Open source Operating System for students: EOS Project

João Dias Sandro Tavares Amparo Carvas, Pedro Sá Silva

College of Education - Polytechnic College of Education - Polytechnic College of Education - Polytechnic
Institute of Coimbra Institute of Coimbra Institute of Coimbra
Rua Dom João III – Solum Rua Dom João III – Solum Rua Dom João III – Solum
3030-329 Coimbra, Portugal 3030-329 Coimbra, Portugal 3030-329 Coimbra, Portugal
+351 913 579 874 +351 916 512 029 +351 239 793 120
contacto@joaodias.me sandrorafael.t@gmail.com amparo@esec.pt,
psasilva@esec.pt

ABSTRACT This type of OS can be distinguished from others by being

The Education Operating Systems (EOS) Project is a free,
customized Operating System with essential features for
undergraduate students of Coimbra College of Education. Based
on Linux Ubuntu OS, the EOS Project has pre-installed the
necessary software needed throughout the course, new Graphical
User Interface and has developed USB and Live-CD distributions
to simplify the installation process. Extensive formal
documentation and video tutorials were developed to improve the
user’s experience.
Categories and Subject Descriptors
D.4.7 [Operating Systems]: Organization and Design
H.5.2 [User Interfaces]: Graphical user interfaces (GUI)
(usually) free of charge and having a variety of pre-installed
applications in the native installation, which is crucial for
students, like for instance, Open Office and GIMP. If the students
need more applications, they can retrieve them online. This is a
flexible approach; however, students need to spend some time
adapting the OS native distribution to their application needs.
With this gap, the idea of building a new OS distribution adapted
to students of Coimbra College of Education (ESEC) emerged:
the EOS Project.
The EOS Project is a free open source Ubuntu OS distribution
designed for undergraduate students. The EOS aims to be an OS
which is quick to install and easy to use. It serves as an alternative
so that students can develop their assignments and projects, while
taking advantage of an open source community and of free
software.

