Injecting new life into GautengOnline

Imvula Consulting is sure its Novell Linux Desktop (NLD) multiplier could save GautengOnline up to 83% of projected cost to complete the installation of PC labs in schools, but says the project has shown no interest in the solution.

This is despite the fact that financial issues have been blamed in part for the delays in rolling out PC labs to Gauteng schools.

The R500 million Gauteng Department of Education project aimed to roll-out PC labs and Internet access to all schools in Gauteng by 2006.

However, only 1 100 schools have been fitted with labs and budget cuts have led to a slowdown in the project, with only 70 labs to be equipped this year and 250 labs projected for roll-out in 2006 and subsequent years.

Imvula Consulting MD Lenny Khumalo says the NLD multiplier would allow for the connection of as many as 10 USB keyboards, mice and monitors to one machine without degradation of service or output. This would result in significant savings on hardware and software costs, he says.

GautengOnline project manager Dick Raynor says it costs R250 000 to fit a school lab with 25 networked PCs and related software, wireless Internet connectivity, one big screen TV and a DVD player.

In comparison, a lab based on the NLD multiplier model would cost the department R36 400, excluding the TV and DVD player, Khumalo says. The savings would even be greater in the long-term, as GautengOnline would only need to maintain a tenth of the computers as compared to when each learner has a computer, Khumalo says.

Imvula Consulting first approached GautengOnline about the NLD in 2003, Khumalo says. Beyers Squared Integrated Solutions, an NLD distributor, facilitated the meeting.

He says the officials who initially attended the briefing were impressed with the technology and cost-savings, then suddenly they "cooled off".

"We were taken aback when we received a one-sentence rejection e-mail from the project officials, as the technology is sound and government said they were choking on the cost of technology to deliver meaningful services," Khumalo says.

He argues that NLD is "110% fit for schools, as quality will not be degraded, learners will have their own view and as they have no prior access to computers, they do have preconceived notions that proprietary software is better".

"It is a great injustice that in 2005 there are still learners who do not have access to computers as a result of the project`s failure to explore this opportunity," he says.

In an interview with ITWeb, Raynor initially stated he did not know why NLD was not first considered, but he suspected it was because the tender had already been awarded.

In the same interview, Raynor also indicated that GautengOnline is continuously testing new technologies and suggested that Imvula approach him directly. When asked by e-mail to clarify this, he failed to respond.

Meraka Institute Open Source Centre manager Nhlanhla Mabaso says NLD would work well in a school situation.

"You don`t really need as much power as computers today have, unless you do high-powered computation or multimedia functions," he says. "So degradation of service should not really be a concern."

Mabaso says part of the problem is that when greedy service providers hear of a big-budget project, they promise heaven and earth, and offer services at exorbitant rates when cheaper options exist.

"Commitment by government to do the right thing is then distorted by poor implementation through people who look at their own revenue rather than the client`s best interests," he says.

From government`s part, a combination of na"ivet'e, incompetence and corruption leads to good projects being spoilt, he says.

Mabaso referred to several projects that have used similar models successfully. These include the UNDP offices, where 15 computers have been connected using Novell Suse, and SchoolNet Namibia.

Related stories:
GautengOnline goes offline
Breaking the shackles of poverty through ICT