User:Satmanuk

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About Me edit


  • I am Stuart Tanner,
  • I am 35!
  • I am Male.
  • I live in Bolton, United Kingdom although spend a lot of time in Krakow Poland.

I have been a user openSUSE and SuSE Linux Desktop Edition since 2005. Support, Mentoring, Tutoring, Sales and Marketing?

I am a serial entrepreneur, in 1999, my friend introduced me to the world of European Television and Motorised Satellite Dishes, who would want that I thought. Anyway long story short, it broke, shop opens on the high street, fixes my friends dish and I see an live English Premier League Football - Live Match on European TV for FREE (this was about 2005!

March 2005 I started StreetWIZE Satellite TV, and it took £50,000 in its first year. anyway point is I needed accounts software, I toddled off to PC World to buy it.

On the shelf I saw SuSE Desktop Edition 8.3 and 9.0 not knowing which was witch I bought both because they said they had accounts software, office software, web design, web hosting and mutlimedia and compared to the accounts software - the two retail SuSE Boxes were cheaper.

I have never looked back since!

Fast forward to 2007, I lived in Tbilisi Georgia for 7 months, at the time despite my petitioning to the community there was no mirror and I had to use Ubuntu for 3 months - dark days they were indeed.

Thank god these days there is a server their - because you see - 8mb broadband inside georgia or 128k outside of Georgia. even a cd would have taken forever to download let alone system updates.

Anyway January 2008, I returned back to the UK and returned to Education aged 32. I started a Diploma in Computers, but the University of Bolton offered me a place on a Higher National Diploma with Bachelor Degree Upgrade starting February 2009.

Fast forward to present day: Streetwize Satellite TV went bust in 2006 for reasons we won't mention, I have now qualified for my HND, and commence the upgrade to my Bachelor Degree.

Modules Gained: Information Systems, Cisco Network Administrator 1,2,3. Network Operating Systems, Unix, Service Management, Introduction to Programing, Visual Programing, Core Skills, Internet 1, HND Project.

Modules Commencing February 2011: Cisco Certified Network Administrator 4, Enterprise Operating Systems, Project Skills.

[Bolton Linux] In 2008 As a direct response to the way that the university was teaching Network Operating Systems, and consequently Unix in 2009, I decided I needed to share my knowledge with my fellow students within the university because to be frank the university were scaring students away from the beauty and wonder of Linux.

I gave extra lessons to students during Easter 2009, and again in 2010 hired premises dedicated to teaching students not just Linux but Subnetting also.

I have also been scratching my head about how can I promote openSUSE Linux, I tried attenting computer markets, selling installation DVD's for a price just to cover my costs, however some weeks it wasn't covering the costs and I just couldn't afford it with debts I was still paying back from before.

Now in 2011, I am financially much more independent and I am using my own money to Distribute the official openSUSE Retail Boxes to the UK. I am working directly with open-slx and marketing computer retailers to put boxes into shop windows. So far as of April 2011, 15 copies of openSUSE 11.3 and 10 copies of openSUSE 11.4 shipped out either by Amazon or my Website, so far the retailers have sold nothing.

Update as of 12.1 Launch I sold more than 60 unites of 11.3/4 on the website and currently some 6 pre-advanced orders for 12.1.

However one retailer seems quite upbeat promising to put a demo machine on the counter as soon as Balsam Professional 12.1 is launched.

My thinking is in order to get people into the community I want to promote openSUSE as a Linux Distribution. But many people have tried "Linux" and are deeply scared of it.

Therefore we have to consider how we phrase things:

We phrase "openSUSE is to Linux what Apple is to Darwin BSD" people may not be so worried. Promotion of openSUSE branded distribution first to change the mindset of the general public over Linux.

I believe in Linux, I believe people do want an alternative to Microsoft, however they neither know of it, or are in fear of it, my mission is to change this through the beauty of openSUSE and integrate these people into our community.

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