I have been laughed out every time I've mentioned it for years.

I got approval from my managers and IT to install a Linux based OS on my work desktop, then a half-wit Windows-fanboy dev chimed in claiming our insurance would not cover the operating system if there were ever a security breach, data loss, etc. to say I was infuriated was an understatement.

All we use is a Web-App to accomplish our tasks, no in-house proprietary executables or anything along those lines, hell they claimed their Web-App wouldn’t work on Firefox browsers, which of course was a lie.

Ottawa IT is a joke. The BMW turn signals of government.

exactly; i lost track of the number of times a government has stated an intention to ditch microsoft only to have them quietly withdraw it later.

Market share of linux in canada has been gradually increasing for around 2 decades (download the CSV for a clearer representation of the data). the more popular linux becomes the more likely it is the government will switch to it (more software support, funding etc).

And we just signed a new deal with Microsoft - after all this trade war stuff started happening.

More countries should look at the efforts made by the EU and member countries to reduce dependency on big tech.

Doesn’t matter if someone higher up is no longer laughing. All the people you heard laugh will be getting direct orders from above them to start pushing changes

I have been laughed out every time I’ve mentioned it for years.

You were laughed at? Really? Why?

Big same. I've been the cloud guy for years hosting linux servers exclusively. I win awards. Our budget to host our websites is the envy of other departments. The default is still Microsoft first for everything and I fight for every little open source win I can eke out.

Curious, did you mention this after annexation threats? I could understand before the second Trump term as most countries assumed that the US "checks and balances" wouldn't allow a president to just lob grenades everywhere including at the US's own feet.

Not saying it's a great career move (pushing FOSS), but things do change over time. 25 years ago we hired an ex-FDA employee as a consultant, he was available because he had championed harmonization of the US medical device regulation with the new ISO regulations to make a more uniform global framework for companies to comply with... yeah, before his time, but apparently - in an otherwise anti-globalization administration, the idea of globalization of medical device regulations is finally taking hold at US FDA...