Governments and Software

I came across an interesting issue yesterday. Did you know that if you wanted to apply for a position in the Government or a government agency like Alberta Health Services you have to be on a computer running Internet Explorer and Windows. The requested file format for resumes is Word Document Format ".doc". This in my opinion is just wrong for three reasons.

1) Not everyone can afford Microsoft Office and Not Everyone has it.  With the crackdown on pirated software and the cost involved for purchasing a retail license of Microsoft Office is $150.00.  That is alot of money.

2) Not everyone has Windows. There are a lot of people out their that don't use Windows. Windows may have the most market share for operating systems but it should be a requirement to apply for a job online not with Today's Technology.

3) Internet Explorer.  Internet Explorer doesn't comply with web standards and restricting people to an insecure, obsolete browser is not safe and is bad technology policy.

I believe Governments should be using open source software such as Ubuntu, Suse, Fedeora, and other varieties of Linux and BSD/Unix technologies.  For one reason it keeps the cost down, you don't have the huge licensing issues of running Windows or Mac OS. With everything being moved to server (cloud) based applications, all you need is a browser. Most of the Free Operating Systems come with Open Office Pre-Installed so you don't have to purchase Microsoft Office and 99% of the time Open Office is compatible with Microsoft Office Formats.

Now I'm not being Anti-Microsoft here, there are some things Windows will have to be used for, such as some cad programs, graphics, etc, but for word processing and spread sheets Open Office should be able to handle most if not all the work load.  As for the thing that set off this little blog post of mine the Job Submission for Alberta Health Services, I will be trying to get in touch with someone to get that fixed.  They are discriminating against anyone that doesn't use a Windows based machine and that's just wrong.

Posted via email from The OptionKey Blog

Stephen Harper Prorogues Canadian Parliament Again!

Well he did it again, shutdown the government. The current Prime Minister seems to not play well with others. We the Canadian people elected a minority government and that government is to work in the best interest of the Canadian people. We don't want this party politics garbage that all parties are guilty of, but the worst offender in my opinion is the Prime Minister.

Yes he has the "Majority of Party Seats" but the the Majority of seats in the house. As a responsible Prime Minister he should be reaching out for common ground not sending out ultimatums and bullying other MPs. What do I mean? The Name Garth Turner should ring a bell. Read Article Read Star Article. Mr. Harper also bullies public servants such as Richard Colvin. I'm talking about the Afghanistan inquiry into prisoner abuses. Then Public Servant Richard Colvin was trying to bring awareness about the abuses by the Afghanistan army/police. Read Star Article So instead of trying to get to the truth the Government wanted to bury it and also one could argue destroy Mr. Colvin's reputation. This is just one of the many things the conservatives have had blow up in their face, but more concerning is that this has all the signs of an election coming.

The Conservatives appear to be announcing more "Money Announcements". On January 7th Rona Ambrose handed over $125000 in federal funding, the latest in money announcements from the Government. There also appears to be allot of PR going on right now to boost numbers by the conservative party. Perhaps the government is going to call an election in March? I don't think that's far fetched. It's after the Winter Olympics, everyone "Should" be relatively happy with the government if the Olympics are a success. So what should you do, you might think I'm a "Liberal Fan Boy" but I'm not, I want our government to work for us, not for the parties or other interest other then that of the paying Canadian tax payer.

To that end I'll be buying a membership to the Pirate Party of Canada, and I'll do what I can to try change the government and the way politics are done in Canada. If I were you take a look at the parties, the people, and the way things are being done (Or as the case is NOT done). It's time for a change, Let's give the old parties a message. "Were tired of being screwed with, now do what we elected you to do. Work for the public good of your constituents, and the public well being in Canada." Not what your party's agenda is or those special interest groups.

You can follow the Pirate Party at http://www.twitter.com/piratepartyca