Kim Brand

Kim Brand is the President of Computer Experts, Inc and Managing Partner of Server Partners, LLC. Kim has worked in technology for over 25 years. He was an OEM for Digital Research back in the days of CP/M and 8 bit processors and implemented some of the first non-IBM version of MS-DOS.

He was on the founding board of the Indiana Software Association (which became TechPoint and is now the largest technology trade association in the state.) Kim Brand also invented the fileengine

Kim is an open source evangelist. He has conducted several Linux Boot Camps for the Indiana Computer Educators Conference and the Central Indiana Linux User's Group. He is a moderator of TechPoint's Open Source Software for Business Peer Group.

He has published two books: Common C Functions by Que in 1986 and ZOPE: Web Application Development and Content Management by New Riders in 2001.

Open Source Solutions for Small Schools

Schools, and in particular small private and parochial schools, represent a real opportunity for open source software. Due to budget constraints, these schools are more receptive to non-mainstream software that costs less to acquire and maintain. These schools typically depend on volunteers. An offer of help from a GNU/Linux advocate - or even a LUG - can be an important and valuable contribution that will be much appreciated. A successful installation can be a great source of credibility when promoting Open Source for commercial applications.

This presentation will summarize the value proposition for GNU/Linux and other Open Source Software to small schools. If you are a potential volunteer, it will give you some advice about what you can do to leverage your time into the most benefits for the school you want to help. If you are a consultant or IT services company, it will describe our practices and current projects and other resources that can help you successfully develop this market.