Audit says computer contract in Lake County (Fla.) district was reasonable

The Lake County (Fla.) school district's disputed deal with Dell computers this year saved the district about $850,000, an auditor says. The deal the district struck with Dell to refresh its computer supply "appears reasonable," according to the audit. The school board demanded a review of the $3.1 million contract after some board members grew concerned that the deal left the district with thousands of incompatible computers. The computers came with Microsoft's XP Home operating system, which was cheaper than the compatible XP Pro, and the machines had to be upgraded with more software to work with the district's network. Ken Osman, the district's chief technology officer, says he knew that XP Home wasn't compatible, but he struck the deal to save the district money. Dell paid for the upgrades to make the new computers compatible.

Click here to read The Orlando Sentinel article.