Red Flag Linux... national pride... more reliable... cheaper... these are some of the keywords emerging from BBC TV ClickOnline's current program which focuses on GNU/Linux in China, apart from other issues.

It was telecast on Saturday 21 Sept at 1200 IST (and next coming up on Sunday 22 Sept at 1600 IST and Tues 24 Sept at 1300 IST). An interesting programme, though as is typical of television, it only skims the surface of the issue. (You've guessed my biases when it comes to reading, radio and TV)

"If you haven't heard of Linux, it does the same things as Windows. But unlike Windows (its code is freely available)." That's approximately how BBC introduces GNU/Linux. Many Free/Libre and Open Source Software enthusiasts might cringe to hear their favourite OS being compared to Windoze.

But the programme makes the point that there are many reasons for a growing number (even if still a small segment of total computer users) opting for GNU/Linux in China. It's cheaper, more reliable, there are questions of national pride (building software indigenously), China's strategy of adopting and adapting, security flaws, and even suspicion of secret backdoors in closed-source proprietory software....

Perhaps the progamme could have mentioned that the international journal of the Free Software Foundation is today published from China... If interested, contact hongfeng@gnu.org

This programme also has an interesting debate on the usual question: can China compete with Indian software... Do we have to see everything in terms of competition? Louisa Liu agrees that this needn't be so.

On an offtopic subject, one learnt of a very interesting plan to teach Internet and computing to the elderly -- the oldest student being 85. Maybe we too could think of similar approaches. Why not? A good way of fighting both the digital and age-bias all in one. --FN

PS: If you'd like to suggest future topics for programs to BBC, write in to clickonline@bbc.co.uk -- Frederick Noronha * Freelance Journalist * Goa * India 832.409490 / 409783 BYTESFORALL www.bytesforall.org * GNU-LINUX http://linuxinindia.pitas.com Email fred@bytesforall.org * Mobile +9822 122436 (Goa) * Saligao Goa India Writing with a difference... on what makes *the* difference