Local corporate deployment of Linux has spread its wings, with the Hong Kong Aircrew Officers Association moving its core information technology system to an open-source computing environment.
The association, which represents pilots and flight engineers of Cathay Pacific Airways and its subsidiaries, switched the IT system from a Windows platform to the Debian Linux operating system for an undisclosed sum in February.
The association's internet-based information system enables staff, associate members and more than 1,000 fully fledged members to access relevant organisation data and to communicate on the Web.
John Findlay, general secretary of the association, said the system is also secure enough to act as a voting channel, offering members a new level of participation.
'Information technology is the glue that brings the organisation together,' Mr Findlay said.
He said the Windows-based system, cobbled together with hobbyists in the association, could not give them the cost-effective, secure and reliable interactive applications required by members.