This week's Monday, the administration of the German city of Munich started to distribute Linux-installation CDs. The city's citizens can pick up a free 'Linux für Münich' CD in any of the city's libraries. The city is making available 2000 CDs, packaged in a hard cover and with an explanatory booklet.
Munich's distribution of Linux CD's had already been announced in June. In a statement published at the time, the city administration explained that the CDs are intended especially for citizens that use a decade-old proprietary operating system, support for which will be ended by the vendor next April. "The City of Munich wishes to support the citizens that are affected by this, enabling them to continue to use a secure operating system."
The CDs contain the Ubuntu Linux distribution version 12.04, maintained by the Ubuntu community until April 2017. "With this, users can continue to use their PCs. Software vulnerabilities will be fixed, preventing viruses and other malware."
"By distributing Linux-CDs the city primarily aims to prevent PCs from becoming unusable, helping to stem the flow of electronics waste. At the same time, the city presents itself as an innovative open source expert."
Ubuntu Linux can be downloaded for free, the city adds. The CDs are intended for those who do not know how to download it, or for whom downloading would take too much time.