---------- Begin forwarded message ---------- Date: Sun, 17 Aug 2003 17:56:38 +0100 Subject: Norfolk County Council response
Briefing note in response to questions raised by Mr. Tarquin Mills on NCC use of free operating system software.
How much do we spend on Microsoft Software?
As NCC has over 6,000 PC's and a wide range of servers we would need to undertake some further research into the number of MSOffice, Project, Publisher, Visio and Windows Server licences we currently have in order to give a comprehensive answer. As there has not been any significant growth in the number of PC's and servers then the number of new licences would not be great but there would be the costs of upgrades to existing licences as well as the annual maintenance costs to consider. All our new PCs come with Windows installed and therefore it is difficult to identify the actual cost for the operating system software element. Initial discussions with PC suppliers indicate there is unlikely to be any discount in buying PCs without the Windows operating system. Quantifying these costs will therefore be difficult. NCC in conjunction with other local authorities has negotiated various commercial arrangements with suppliers in order to ensure that its procurement of software achieves value for money. Some of these arrangements may be confidential and therefore it may be difficult to provide more than summary information.
Is the Authority trailing free Operating Systems?
Whilst 'Linux' is an excellent operating system and would be a cost-effective choice for many organisations, there are significant reasons why Norfolk County Council is not considering its use at the moment: We have a huge range of applications, many of which are specifically designed to run on Windows desktops or servers. Many of our applications will simply not run on Linux so it's not just a question of replacing the operating system. We would have to evaluate all of our systems to identify which are and aren't compatible with Linux. Those that aren't will have to be rewritten or replaced. This will be a very time consuming and costly process and it would probably take many years to get a return on our investment. It will also divert resources away from other projects and impact on the day-to-day running of services as both users and support staff are trained and have to become familiar with the new systems. The risks associated with such a migration will be very high. Many of our applications help meet statutory obligations or support critical services. Since the change of operating system will impact on a large number of applications, it follows that many of the Authority's key services could also be affected. Although the Linux user-base is growing, there are a limited number of companies doing application development for the operating system. Moving to Linux now will reduce the number of software suppliers available when procuring new system. This would be particularly acute in the already specialised Local Government area. Gartner (an independent ICT research company) have recently (June 2003) conducted some research into the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of the Windows v Linux desktop. These vary from a saving of £400 per user/year to an increase of £100 per user/year depending on the version of windows and the application software. These calculations did not include any of the migration costs which for a enterprise like NCC would be considerable nor the cost of dealing with document compatibility issues when trying to share documents with other users running Microsoft Office. Supported versions of Linux are not free and it would not be feasible for NCC to rely on the open-source community for support in the delivery of its business critical systems. NCC is continually looking at ways of reducing its costs and believes that bigger gains can be had from deploying desktop management tools more effectively and implementing new processes rather than migrating to a new operating system. NCC has recently worked with Gartner on developing its Technical Architecture Strategy and this included a review of its operating system and software standards. The outcome of this review was a recommendation that our strategic direction should be Microsoft.
Ann Carey e-service directorate
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One of the reasons give above points to illegal activities by M$.
Well done to Tarquin for getting an answer. It's a shame that the answer is mostly "we aren't going to tell you" with a side order of "we don't know" and "our advisors told us to" for dessert.
Here's my thoughts.
On 2003-09-15 09:54:43 +0100 Tarquin Mills speccyverse@ntlworld.com wrote:
As NCC has over 6,000 PC's and a wide range of servers we would need to undertake some further research into the number [...]
Can we try some more closed questions? I suggest asking:
What was the NCC's most recent BSA Software Audit Return and when will a copy be available to council taxpayers?
Which Microsoft licence plan is NCC on (eg Enterprise Agreement) and what is its total annual payment? Is it calculated by number of installed copies, by number of employees or by number of machines?
Which confidential commercial software arrangements is NCC party to? Are details available to councillors? To council taxpayers?
We have a huge range of applications, many of which are specifically designed to run on Windows desktops or servers.
When and by whom in NCC was the decision taken for NCC to pursue a single-vendor solution for operating systems?
Although the Linux user-base is growing, there are a limited number of companies doing application development for the operating system.
In a previous reply, the "limited number of companies doing application development" was stated as a reason against migration. Does NCC believe there are an unlimited (infinite) number of companies doing application development for its current operating system? [OK, I'm joking with this one...]
the cost of dealing with document compatibility issues when trying to share documents with other users running Microsoft Office.
What is the current cost to NCC of document compatibility issues when trying to share documents with users running other versions of Microsoft Office?
One of the reasons give above points to illegal activities by M$.
I'm dense this morning: are you talking about the Office bit?
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MJ Ray -
Tarquin Mills