General terms
Design, Experimentation
Keywords
Operating Systems, Computers in education, Open source
Operating System, Linux and Education.
1. INTRODUCTION
In an increasingly demanding labor market and a technology
intensive society, computer skills are more important than ever
[1]. Basic Operating System (OS) skills are increasingly taken for
granted.
In the last decade, statistics have confirmed the success of
Microsoft’s Operating Systems (OS) around the world [2, 3].
However, Microsoft’s OS are commercial products which limit
the access to the student community. In order to solve this
problem, some non-profit organizations and companies developed
free Operating Systems’ distributions (e.g. Linux and Solaris) and
some of them especially designed for students. Edubuntu,
OpenSolaris, School OS, Ubuntu FEUP and Caixa Mágica
distribution are some examples.
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OSDOC'12, June 11, 2012, Lisbon, Portugal.
Copyright 2012 ACM 978-1-4503-1284-4/12/0006..$10.00.
This paper presents an introduction on the use of free Operating
Systems in education as well as the different stages of the EOS
Project development: Analysis, Design and Implementation,
Testing and Evaluation. These stages form the main structure of
this paper. Section 3 (Analysis) describes the problem, the idea
behind the project and the project’s goals. Section 4 (Design and
Implementation) describes the entire process implemented to
achieve the project’s goals. In Section 5 (Testing and Evaluation)
the testing process and the points made to future work on the EOS
Project are shown. Lastly, some final remarks are made about the
EOS Project.
2. FREE OPERATING SYSTEMS IN
EDUCATION
Nowadays, there are several examples of free Operating Systems
(OSs) designed especially for students with Edubuntu probably
being the most popular example of all. Edubuntu is a Linux
distribution developed by Canonical especially designed for
students. In its native installation, Edubuntu encompasses several
free applications, educational games and many other programs
available online (e.g. GBrainy) [4]. Edubuntu provides several
applications which students from around the globe find necessary
in their academic live. Table 1 summarizes some of the main
applications on Edubuntu’s native installation. There are some
packages that contain specific applications specifically designed
for the different stages of a student’s academic life: pre-school;
1st and 2nd cycles; 3rd cycle; secondary education; and finally,
university education [5]. If students miss any application, they can
download it from the Internet. However, students probably need
some time to adjust the OS to their needs by installing and
uninstalling applications. Consequently, students may sometimes
be unable to find specific software in the package designed to in 2000. The Linux Caixa Mágica is an OS developed for students
fulfill their educational need. Another option, in the Linux in the first cycle of education (5 to10year olds) [8].
educational area, is UberStudent. This distribution achieved the
highest ranking among all the Linux distributions designed for Over the last few years, Linux Caixa Mágica OS was a huge
education only 60 days after its release [6] success and was integrated in the Magellan Initiative (“Iniciativa
Magalhães” in Portuguese). This initiative’s aim was to deliver
Table 1. Main applications in OS native installation computers to Portuguese children [9]. All the computers of the
Magellan Initiative come with Linux Caixa Mágica installed.
Linux
Ubuntu Today, more than 14,000 computers from 1,200 Portuguese
Edubuntu Caixa EOS
Application
v11.10
FEUP
Mágica v1.0 schools have installed this OS in students’ laptops [8]. Caixa
v2011 Mágica’s native installation has a simple interface and it is full of
v17
educational applications and games. Table 1 shows some of the
LibreOffice Yes Yes Yes Yes main applications installed in the native installation package.
GIMP Yes Yes Yes Yes All games and applications are selected according to the users.
Sebenta Additionally, Caixa Mágica has a parental control feature where
No No No Yes parents can manage applications and Internet restrictions [10].
EOS
Docky No No No Yes As Table 1 shows, each OS native distribution has its own target:
Edubuntu for any student; Ubuntu FEUP for FEUP computer
Gloobus science students and Caixa Mágica for primary school children.
No No No Yes
Preview Edubuntu gives the option of providing an overall supply of
Synapse No No No Yes educational software, thus not having an effective triage/selection
of the software which is essentially needed and used by students.
Calibre No Yes No Yes
DraftSight No No No Yes 3. ANALYSIS
Dia Diagram In ESEC, the majority of the school’s computers have Windows
Yes No No Yes XP OS. Each computer is full of the necessary applications
Editor
required by students from all courses. Each student has their own
Games Yes Yes Yes No private login credentials. When they start a session in the school’s
computer, the system loads the necessary applications as well as
Clipgrab No No No Yes the private files previously stored. For security reasons, students
MySQL cannot install any additional software. If students need new
No Yes No Yes applications, they must make a formal request to the IT
Workbench
Department. This process is not flexible can be time consuming.
Ardour
No No No Yes In the last years, according to the Eurostat reports, the number of
GTK2
students with computer access has increased and continues to
Octave No Yes No No
grow [11]. In ESEC, this is a real scenario, especially with laptop
Unity Shell Yes No No No access. As a result, the idea of using other OS with the following
main features: free; easy to install; user-friendly interface; helpful
Kalzium Yes No No No documentation in Portuguese, emerged.
Eclipse No Yes No Yes The contact and open dialogue with the students’ community and
the prior knowledge about the curricular program of ESEC’s
Regardless of one’s academic area, this operating system tries to courses provided relevant input to the EOS. The experience and
help undergraduate students and researchers while providing tools data gathered allowed us to understand and identify the students’
for organization, notation, storage as well as entertainment. All of software needs. Initially, Edubuntu OS was considered; however,
these Linux distributions undertook some effort in developing a deeper analysis showed several disadvantages. One of the
online tutorials and documentation, in order to facilitate the disadvantages is shown in Table 1 where in its native installation,
adaptation of common users, parents and students to the Linux this OS (and others) didn’t have some of the crucial applications
operating systems. necessary for ESEC students. Another disadvantage is that there is
no documentation in Portuguese. With these gaps, the idea to
Portuguese institutions have also developed free OS distributions develop a new OS distribution emerged.
for their students with specific applications like, for instance,
Caixa Mágica and Ubuntu FEUP. The project also aims at providing a viable alternative of software
available for students, inviting them to avoid the use of paid
The Ubuntu FEUP Edition is used in more than 1,000 computers software. Therefore, any institution of higher education could
in the Department of Engineering at the University of Porto [7]. It reduce software costs, encourage the use of free software, provide
provides a list of specific applications dedicated to computer the possibility of adding value and modernity, solve the interface
engineering and development, thus considerably reducing the problem for foreign students in their native language and reduce
number of present applications found in the final distribution. legal issues that come with the acquisition of obtaining paid
Table 1 summarizes some of the main applications of Ubuntu software in a non-legal way.
FEUP’s native installation. This OS is designed exclusively for
computer science students, creating a barrier for other students. In the existing areas of study, those who need more attention
Another example is the Linux Caixa Mágica which was developed would be the ones in Arts and Technology. These courses often
require the use of specific tools that must meet some standards
and are required in the labor market. So this is a way to better
prepare students for this reality. For Art and Design,
Communication and Multimedia Design, Music, Theatre and
Education courses certain features were included in the EOS
software. These features include programming, image and video
editing, sound production/editing, 3D, publishing and script
development. For other courses, without particular software
needs, EOS provides a more widespread of software such as a
productivity suite, document management software, online video
capture, as well as a software program developed in ESEC to
allow students to organize their classes and assignments.
4. DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION
While brainstorming words related to this project, we came up
with the final acronym of EOS where “E” stands for Education
and “OS” for Operating System. A conceptual and mythological
component was linked to this acronym. EOS was the Greek
mythological personification of the Dawn [12]. Representing
youth, she reflected what we wanted to convey as a concept and
space: the dawn, youth, lightness and grace.
A logo was also developed in order to convey the idea of lightness
and simplicity. Later applications have been developed for DVD
and its packaging (Figure 1): envelopes, business cards and
