Re: Linux - SAMBA/OpenLDAP/Plone/OpenExchange

From: wally (root_at_localhost.localdomain)
Date: 11/05/04 

Date: Thu, 04 Nov 2004 22:50:37 -0500

KT wrote:

<Snip stuff>
>
> QUESTION:
>
> My beginning question...is there a GUI tool for all the technologies
> I just mentioned for the above (GOOD GUI Tools) - an EASY and very
> useable tool....

Short answer: NO THERE ISNT
Long Answer: There is a drastic difference between Windows environment
adminstration and Unix (Linux mimics Unix, but its close enough to be
regarded as a part of the bunch) environments is that they were not
intended as single user desktop workstations, although today that is
becoming more and more easily acheivable. One of the main advantages
of unix a Unix environment is that it is completely controllable, it
will not do anything unless told to do so, unlike the MS alternative
which tries to do as much as possible for you so that companies can
reduce IT training costs. Because Unix environments require careful
configuration by a knowledgable user, they are much more reliable. In
essence you have a more difficult time doing something which you do
not understand the consequences of. The style of configuration
(through scripts and config files) allows a much easier migration,
back-up, and re-building of servers. You would simply move the
appropriate configuration file to the new server, unlike a certain
organization where every time an MS server had to be rebuilt the
person reponsible would come with a binder of screenshots showing him
each and every tab, radio button, checkbox, etc... that he needs to
click on in order to make the server "production standard". Also the
lack GUI makes the system easily maegeable to run on serious hardware
such as Mainframes, distributed computers, and many large-scale
computing environments that ALL Fortune 100 companies and many others
rely on for day-to-day business. In a business you will find a
tremendous amount of platforms that are not x86 based and hence
incompatible with Windows, so even if you wanted to you could not
pull that off.

> As a technical person, I can deal with learning things; however, my
> CONCERN is the CLIENTS - not technical at all, but would like for
> them to be
> self-sufficient. As a consultant, it would be great to charge all
> the time, but what I have done in MS world is make my clients
> self-sufficient due to the EASE of management - XP as clients and
> 2003 Servers as server systems.
> I just want the same ease for my clients - is this doable?

If your clients are indeed who you say they are, they pay some other
consultant 10 times more than they pay you, in order to manage their
Unix based systems, believe me they have them. It would be worth YOUR
time to learn a production grade server operating system. The matter
of fact si that Unix based systems are necessary in order for a large
Windows environment to be feasable.

> Lastly, I have seen the MAN pages for all the technologies in Linux
> - they are good - but they do NOT compare at all to MS in sheer
> amount and sheer organization and clarity - is there another place I
> can look for this type of resource?

If you want to compare apples to apples compare man pages to the
windows help system and come back and say what you did. Otherwise
both system have printed literature good and bad, read what you like,
no one is making you read man pages, just that most others seem to
find then more than sufficient. 

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