[GNU/LinuxInIndia] Sudev Barar... a familiar face for FOSS.in regulars
- From: "Frederick Noronha [फ़रेदरिक नोरोनया]" <fred@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: linuxinindia@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 8 Jul 2007 01:47:52 +0530
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/interview1.asp?foldername=20070615&filename=news&sec_id=14&sid=29
Sudev Barar on open-source software
Nuchem is a company in
Delhi that develops and
sells water/effluent treatment technologies, chemicals and laminated
panels. Sudev Barar, its owner, has adopted a Linux-based open-source
computing environment. He tells Sopan Joshi why it makes sense for
industry to adopt open-source software
On adoption of computers
I joined the family business in the early 1980s, when the personal
computer (pc) revolution had begun. I remember buying a product
called pc Junior, with 64 kilobytes of memory and two floppy drives,
for Rs 80,000 in 1985. We found the computer very useful for
accounting jobs. Billing accuracy was an attraction.
On learning to handle computers
I had no formal training. But as a manager who had expections from
operations, I was interested in what computers offered. I remember the
joy of seeing the ibm xt, perhaps the first with an internal hard disk
drive of 10 megabytes— felt like heaven after using so many
floppies.
On software requirements
In the early 1980s, the concept of licensed software just wasn't
there. pc dos could be freely copied. In 1992, we set up a new plant
and started using Oracle software—that's when we came to terms with
licensed software. At that time, Microsoft Windows 3.11, a
point-and-click operating system, had made computers very easy to use.
Then came Microsoft Windows 95. Software licence costs went through
the roof. We'd exhausted our software licence budget. By the late
1990s, computer viruses had also become common, and that meant
investments in anti-virus programmes.
On hardware requirements
More versatile and complex software needed expensive hardware. So,
apart from the investment in software licences, we were looking at
increasing hardware costs. We needed an it overhaul, and were looking
at an investment between Rs 60-70 lakh. We wanted to get out of the
software-hardware trap, but did not want to use pirated software.
On early brushes with open-source
Linux-based operating systems were available in the mid-1990s. They
worked well for servers and eliminated the risk of computer viruses.
But it wasn't apt for businesses—for example, its graphical user
interface would crash regularly. Even if the operating system worked,
there were no software applications to get the work done. So we stayed
with dos till 2000, when it seemed Linux had improved. We decided to
try it out.
On preparing the switchover
Our it staff started experimenting with Linux to see if we could use
old hardware —set it up on a network with a powerful server-type
central computer operating the system and the software, and terminals
at the user-end comprising old machines with low power. The computing
happened at the server, and terminals handled only local display and
commands. With Linux distributions like Ubuntu, open-source's
graphical user interface has improved a lot. You don't have to be a
geek to use Linux.
On the switchover
Linux operating systems came with a basic software package,
eliminating software licence fees. The challenge was to get people to
move from a dos-based computer environment to a graphical interface.
Ten people were trained for four weeks.They then took about six
months to train 260 people in the use of Linux-based computers.
On problem-shooting
I looked for solutions in computer magazines and—critically—the
community of Linux software developers. I was familiar with the
culture of mailing lists and Internet forums. It is a give and take.
If I was at level one of understanding, I would get help from those at
level two, provided I helped those at level zero. It's not like in
licensed software where you call up and demand service without
learning what the problem is. It's surprising how fast you get
solutions—sometimes in minutes, and better than any response from
commercial vendors.
On community support
The Linux community is spread out, and it never sleeps. People can see
clearly who has the spirit of community and who is a fly-by-night
visitor. Learning has to be mutual. The investment is not just
monetary but also in terms of time spent to develop solutions.
On savings
We are out of the vicious cycle of buying new software and then buying
new hardware to run it. Our savings in terms of software and hardware
have been around Rs 60 lakh. We're yet to throw away a single Pentium
I machine, and the system is working really fast. And we don't use
pirated software. There are proprietary software for Linux systems,
but many of these are cheaper than proprietary versions of the same
software.
Sudev Barar can be reached at sudev@xxxxxxxxxx
--
FN: Frederick Noronha
http://wikiwikiweb.de/MyContacts
Phone 0091-832-2409490 Cell: 091-9822122436 or 9970157402 (after 1 pm)
A film on copyright! GOOD COPY BAD COPY: a documentary about the
current state of copyright and culture.
http://www.goodcopybadcopy.net/
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