letterpress papers. Posters and flyers were also made and
distributed in ESEC, promoting the distribution.
Figure 1. Packaging Elements
In addition, for students to be aware of the project it would also be
necessary to present the project to them in an appealing way, so a
short promotional video was developed
(http://youtu.be/nE8bMCStA4Q).
The base OS selection was the first step in the development
process. To implement this idea, it was necessary to have a free
open source (OS) that could provide a good baseline to work.
The EOS Project could have been developed in two different
ways: from scratch, using the method “Linux From scratch” or
using an existing distribution. The first option would allow a
considerable degree of freedom, as well as a better control of the
systems; however, it would be a time-consuming task and would
require advanced OS technical skills. The second option would
allow one to focus only on the project’s goals (adding or
removing packages, changing configurations and customizing the
layout, etc.). After analyzing several OSs, the one selected was the
Ubuntu distribution of Linux OS. This OS is free open source
which is very flexible.
For this project, some interaction and design issues were changed,
as well as some features of the Ubuntu native distribution, such
as, for instance, Graphical User Interface (GUI), login and
installation procedures.
Regarding the GUI, it was necessary to create an interactive
environment that approached what is seen in the OSs used by
most students of the institution. Therefore, with emphasis on the
details an appearance with focus defined in details used in
Microsoft Windows was considered. For example, in the EOS an
application that allows you to remove peripherals connected to the
computer via an icon in the menu bar is present. This is a
procedure with which most Windows users are familiar. The Mac
OS usability has also been transposed to EOS. There are
Applications such as “Docky” (similar to “dock” in Mac OS),
which allows the user to launch applications faster and manage
windows. There is also the “Synapse” which allows one to search
and launch applications or documents on the computer. The latter
simulates the function of some features of the “Spotlight” on Mac
OS. Figure 2 shows the EOS desktop.
All these elements were then combined to provide a complete
experience. In addition, the end user would be free to change or
disable some of these options, adapting the EOS to their
expectations and needs.
Figure 2. EOS Desktop interface example
The login process can be performed through two systems: locally
(without any network configurations) or through a Lightweight
Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). The main reason for
including a LDAP login process was to promote the integration
between departments/universities and students, with their projects
and studies.
In order to distribute user directories and their data across the
university network, a hardware/software requirement was
included. There was a need to have a network server with support
for the open-source version of LDAP, the Open LDAP.
Since this was an open-source project, the use of open-source
operating systems was recommended. While using Linux-based
operating systems for servers, one can reduce the high cost of
installing other paid commercial alternatives like Microsoft’s
Internet Information Services.
As a result, students can have their own active system session, grant the use of the new EOS version of LightDM as its standard
access their documents and projects throughout the entire login manager instead of the GDM. Finally, a new theme and
college’s IT access points, and also use the necessary software icons will be created to refresh and give the EOS a new look and
required for their courses. The system interface would also be feel.
translated to a more friendly language. This was a feature that can
be especially useful for foreign students (especially ERASMUS After implementing these objectives, an effort will be made to try
students). This would allow the student to have in his active and make the EOS better known to the public as well as make its
system session only the necessary software needed for his courses implementation in educational institutions a reality. This can be
with the system translated in his native language achieved, for example, by developing packages tailored to the
needs of each university.
The Live CD is a common option in Linux systems. This is a
functionality through which the user inserts the CD or flash disk
on the computer, boots through it and chooses the option of Live
6. EOS COMMUNITY
Being extremely important, the ESEC students’ participation and
CD. Thus, he can experience the features of EOS before deciding
communicational guides were outlined. The goal was to invite
whether or not he wants to actually install the OS on the
those concerned to actively participate in the development,
computer.
allowing them to participate in the dissemination of the project in
In addition to this option, there are two common ways to install the media. It was considered an informal and widespread
OSs on computers: Install alongside another OS on Dual Boot relationship through the different social networks (Facebook,
scheme or install only EOS as the main OS. Twitter, Linkedin and Youtube) and in ESEC.
During the installation process, the user is invited to enter his This study can bring many benefits in the future, as it can also
personal data and settings. If the user is connected to the Internet reinforce the desired spirit of an open source community where
during the installation process, he can perform the updates that everyone is invited to contribute.
have occurred since the original release of EOS (new kernel
A web page was developed so that students could actually
version, new drivers, codecs...).
download the distribution to their computers and participate in a
forum where people could share their doubts and experiences.
5. TESTING AND EVALUATING (The page can be accessed at www.eos.pt.la). In addition, we
During the development phase of the project, there was a lot of came up with two components: a multi-search page, where
enthusiasm and participation demonstrated by the school students could choose among several search engines like Google,
community. Several students tested the EOS Project and gave Bing, Vimeo, Wikipedia, B-On and Vimeo without having to
their feedback on the features and usability that seemed adequate open multiple windows or tabs to perform several search tasks; a
for them in order to meet their expectations while using the OS. new control panel for the LAMPP server, in order to access
students’ web projects easier, visualize the detailed information
It was necessary to hold an open session for students in order to about the server and also access official documents. Being an
clarify certain points and to obtain more information on the way open source distribution, it was also defined that all these web
most users would normally interact with EOS in the future. development components had to be done using only open source
During the session, the students would have a prewritten set of software.
basic actions that would allow them to notice that EOS was an
intuitive OS. This would enable them to become more familiar Upon completion of the project, the project team was invited to
with the OS and draw out their curiosity on all the other features promote the EOS Project in “ESEC TV” (Figure 3).
included in the EOS.
Due to privacy issues, the LDAP was not tested with official data
of ESEC students. However, a smaller scale simulation of a
default LDAP configuration in the University IT Department was
created in a closed and safe environment. With different
directories for different types of users (faculty, staff and students),
several fictitious accounts and different access permissions tests
were successfully conducted. This test allowed one to see the real
advantage of using an LDAP system to ensure user data in all the
various computers of the institution with EOS installed.
The EOS Project usage results from its first release are currently
in the study phase. The objectives for the next edition will be to
provide more software, upgrade the existing one, create a
repository where it is possible to download the complete package
of software present on EOS or just the software for the
area/course of the user. Also, the option of reducing the degree of
connection between EOS and Ubuntu to minimal characteristics Figure 3. EOS Project promotion on TV
has not been ruled out.
ESEC TV is a television program broadcast on RTP2 (Portuguese
The installation process will suffer a revamp, making it possible national channel). This helped spread the word about the project
for the student to have more power when customizing EOS right thorough the entire country.
from the beginning. Finally, one has planned to carry out a
reshuffle of the appearance of the distribution. This last goal will
7. CONCLUSION
In this paper, we focus on the EOS: a Linux distribution designed
for ESEC students or, in a more general way, undergraduate
students. In order to come up with the final product, surveys and
interviews were conducted and existing OSs were studied and
reviewed to gain more knowledge on the standard requirements in
this field of study.
[8] Mágica, C. Sobre a Caixa Mágica. 2012.
[9] Intel Collaborates with Government of Portugal on a
Comprehensive New Education Initiative. Intel, 2012.
[10] Mágica, C. Documentos Caixa Mágica. 2012.
[11] Eurostat Youth in Europe - Statistics Explained. Eurostat,
2012.

