It's one thing to to change someone over from Windows to Linux. That in itself is a gratifying experience. Then, you get your second defection from the chained-down world of Microsoft Windows, then the third...
Life is indeed good.
But what if...just what if you could open the eyes of hundreds, maybe thousands of people at one time.
That would indeed be amazing.
That is exactly what we are going to do.
You and I.
On July 4th, a significant percentage of Felton, Calif., will go Microsoft-free for one week...maybe an entire month. Maybe for good. The arrangements have been made and the news is going forth in Felton. Businesses and home users alike are excited about one of their own -- Larry Cafiero of HeliOS Solutions West in Felton -- joining a committed group of volunteers into their town to show them a better way to operate their computers. For a week...maybe a month...
If things go right, we can start talking about forever.
Christian Einfeldt, author, professional film maker, and Chief Architect of digitaltippingpoint.com will be the professional filmmaker documenting the project from start to finish. Christian contacted me early on concerning this project and is enthusiastic about it coming together.
HeliOS Solutions, in cooperation with Linux distributions, FOSS programs and individuals, are pulling together the resources, know-how and equipment to make LINdependence 2008 a reality. While the groundwork is solid, we still need to gather funding and personnel to make this happen.
With an estimated 30 to 40 million Linux Users world-wide, it would seem that funding might be the least of our problems. Remember, we're talking about the Linux Community here. Sadly, there are many that won't even donate a single dollar to projects like this, so we're counting on those that really do care to carry their burden. Those that initially ignore this call will of course jump on the wagon once it has safely reached its destination. Such is human nature, and some things never change.
How we do it.
Larry Cafiero, an editor for the Santa Cruz Sentinel by profession and a FOSS evangelist by avocation, is our "advance party". Larry established HeliOS Solutions West in Felton last fall. After a building fire in November where HSW was originally based made the space uninhabitable, Larry has been working from home and last month, he re-established an office in Felton, where we will base the operation. You can contact him at lcafiero@fixedbylinux.com if you care to assist or have any questions for him. Larry will be taking the names and information from anyone who wants to reserve their distros place in LINdependence 2008. Please help us make this happen by clicking the donate link above.
We all know how beneficial using Linux and FOSS is, and it's now time to share that knowledge with others.
During the six weeks prior to Independence Day, town meetings and installfests will be held to familiarize those interested Felton residents in how to go about using different media -- LiveCDs and bootable thumb drives (dual-booting for the more daring of residents) -- to use Linux for a week. With representatives of distros and FOSS programs available to answer questions and instruct folks on use of the software, there should be no shortage of information for which Feltoners can make an informed decision on their digital options.
Should you want to be notified of any news or changes in LINdependence 2008, contact helios@fixedbylinux.com and he will put you on the mailing list.
Where we stand.
Currently, about 50 distros and about 30 FOSS programs were invited by e-mail to do two things: First, the leaders were asked to endorse the project and participate, while informing their distro/program community about it; and second, we asked for permission to post a public invitation on their forums to gain the community's support for the project. NOTE: We went through the "Contact Us" link on various distro/FOSS program sites: If you are a distro/program leader and haven't heard from us, chances are the e-mail is floating around somewhere. If you want to participate, contact us either Ken or Larry immediately to sort this out.
As of March 24, we have three distros which have responded positively and no FOSS programs.
A second letter will be going out this week following up on the first and requesting an answer -- in or out -- regarding participation in the project.
Meanwhile, on the ground in Felton, meetings have been taking place between businesses, community leaders and everyday residents involving this project. A groundswell of interest is rising. Where will you be and what will you be doing when this groundswell becomes a tsunami?
Stay tuned.