French authorities will give out 175,000 USB memory sticks loaded with open-source software to Parisian 15 and 16 year-old high school students at the start of the next school year. The open source software (web browser, e-mail client, office productivity suite, an audio/video player and instant messaging software) will be defined by the company that wins the contract to supply the sticks, said spokesman Jean-Baptiste Roger. The spokesman also believes that the idea is a solid way to fight software piracy as it is the programs can legally be duplicated. Roger believes that if the project goes well, there's no reason why the current $3.4 million funding shouldn't be renewed next year.
News source: ComputerWorld
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