Open Source, Open Blog
Some of you may know that my friend Helios (aka Ken Starks of Lobby4linux.com and Blog of Helios) has been working on the Tux500 project which is geared at getting Linux on a car in the Indy500. Take a look at this video made by Tux500.com that explains a bit about the Indy500 and why it is important for Linux to be there.
Very professional. Make sure you Digg the video as well!
There’s a HUGE piece of news out there for Linux as an operating system…and I have only seen it published on Lxer.com, Linuxtoday.com and Digg.com. LINUX IS GOING TO THE INDIANAPOLIS 500!! This is HUGE for ALL Linux distributions…not just one. This is something that can show all those people out there what the Linux community is all about…collaboration, community, camaraderie, and drive….drive that can’t be found in commercial ventures. But where, oh where, is the community reporting this news? The interesting thing is, they aren’t…and It’s very odd as to why they aren’t reporting this and rallying around it.
Perhaps they’ve just missed it…and in that case I hope they pick up on it soon. Perhaps they don’t know much about it? In that case they need to head over to Tux500.com and read all about it. Don’t know what the Indy 500 is about? Once again, Tux500.com explains it for you.
For those of you who don’t know what this is about and who haven’t clicked on those Tuxme500.com links above…allow me to explain a bit. I encourage you to head over to that website after reading through this post.
My friend helios who authors “Blog of helios” and is admin over at lobby4linux.com has unveiled a huge project of getting Linux to sponsor an Indianapolis 500 racecar in this years Indy 500. Of course, Ken isn’t working alone…the website tux500.com has been launched to track donations and become a center of operations for the initiative. The goal is $350,000 for full sponsorship of the Indy Car.
Crazy? Maybe. Innovative? Yep. Attainable? With help, it could be. Without Linux news websites and enthusiasts getting the word out though it will fall flat on its face.
I mention this because this isn’t a local thing…it’s not just being displayed in a few places that post Linux news…this is being displayed on a larger scale. It’s also got an entire marketing team behind it. This is a first for Linux…generic Linux. This isn’t about a distribution. This isn’t about a flavor you like to run on X laptop or Y Desktop. This is about LINUX. odorless (hopefully), colorless, neutral Linux. All communities should see the benefit of this.
As I mentioned, this isn’t local. Speedtv (yes…the US cable channel) has picked up on this marketing drive and has published an article on their website. The Auto Channel has also picked up on it. Motorsport.com has jumped into the fray. UPDATE: Indy500.com has now published an article about Linux and it’s sponsorship as well. As of the publishing of this article though…I’ve only seen this huge news hit 2 major Linux website. This is exposure that Linux hasn’t ever had. To be associated one of the largest Sporting events in the world (from Wikipedia “having the largest attendance and one of the largest radio and television audiences of any single-day sporting event worldwide).
Worldwide. Largest audiences and attendance. Is anyone listening to what this could mean for Linux? Is this microphone on?
I’m flabbergasted as to why more Linux news sites haven’t picked this up. I’m floored as to why no one is lobbying Red Hat, Ubuntu, Novell, IBM, Mandriva, Xandros, Linspire, and other Linux companies to donate what they can. Those companies could secure a logo for 25k on the side of the car. They could donate 50k and put 25k toward this initiative AND get their logo spread on the car. What will they do? Do they believe in Linux as much as the community they are a part of does? This is huge…it can’t get any bigger and it seems we’re sitting on our hands here.
The goal is $350,000…which is a large sum of money. However, from the Tux500.com’s FAQ page, $25,000 can garner a Linux sponsorship…which is also good exposure. So at the very least, we can get Linux into the limelight as a sponsor.
Now I know some of you may be saying “How do I know that my donation is getting spent on this and not to grab someone a Ferrari?” and you’d be right in asking that question. I’d like to put this to rest right now. The paypal account used to house donations has third party access from two well respected Linux journalists/editors…Don Parris of Lxer.com and Brian Proffitt of Linuxtoday.com. They will be operating as auditors for the fundraising of this endeavor and will see all funds in and out of the account. Mr. Proffitt has also “agreed to verify any public statements made about the current fund amount when asked”.
Lobby4Linux.com also announced that donations were being tracked by distribution. This means that when you donate, you input your favorite distro that you’re donating on behalf of. The demographics of these donations will be released after fundraising is over. So, for those of you who want go get some exposure for your distribution…there is a way for you to do so.
Not only that, but graphics designers have a chance to design the logo that is going onto the car…this could be huge for whoever that may be. It could launch a career of a little known designer. So if you’ve got elite graphics skills, get to designing! The deadline is April 30, 2007.
To all of the Linux news websites out there…I challenge you to report Linux news and let the community know about it. To all bloggers out there, this is a chance to help push Linux into areas it’s never been and onto TV sets of 5.5 million Americans and even more people worldwide. Help Bob Moore and Ken aka helios, the two catalysts and organizers of this huge push for Linux, attain that goal and get Linux onto that car! It can be done…but it needs your help to do so.
Reference Websites:
There’s been some confusion as of late via emails and comments on other blogs about YALB that I would like to “dumb down” linux to try to reach the masses. I’d like to take a little time to clarify exactly what I think of the Linux Desktop and the directions it is taking.
I’ve worked in quite a few different IT jobs the past 8 years. My current job allows me to work with many diverse individuals and technology. Diverse backgrounds, diverse ethnicities, diverse cultures, and diverse experience. Whenever the main business system can’t do what the users’ want it to do, they call me. Whenever they need information from that antiquated database (runs on AIX…not current) they call me. However, since we have a small staff being a small agency, I also get to answer some helpdesk calls. The odd part is, I like answering helpdesk calls. Why? Because it tells you more about the users and allows you to help them better. It also gives you a pulse for your users…something to measure them against.
