Over-the-counter 'open source' is a welcome breakthrough

Green MP Nandor Tanczos is applauding Dick Smith Electronics' move this week to offer Windows-less laptops.

"It is about time someone took the initiative and helped New Zealanders break free from the Microsoft stranglehold," said Nandor, the Green Party Spokesperson on Information Technology.

"I encourage anyone who is frustrated at the inflexibility of proprietary operating systems to try something different.

"The idea of using an open source operating system will be new to some, but there are Linux Users' Groups all over the country that are ready to show you how to use this healthy alternative.

"You can find your local group through the New Zealand Open Source Society website - http://www.nzoss.org.nz .

"It will be great to see Dick Smith selling the soon-to-be-commercially-released Linux 2.6 platform.

"I use Mandrake on my laptop and it is not that different to Windows, except that I have much more control.

"It is time the New Zealand Government encouraged diversity and systems security by following the lead of other high-tech countries like Japan in investing in the open source software industry."

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