Re: [DotGNU]OT: File formats schools

[minddog]

On Wednesday 29 January 2003 02:25, James Michael DuPont wrote:
> I have gotten my first installment of a e-learning package from my
> university, in Power Point format. I requested that they provide me the
> files in Standard HTML and PNG format or PDF.

All if most of my class's presentations are stored in powerpoint on each 
teacher's class website.  It's required to have powerpoint to print them out, 
and it costs money to print at our school.

> It turns out that my school is sponsored by Microsoft, and they have
> these funky student licenses the "give" the students Office for $10 and
> require the school to monitor their usage, prevent them from using the
> software commercially, and delete it when they are done with school.

I figure mine isn't, but I've already seen amounts of donated licenses to the 
school.  I can check out a copy of .net ide to use for educational purposes 
only.  This a quite a nasty tactic for them to pull off, when institutions 
already have problems with funding.  

> After many letters to the directors and professors of the school I
> agreed to start converting the materials for them into standard format.

It took only one email to a CSE professor, but I was in luck because the 
teacher seemed well rounded and very okay with the idea at first.  

> Also they are pushing .NET at that school, and would be a great place
> for DOT.GNU.

They are pushing it here, and I am in the windows interest group here pushing 
dotgnu solo.  I'd like to have an organization like this to push a software 
platform like dotgnu into the students hands.

> My question is to you, have you had similar problems? Are you
> interested in creating a Student group that is active in promoting free
> software in  schools and distance learning?

Very much, I'm interested in a full organization inside my university to 
control, monitor, and defend the students rights of free software in the 
classroom and outside.  I guess we should start gathering interested folks in 
our immediate areas and those who work on GNU projects.  Students, 
professors, and non-educational people can all be involved.  Who's to say we 
should bar anyone.  We also should start some type of weekly meeting on 
Freenode to discuss plans between all chapters(a name for each localized 
grouP?) .  Good luck to all, let's start revolutionizing software in the 
classroom for the benefit of freedom for us.

regards,
-- 
--minddog( Adam Ballai )

"I try to take it one day at a time, but several of them attack me at once."
-mistyflip