Having done this for quite some time now, I can honestly say that if we rolled out Linux desktops tomorrow to these people in my agency our productivity would be seriously inhibited (for a while…until everyone got used to things). This is despite the standard business system running via telnet to an AIX Box. It’s not because of Linux…but rather because of the people. See, Linux is ready for the average power user…someone who went to college, graduated, and now works happily in department X of your business or someone who went to high school in the last 5-10 years (depending on where you grew up of course…we didn’t even have a computer at my school and I graduated in the early nineties)…and people all agree that government should be pushing Linux first and foremost. Since my current job is for a state agency, one would figure we’d be looking into FOSS, but this isn’t the case. The average power user isn’t the majority in this goverment agency and I’m sure it isn’t in many government agencies so we continue to look to MS for all solutions because they are the defacto standard.
Previously, Yet Another Linux Blog posted an article about co-sponsoring a donation drive with Lobby4Linux.com. That drive is still up and running until 11:59 PM CST on 14 August 2005. If you donate through Lobby4Linux.com and remember to provide your email address, you’ll be entered in a drawing various prizes. What prizes? I’ll let Helios from Lobby4Linux fill you in:
“Lobby4Linux proudly displays the first place prize for the donation drawing to be held live on the 15th of August. Now how can you go wrong with 2 used laptops and a printer? Hey…didja think this was a high Class operation? Actually these machines are great for accessing the internet, printing and just plinking around. Both machines have successfully run Debian and are very useful. While the photo,which can be viewed here, is not the best our intentions are and you have helped us help one of our own. Please remember the donation drive is open until 11:59PM CST 14 August, 2005 and your donation qualifies you for the drawing. Second place is a Linux-compatable DVD burner, third and fourth places receive a Cisco 1600 series two port router and the next five winners will receive a registered copy of MyBooks Pro from Appgen. Thank you again for your generosity. It will not go. un-noticed.”
Remember also that all proceeds from this donation drive are going to save a prominent Linux website from going under. The webmaster lost their job and is in danger of losing their residence as well. All donations through this drive will go to that website. Of course, I am withholding the name of the webmaster through request. Trust me when I say it is a major Linux site that does Linux news and many, many distro reviews.
Some of you may be saying, “Well, so what? How do I know where this cash is going? How can I be sure that it is going ‘to a good cause’?” Think of it this way. Lobby4Linux is a community run site that will donate the cash it raises to an open source or Linux project that is voted on by the community. So you can’t go wrong by donating because the money will always go back to open source. Helios, the author and creator of Lobby4Linux, already owns and operates a successful business and isn’t doing this for profit. In fact, he’s already spent appx. 20 thousand dollars over the past couple of years trying to expand the Linux message. Helios is doing this because he wants to see Linux and open source proliferate throughout the world. So, at the very least, you’ll be donating to open source indirectly.
Yet Another Linux Blog was happy to give the two first place prize laptops to this cause and I support this donation drive 100%. If you’d like to win some hardware and software and have 5 or more bucks to give toward open source, get on over there and give some cash. Hopefully, we’ll be able to raise enough money to save a gem of a Linux website. Thanks for helping out and good luck in the drawing.
A lot of us take what we have for granted. We often look at that lazyboy recliner or that big screen TV. We look at our 5 or 6 computer network and our PVR and just sigh, not ever thinking twice about those that aren’t able to have what we have. Most of you have probably heard this more than once from various charities and organizations around the world or in a city near you. Outside influences and rotten luck often cause people to lose their house, their land, their cars, and subsequently their livelihood. What happens if someoone is pinkslipped from their job and is in danger of losing their house? Most of the time, this would go unnoticed and people would kick back and switch channels on the Sony 47″. This time, it’s different.
A major Linux website webmaster is in trouble. They’re in danger of losing house, home, and practically anything that isn’t bolted down including their site which has been around for quite some time. To help this person, Lobby4Linux.com and “Yet Another Linux Blog” have teamed up to hold a Drawing for those who donate to help save this Linux site AND this webmaster from the dire straits (not the 80’s band either) and to help keep this website and this webmaster afloat until they’re back in the proverbial saddle again.
Therefore, if you donate to help this pillar of the Linux community, (using the Lobby4Linux paypal link and include your email and name) you will be added into the fray for a drawing where the winner will win a Linux compatible DVD Burner and five runners up will receive a licensed copy of Apgens MyBooks Pro.
As more incentive to donate, Yet Another Linux Blog is adding two older model laptops for a prize package…A Panasonic CF-75 Toughbook and an IBM 755c Thinkpad. Both have had hard drive upgrades (10GB in the Toughbook and I think 2GB in the Thinkpad) and both will work with Linux (Debian installed on both quite easily) and each comes with a nice carrying case/backpack. I’ll leave it up to Helios, webmaster and organizer of the donation drive at Lobby4Linux.com to decide which place in the drawing will receive the laptops since I feel they should be offered together.
Once again, you won’t be entered into the drawing unless you donate! Get over to Lobby4Linux.com now and donate to this good cause and enter yourself in the drawing to be held on 15 August 2005. Don’t forget to add your name and a valid email address so you can be contact if you win in the drawing.
Thanks for helping out and let’s hope that we can save this site from going under.
Edit: I’ve been asked not to reveal the identity of the person or site until after the 15 August deadline. I know it sucks quite a bit for those donating…but I respect this person’s wishes.
Think of it this way…if you donate to Lobby4Linux anyway, you’d be donating to open source since Ken doesn’t take any cash for himself (except to cover the cost of webhost) since he has his own business and does fine without income from a website. So if you donate, you have nothing to lose and some hardware/software to gain.
The cool part is that if you donate now, Lobby4Linux will give all donations to save a major Linux site. It’s a win win situation. Thanks again if you donate!
