[Bio-linux-list] The reports of Bio-Linux's death are greatly exaggerated

[Tony Travis]

On 18/02/17 17:11, Andreas Leimbach wrote:
> Hi Tony,
> 
> thanks a lot for your efforts for keeping BioLinux alive! It's a
> fantastic project, although Bioconda, linuxbrew etc. are becoming more
> and more interesting alternatives for certain applications.

Hi, Andreas.

For anyone who doesn't already know, "Bioconda" is a meta-package
manager for bioinformatics applications:

> https://bioconda.github.io/

Similarly, "LinuxBrew" is a port of the Mac OS "Homebrew" non-Apple
crowd-funded package manager that is also supported by "Bioconda".

> http://linuxbrew.sh/

I've looked at both of these and what bothers me most is the extra
responsibility placed on biologists to make use of these systems.

The USP of Bio-Linux is that it's a complete bioinformatics workstation
platform that biologists with little or no prior experience of system
administration can make use of to learn how to do bioinformatics.

> Sadly, I'm not that knowledgeable in funding, but for me BioLinux
> definitely falls under the topic Open Science (OS). Thus, there might be
> money to support dev in the current OS environment of funding agencies.
> What about EU projects like Horizon 2020 that support OS?
> 
> https://ec.europa.eu/research/openscience/index.cfm

Brexit has put an end to all that... :-(

> How is Debian Med funded?

It's part of Debian - A Debian 'blend' supported by volunteers.

> Maybe the OKFN (https://science.okfn.org/) or Mozilla Science Lab
> (https://science.mozilla.org/) have ideas how to tap funding agencies?
> They should have mailing lists for asking such a question. After all
> BioLinux is definitely mostly used by university affiliated researchers.

In fact, Bio-Linux was funded specifically by EOS/NERC to support NERC
grant awardees but made publically available because NERC funding comes
from the UK taxpayer and anything it does is made publically available.

> Just my 2 cents ...

Every cent counts :-)

Thanks for all your suggestions,

  Tony.

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