[ILUG] HeaNet

[Gareth 'bigbro' Eason]

Gerard Hooton wrote:
> One of the reasons that I asked the list for contact names in the HeaNet
> was that I wanted this discussion to take place off list between me and
> the HeaNet. Is everyone happy about having this issue with the HeaNet
> aired in public? Should I have approached things in a different way?
[snip]

	Hi Ger,

	While I cannot speak for the Schools team, I have no problem discussing 
anythign related to Linux in public. In my experience, HEAnet will 
always try to be platform, vendor and technology agnostic, where 
possible. The employees use and support people who use Windows, Linux, 
OS X, BSD, and a pletora of other systems. We have in the larger network 
at the moment equipment from Cisco, Juniper, Fortinet, Arista, Nokia 
Siemens Networks and undoubtedly many more vendors and suppliers I've 
forgotten. We are the largest network in Ireland that supports native 
IPv6 as well as IPv4, and in case that's not enough, we also host one of 
the two Sixxs IPv6 tunnel brokers in Ireland (Airwire hosts the other.)

	We actively try to make things work without forcing people to use any 
particular limited subset of software, OS or hardware.

	I see this discussion as a positive thing
*  indicating to the general ILUG community that perhaps the
    context of questions should be investigated prior to
    responding negatively (perhaps there *IS* a relevance to
    Linux :) )
*  indicating to the person who asked the question that
    perhaps there's a better way to ask questions, such that
    the community built up around Linux in Ireland and on the
    ILUG mailing list can understand what is being asked, and
    why, so they can best help,
*  and indicating to HEAnet and the NCTE that perhaps there
    are some edge cases where support is reasonably required,
    but the framework and information to provide that support
    is not quite there - yet!

	I hope the Schools team were able to help you out, and I can only 
suggest that it's only through discovering these issues that they can 
equip the NCTE help desk with the appropriate information such that they 
can provide the support required by the many representatives of the 
~4000 schools we provide connectivity for.

	Best regards,
	-->Gar

P.S. Usual disclaimer / disclosure: I work for HEAnet but not in the 
Schools team, so I'm very much open to their correction.  :)