Changing from Windows OS to Linux Lite

[Artim]

And where is the logic in locking a business into using a single vendor?  So many alternatives are available that cost less or cost nothing.  I'm getting all of my coursework done using LibreOffice, often turning in my work in .pdf format.

And as Jerry said, it's practically all being done in the cloud anyway nowadays, and even a lot of Microsoft Office stuff can be done using only a browser.

[Jerry]

Business is migrating to the Cloud, many like Xero for example have been using it for years already. In regard to this, the OS is becoming more relevant. Office software is in the cloud, you have Google Sheets etc. The savings to Businesses and organisations by using an OS virtually free of viruses cannot be understated. Some students will go onto to manage servers, most of which are Linux based anyway. Start them on a Linux based desktop and give them a head start. What linux lacks is a Leader. An Elon Musk, a Steve Jobs, a Bill Gates to pitch linux to business. Individuals can do it, and they must. Freedom, in places like Africa, should not be a hard concept to 'sell'.

[MS]

Very interesting case. For certain Linux should not be enforced.

[JanetBiggar]

I wondered if members might weigh in on this question:

I met the new IT person at an NGO here in South Africa.  The NGO allows me to use their facilities whereby I may bring my study group youth to access the internet and have a nice, safe place to study, research, etc at no fee. It is wonderful and saves me buying data for internet activities.

The NGO currently uses windows based software both for their admin people as well as on their computers that they use to deliver a basic computer skills course.  I am unsure of the specific items on which they instruct their students, however it is basic stuff like word and excel, cutting and pasting, etc.

Because of the cost of the Windows licenses the IT person has suggested to the CEO that they consider an open source operating system and interestingly several of their admin people are already using Libre Office.  The CEO is against switching despite the savings as he feels that "we cannot teach the computer course on a system that the students will not encounter in the workplace".  For example would they understand how to use Excel if they were using a Linux base OS, in other words how easily transferable would the skills be from say Linux to Windows..?

So I am wondering what comments/opinions Forum members might have about this situation?