Mixing O365 and GAfE

[DavePa]

We currently use Office365 and have just renewed for a further 3 years. Looking further ahead and knowing that Microsoft are reducing/removing educational discounts over the next few years so want to start looking at alternatives. GAfE is an obvious possibility but how far can you integrate itwhilst still using O365? I would like to have a few people using GaFE to trial it but obviously our email domain is on O365 so no email integration but are there other issues I would need to be aware of?

 

GAFE? Gafe? GafE? Google Apps for Education - so GaFE?

[Steve21]

Not really sure why the 365 side affectings the license changes. It's more the servers/local machines etc that will cost more, not 365.

 

Or do you mean wiping all Office locally and using fully cloud side?

 

Steve

[mavhc]

Office 365 is 74 different things, which parts are you talking about?

[DavePa]

Thanks both - For desktops I'm thinking of what I can use the replace the base operating system plus all of the common applications (we run desktop version on Office including the Outlook desktop client). I'm not sure what alternatives Google can offer for servers but would look at the implications moving to a *nix OS

 

Not much of this will happen in the next 3 years but I want to have a long term plan - which will of course include Microsoft

[Steve21]

There's a whole thread on here about linux school idea since the release of the price increase, but basically it doesn't work out worthwhile.

 

The small cost (even say 30% on a 5k license) is small compared to the cost of redoing every single service etc And then MIS etc if you got SIMs? blah blah

 

Lemme see if I can find a linky

 

Steve

[Steve21]

http://www.edugeek.net/forums/nix/165630-linux-school-help-wanted.html

and http://www.edugeek.net/forums/blue-skies/168241-big-debate-should-we-moving-linux-schools.html

 

That one might help

 

If the only concern is about the price increase I wouldn't go that route. If you're more looking for something totally different, not relying on MS/BYOD etc etc then fair play

 

Steve

[mavhc]

Oh look, that's me. I'll have time to return to it at some point.

 

But Office 365 and Google Apps have nothing to do with the OS. Confused.

 

You could switch to Chromebooks, that's good if you're willing to throw away legacy stuff and start from scratch, still per device licences for management, and then moving everyone to the new mindset of sharing live documents and urls instead of attachments and files.

[edutech4schools]

Might be of help - http://www.edugeek.net/forums/cloud-services/171271-going-google-after-office-365-a.html

[xlandhenry]

If you don't mind doing things the cloud way, why not use Office online instead of GAfE which certainly is not going to integrate as well?

[mavhc]

Google's apps are still a bit more advanced, work offline, insert drawings, save as more formats, scripting.