[lug] where do i start

[J. Wayde Allen]

On Sun, 22 Apr 2001, luke p wrote:

> i'm a student at BHS and am good friends with our sysadmin at school. as i'm 
> sure most of you know, running a win2000 server and all the extras to make 
> it work for a large system can cost you an arm and leg, also, schools just 
> don't get that much $$ for help. so i was wondering where i should start off 
> if i wanted to draft a plan and switch our system from a windows system to a 
> linux. or are there sites of a simple linux network all documented from 
> start to end?

I don't think you are going to find a "canned" answer.  I think you hit
the nail on the head when you said "if I wanted to draft a plan".  That is
really the key.  YOU will need to take a hard look at the present system
as well as the school's culture and design a plan based on what you
see.  In particular I would guess that you will need to do a detailed and
careful cost/benefit analysis of the current system and then to compare
and contrast that with what it would take to create and deploy a Linux
replacement.  I think that this group can help you with the Linux side of
things, but only if you put together a framework of what you need the
system to do.

One word of warning is that such bureaucracies have a rather large amount
of built-in inertia and bias.  You will need to be a very good salesman,
and also be very thorough in you analysis of the situation.  Even then you
can lose just because someone in power doesn't believe in your cause.  In
that case it won't matter how well you do you homework.  What is worse, is
that if you push too hard you can galvanize the organization against the
idea of using your proposed solution at all.

An alternative approach that I've often used with reasonable success is to
work to establish a working system inside the bureaucracy.  Once it is in
place, working, and people become dependent on it, you will find that it
is much easier to sell the idea of expanding such a system into other
areas.

You are in the best position to know the technical issues, as well as the
culture and politics involved.  Let us know how we can best support you?

- Wayde
  (wallen at lug.boulder.co.us)