[RANTISH] Programming Stupidity - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

9 Apr 1999

...
  From: Sellam Ismail &lt;dastar(a)ncal.verio.com&gt;
 To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
&lt;classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu&gt;
...
  Subject: Re: [RANTISH] Programming Stupidity
 Date: Saturday, April 10, 1999 3:53

 On Fri, 9 Apr 1999, Geoff Roberts wrote:

 > You've already lost if you have to run Windoze whatever.  I'd switch to
 > something more stable in a minute, but the sad part is that Windoze is
 > everywhere, so we have to teach our students to use it and the apps that
...
  > run on it, because that's what they will
likely find in the real world..
...

 So are you preparing your students for 1 or 2 years out, or are you
 preparing them for a lifetime?  If you're just preparing them for the
 first few years of their career, keep teaching them windows. 
Tell it to the employers.  They ask for people with computer skills.  But
what they really want is people that are skilled in the use of 
Word, Excel and Access.    When that situation changes, we'll happily shift
to Linux or similar.  For now, it has to be left to the University (we're
Reception to Year 12, ie; Primary/High School) to teach about real
operating systems etc.

...
  However, if you want to give them the advantage over
others that will
 allow them to be more competitive, make more money and therefore get more
 girls (and boys) start teaching them on Linux boxes. 
I'd like to do both, as Micro$oft skills are still very marketable,
especially for young people in a high youth unemployment market.
(Like around here)  Sadly, very few companies/businesses within 100miles or
so use anything but MS Office.  (Apart from 2 ISP's)

Cheers

Geoff Roberts
Computer Systems Manager
Saint Marks College
Port Pirie, South Australia
geoffrob(a)stmarks.pp.catholic.edu.au