The Event ___________ There were 5 presentations in total. The attendance of the public was satisfactory and we were given the opportunity to exchange information and opinions. At the same time Ubuntu was installed on the Computers in the Lab and the public could evaluate the new system. Some had brought their personal computers and we tried to solve some of their technical problems.
Presentations _______________ 1) Intoduction to GNU/Linux and Free Software: Grigoris Chrysanthou talked about the history and philosophy of the Free Software movement and explained to the public some basic concepts and the different choices they will have to make when they decide to use Linux. He also explained that Linux is not harder to learn but simply different. 2) Educational Academic Applications: Theodotos Andreou presented some applications suitable for all levels of education. He presented applications like the GCompris educational suite, the Maxima symbolic computation system (where he forgot the syntax and he couldn't solve the problem!) , the Celestia universe emulator and the Kalzium periodic table and chemical application. He emphasised on the high cost of existing educational applications and the advantage that free software can offer, being able to be used at home without legal issues. 3) Applications of GNU/Linux in Business: Panayiotis Omirou showed the advantages of GNU/Linux in Businesses. He explained that moving the systems to Linux should be done in steps and taking into consideration the needs of the organisation. Lastly he mentioned notable applications and services that could be used as alternatives to closed source solutions. 4) Installation of Ubuntu Server as a Domain Controller using the EBox platform: Theodotos Andreou showed how you should NOT install Ubuntu Server and EBox. The choice to use virtual machines instead of physical was a fatal mistake and the result was to eat up the time without results. He explained, however, the possibilities of EBox that could be a solution for those not accustomed to the shell. 5) The Shell and its applications: Grigoris Chrysanthou explained to the public the potential of the Shell emphasising on the ease one could solve apparently difficult problems. He explained how the commands grep, sed, awk and others can be used to improve the productivity of an experienced user. Workshops ____________ In the computer labs we had install Ubuntu though wubi on around 25 Computers of the Cyprus University of Technology. There were also around 10 Computers borrowed by some companies and members of the community. The workshops worked as expected and the participants were satisfied. There were educational workshops, installation workshops games and a lot of applications. We had demonstrations of the Compiz 3D Desktop and the Elisa Media Centre. We gave around 100 CDs of Ubuntu and some of Fedora. Members of the community were helping those with technical problems. Problems __________ 1) The presentations lasted too long and the people were tired. As time passed by, there were less participants on each subsequent presentation. At the same time the workshops were in parallel and the participants of the presentations were not given enough time to work with the computers. 2) The presentations about the Ubuntu Server and the Shell should had happened in the Computer Labs. Especially for the first one, physical machines should be used instead of virtual. 3) The presentation about business was not promoted enough and the result was limited interest from the industy. 4) During the presentations we forgot to prepare a Fedora computer in the labs. Our apologies to Fedora users. We will be more prepared in the future. 5) When we set the date we didn't take into account the fact that many academic institutions were in a midterm exam period and many students could not attend because they were studying. Thanks ________ We would like to thank the Information Systems and Technology Department of CUT for letting us use the amphitheatre and the computer labs. We thank the Head of the Department Mr Filippos Filippou, for giving the opportunity to show the potential of free software to the public, Andreas Mouskos and Diana Constantinou who was in charge of organising the event. For the promotion of the event we would like to thank Mr Panikos Masouras of Cyprus Computer Society (CCS), Mr Costas Perdikis for the announcements to the University of Nicosia and Mr Leonidas Xatzimitses for the announcement to former and present CISCO Academy students. Especially the announcements send by CCS was crucial for the success of the event since more than 60% of the attendants were notified though them. Lastly we would like to thank George Mihail, Maria Efthimiou and Filippos Xatzimihail from the student IEEE branch of the Cyprus University for promoting the event in Nicosia. We would like to thank the companies Maldogate LTD and CDT Computers Ltd for the Computers ans consumables (CDs and DVDs) we used during the event. Lastly we would like to thank all those from the community that worked for the preparation and success of the event: Aggelos Ioannou, Demetris Ioannou, Constantinos Mikellides, Marinos Ioannou, Christodoulos Stavrinou, Neofytos Panayiotou, Panayiotis Omirou, Grigoris Chrysanthou, Theodotos Andreou and others. Future events _______________ We are planning to organise, somewhere in December, some presentations in private tutorial institutions regarding the potential of free software in education. The next party is scheduled for May after the new releases of Ubuntu and Fedora. -- Ubuntu-cy mailing list Ubuntu-cy@lists.ubuntu.com Modify settings or unsubscribe at: https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-cy
