San Diego Students Learn on Linux Desktops from Novell

San Diego Unified School District has selected SUSE® Linux Enterprise Desktop from Novell® as the standard platform for its Always-On Learning Initiative, a one-to-one mobile computing initiative designed to give students access to laptop computers with software tools and resources to help them achieve academic success and prepare them to learn, live and work in the 21st century. San Diego Unified School District is the second-largest school district in California, serving more than 130,000 students, 100,000 of whom are in grades three through 12 and are targeted by the Always-On Learning Initiative.

"This mobile computing program will help students develop the cognitive tools they will need to compete in the global economy," said Dan Wolfson, program manager of Educational Technology for The Office of the Deputy Superintendent of San Diego City Schools. "To be beneficial to students and cost effective for the district at the same time, our desktop operating platform needs to meet high standards of reliability, ease of use and administration, as well as being affordable. SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop clearly meets those requirements."

San Diego Unified School District's Always-On Learning Initiative is currently in the first phase of a three-phase implementation that is expected to run for several years. Deputy Superintendent Geno Flores said, "The district is enthusiastic about pioneering the Always-On Learning Initiative to personalize student learning. The initiative will provide meaningful learning experiences for all participating students, especially those who may not have access to computers at home. We believe it will help students develop higher order skills and to function effectively in the world beyond the classroom."

The "Always-On" vision includes student access to a managed network that will provide an Internet/intranet connection to students' schoolwork, teachers and classmates, giving students anytime-anyplace access to education resources. The school district will be using open source applications included in SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop for office productivity, audio and video, Web browsing, geography, language arts, math, and science.

Roger Levy, Novell vice president and general manager of Open Platform Solutions, said, "San Diego Unified School District is to be commended for undertaking such an ambitious initiative to benefit students. Novell is pleased to play a part in its success by supplying the eminently affordable and manageable SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop that will provide a familiar and reliable computing experience for students, teachers and system administrators."

The next-generation platform for the open enterprise, SUSE Linux Enterprise is the best-engineered, lowest-cost and most interoperable platform for enterprise computing, from the desktop to the data center. For more information on SUSE Linux Enterprise offerings from Novell, visit www.novell.com/linux. For more on how customers around the globe are leveraging Novell solutions, visit www.novell.com/success.