Nowadays, there are several OS distributions especially developed [12] Britannica Eos (Greek and Roman mythology). 2012.
for different students like, for instance, Edubuntu, Ubuntu FEUP
and Caixa Mágica. Edubuntu is designed for the majority of
students; FEUP Ubuntu caters to FEUP engineering
undergraduate students and Caixa Mágica to elementary school
children. All of these OSs, in their native installation, provide
some basic applications. If students need more applications, they
can search for them on the web and install them later. However,
this can be time consuming for students and can lead to rejecting
the OSs.
The EOS Project, in its first release, tries to integrate the
necessary applications into the native installation required for
undergraduate students of ESEC. Although mainly used in ESEC,
the EOS was developed to be flexible. Undergraduate students’
software needs are different and vary throughout the different
departments and universities. Therefore, the EOS must be flexible
enough to deal with all the variations of university courses and
must be easy enough for a student to use.
The success achieved in the evaluating phase and in social
communication (by social networks and TV) aroused the interest
of some companies in Coimbra. Today, the EOS is also used for
professional purposes as it main OS in a design company in
Coimbra to develop.
The success that other educational OSs have amongst students or
institutions, shows that the EOS is perfectly capable of
establishing itself as one of the most important assets in this field.
The feedback received from the students who tested the EOS,
reveal satisfaction and a relatively smooth learning curve for
beginners using the Linux systems.
The first version of the EOS has reached the initial objectives that
we had in mind. It has selected software for each course at ESEC
and its functionality didn’t raise any significant software or
hardware problems.

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