Based on Ubuntu. Interface and functionality like Windows, users will not feel much difference. BRICS countries committed to their own Linux distributions. South Africa has been the exception.
I don’t know about other governments and institutions but Windows went to shit long long ago.
I switched to Ubuntu (lubuntu or xubuntu back then) when I saw all the MetroUI shenanigans.
Since then, I have played with many kind of Linux distribution and currently settled with a mix of TrueNAS Scale, Linux Mint (cinnamon), Raspberry Pi, Ubuntu (core), NixOs and Android (mobile, tablet, nvidia shield pro).
After also switching family and relatives over to Mint or Ubuntu (the less tech savvy ones or those that did everything in the browser email/YouTube/online shopping), my life became so much easier whenever I gave them tech support. Nowadays, I almost exclusively give tech support for Linux systems for family and avoid Apple/Microsoft whenever wherever I can.
Really, windows will continue to go downhill (Microsoft account, advertising within OS, untimely updates, updates that breaks whatever whenever, the list is endless…). ChatGPT will give them a crutch but not forever.
You usually want to know and control what goes into your distro, especially if we’re talking about more critical systems. If you just install Ubuntu, you’re handing over control to its creator, Canonical.
I was a hardcore Ubuntu user but I’m all in on Linux mint now. At one point I had lots of time to dedicate to getting my and other’s system working with their hardware through updates. Mint has for the most part been perfect.
Well yes, it’s really difficult to switch when government only just managed to migrate to Windows 10 on most machines, and still uses Microsoft’s document formats for everything aside from PDF.
Up until a few years ago, UNISA was still using public-facing IIS servers and SARS was paying up the wazoo to maintain old Flash applets that people used to file their taxes.
One government department managed to waste R5 million on a WordPress website that used a $15 theme.
The bigger problem was a massive buy of Microsoft Cloud services with Office365 etc. It’s moved beyond the desktop and moving back is not going to be easy. MS cloud makes it’s easier to use Linux on desktops, but basically the horse has left the stable.
realmd and sambafor AD, and smbclient can be used to map network printers.
As for how Maya OS looks, it’s going to be used for their defence systems, so it’s highly unlikely we’ll get to see it. But it’s supposedly based on Ubuntu and has a “familiar” interface, so I imagine it might look something like Zorin OS.
Kerala has been using FOSS for a long time now. It’s a good step. In Kerala computer literacy centres actually teach Linux so hopefully this increase Linux usage in education sector as well.
I highly doubt the Indian military was using Windows for mission-critical equipment or systems any way. This news is about the normal bureaucracy using Linux, which is not new in India’s case.
Actually no, Impi Linux was SA govs Linux distro in mid 2000’s before politicians changed. It was all political decision making. Ubuntu was a private initiative of Mark Shuttleworth, which he took to the UK. He was from SA and did give support to Impi Linux.
Hopefully this work out better than Germany. Ever since Vista, the need to switch really has become a lot more justified, and only further compounded when Microsoft decided to stop committing to Windows 10.
BOSS was based on Debian, not Ubuntu. It was developed for the specific use case of being a standard client OS for Govt service computers, and never intended as a general-purpose distro for the public. Your expectations are wrong.
Also, there is no monolithic “Indian education system” whatsoever. In any case schools teaching Windows and MS Office to kids makes a LOT more sense since it’s something they have way higher chances of needing proficiency in for their future academic/professional lives. It’s not practical in any way to teach Linux instead.
We don’t have Linux in professional work because we don’t know Linux and We don’t know Linux because we don’t have Linux in professional work See it’s a chicken egg problem. Students should be encouraged to use Linux at school and on their PC.
Windows cut off plenty of actually solid devices and forced users to buy newer, but definitely worse equipment. At least that’s how it was when printers, scanners and multi-function devices are discussed. Especially INK printers.
BRICS isn’t an alliance or a cohesive entity. It’s the equivalent of the G7 for major non-western economies. India and China hate each other. China and Russia only really get along in being anti-US. Brazil and South Africa have no real intersection with the geopolitical goals of the other. BRICS isn’t a geopolitical anything of any meaning.
I suspect India is doing this for the simple reason that they have zero control over Windows while they would have as much control as they want over internal-Linux use. They’re large enough that they can make it work, assuming they’re willing to dedicate the people and the money to it and put up with the non-insubstantial switching costs. Open question on what their follow through will look like, but it’s entirely within their capability.
Huge win obviously and a very good choice for a lot of computers that just need a basic office suite. Unfortunately some users will lose their tooling but I expect a lot of gov. Services now to be using web-based tools exclusively.
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