Gauteng education MEC Ignatius Jacobs visited Alexandra yesterday to unveil the latest in a line of GautengOnline pilot project schools and one of the project`s few Linux-based solutions.
The network, at Pholosho Primary School, is a 25-workstation diskless setup running on the Linux operating system on hardware provided by Sahara Systems and AMD.
Selvin Kristnen, corporate director at Sahara Systems, says the Pholosho network is the only one of the five Sahara-sponsored schools to be based on the Linux operating system.
Kristnen says the Linux network offers a cost-effective solution to providing education in schools, particularly because the operating system and most of the applications are free. One of the primary reasons for choosing Linux for Pholosho, he notes, is that a significant portion of the software has been translated into indigenous languages including Xhosa and Zulu. According to Kristnen, the consortium felt Pholosho would be the best environment to test the multi-language products.
The networking for Pholosho was provided by NetDay and DireqLearn SA, which installed a thin client network based on Linux Terminal Server technology.
Denis Brandjes, CEO of DireqLearn SA, says the workstations are diskless and boot off a network card. He explains that although the Pholosho network is based on high-end computers, a similar network could be built up using second-hand computers. NetDay, a non-profit organisation that partnered with DireqLearn to provide the DireqOpenLab at Pholosho, has already deployed similar networks using lower spec hardware at other educational centres.
Brandjes says security is a major threat to the success of projects such as GautengOnline, but because these workstations are diskless and therefore have no software on them, the actual computers are worth less than their fat client companions, making them less attractive to potential theft.
"The complete functionality and power of the system resides on the server. It is easier to secure one PC than to secure a room full of computers."
The server for the Pholosho network is an AMD-based machine with more than a gigabyte of RAM and running the Mandrake Linux distribution. Students use Open Office for most of their tasks.
Connectivity for the Pholosho school includes a satellite connection provided by InfoSat as well as a Diginet line.
Other partners involved in the Sahara consortium include Sourcecom, NetDay, Ingenious Ideas, MicroVision, SchoolNet, Master Maths and Edit Microsystems.
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