this list can think of any good ones, please post them so I 
can include them in my next e-mail.

The original article about his lab can be found here:
http://www.linuxjournal.com/article.php?sid=7418

Regards,
Tom

----------  Forwarded Message  ----------

Subject: Re: Interview request
Date: Friday 19 Mar 2004 16:29
From: leung <leung@io.uwinnipeg.ca>
To: Tom Chance <tom@tomchance.org.uk>

Hi Tom,

Here are my answers:

1) First, could you introduce yourself for our readers?

I am a full time high school teacher and a part time instructor
for Universities. At Sisler High School, I teach many diffrent computer
courses from Programming in Java, Troubleshooting personal
computers, networking, operating systems, and some physics including
AP Physics. At University of Winnipeg, I teach one evening per week
on Telecommunications, Intro to Linux (System Admin and Networking)...


2) How have students and staff adjusted to a new desktop environment?

Students adjusted very fast and in fact, after one to two classes, even
some slow students find it very comfortable and most of them like
the terminal desktop environment much more the Windows alternitive
in other computer labs.

However, I don't much success with other staff members as the ltsp
is only available in my lab and in fact, the rest of the school including
all other computer labs, classrooms and offices are still running
windows.


3) What is their most common complaint related to KDE?

Before I have my new Xeon server up, I have tried KDE on my
old server (An Athlon 1.2G Hz with 1.5G RAM, 40G IDE hard drive).
KDE runs quite slow and in fact, with a bigger class, students
who started late might take several minutes before KDE can be
loaded.

4) Do you make use of any of the KDE Edu software, and is there any
educational software in particular that you think KDE would benefit from?

I use the shell a lot and in fact, I push all my students to learn some
basic Linux commands and some simple shell programming in text mode.
Other than programming languages such as C, C++, Java, the shell, I
also teach students the three main packages Writer, Calc, and Impress
in Open Offices. I have never tried any other education packages in KDE
other than the aboove mentioned.


5) Is there any software you'd like to see in KDE related to the LTSP?

If there is something similar to MS Access, I think it will be a killer.
mysql is great for undergraduates but might be too difficult for
beginners.

I remember the Corel Linux has a network neighbourhood browser pretty
much the same as the one in winodws. It would be great if we can have
something similar in KDE.

6) You mention in part two of your piece that you had to revert to IceWM on
your old terminal server. What made you switch back to KDE/GNOME once you had
upgraded the hardware?

The IceWM is quick but the KDE/GNOME has much more features that makes
it a better window environment than windows. In order to attract windows
users to switch to open source, KDE/GNOME are much more convincing.


7) Back when I was at school, we all used to hack BASIC on Acorns, until they
migrated to Windows. Do you find students discovering the shell and hacking
with Bash, Python or other languages more now?

Absolutely. Once stduents find out there are much more behind the "click
drag, and drop", they start to see the "big picture" and many motivated
students enjoy the shell and other languages available on Linux.

In fact, many former graduates told me that they are way ahead than
students from other schools as they know much more on Linux/Unix.

8) Have you thought about promoting, or do you already promote, technologies
like PyKDE and KDevelop to students?

Those are the things I am going to learn and promote in the future.
I am 57 and close to retirement, but until I die, I see promoting Open
Source, promoting Linux as my life-long career.

Thank you for having me in your interview and feel free to ask if
you need me again.

CT Leung
Teacher at Sisler High School
Instructor at University of Winnipeg

> 9) In part one of your piece you mention that, to you, an important element
> of Free Software is that you are "free to join the community to improve
> it". Have you considered getting students involved in the projects whose
> software they use, and in particular in KDE?
> -----
> 
> On Monday 15 Mar 2004 00:53, you wrote:
> > Hi Tom,
> > 
> > Thank you for invitation. However, I do not
> > use IRC or Jabber. I recently wrote an article
> > "A computer Lab with no windows" which now published
> > on the Linux Journal Web site:
> > 
> > http://www.linuxjournal.com/article.php?sid=7418&mode=thread&order=0&thol
> > d= 0
> > 
> > If you have any future questions, you can set up your questions and
> > I will try my best to answer them.
> > 
> > CT Leung
> > 
> > On Sun, 14 Mar 2004, Tom Chance wrote:
> > > Dear Mr Leung,
> > > 
> > > I'm a freelance journalist, and I'm working on some pieces for the KDE
> > > News web site (www.kdenews.org). I would like to conduct an interview
> > > with you about your implementation of the LTSP, with a particular focus
> > > on KDE.
> > > 
> > > I would like to do the interview as a conversation over an IM system
> > > like IRC or Jabber. If that would be possible, and you could make
> > > yourself available, I'd be happy to arrange a time when we could meet
> > > to talk. If not, I can e-mail you some questions.
> > > 
> > > I look forward to hearing from you,
> > > 
> > > Regards,
> > > Tom Chance

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