[ale] Linux for sale

[Geoffrey Myers]

andy wrote:
> 
> >  To me, this is the grail.  A world dominated by one brand of Linux is
> >
> > still half as bad as a world dominated by MS Windows XYZ-of-the-day.
> > But a world where all software is open to the tickerings of
> > wireheads....  Ahhhhh :)
> >
> > lex
> 
> FAT chance!! Not enough wireheads out there.  Most just want to plug-in
> and
> go.  Linux will become more widely accepted when you don't have to spend
> 
> time fixing packages that don't install properly.  For us this is not a
> problem.
> But for the typical windoze user this is a nightmare.  Man pages don't
> give much
> information on what to do when something screws-up.  Another thing.
> The average
> windoze user is incapapble of typing commands at the console.  Even
> simple
> scripts may be quite a challenge.  I know many winusers that get lost in
> DOS.
> They won't touch it.  Basic rule, If they can't plug it in and start
> clicking, then they
> won't mess with it.  Basically, if it requires any brain-power then they
> will be lost.
> 
> /andY

I think that the main problem here is that, for the most part, Linux is
getting a lot like UNIX was, that is, so many variations, their
defeating each other.  If there was a single strong distribution of
Linux, it would help.  I think Caldera and Red Hat have the right idea
with their 'commercial' and 'rpm' respectively.

The install problems do exist with Windows packages, but the problem is,
MS is big enough and embedded enough to say, what the hell.  I received
a quote from an interview of one of the MS support teams.  The question
was, what are they going to do about it crashing, the solution was that
it reboots 50% faster.  This to me is complete bullshit.  I've been
forced to use NT for work for my webserver and the last time I had
problems with it the tech suggested rebooting.  You see, Microsoft is
training people that rebooting is the solution.  I told him, hey this is
a server, figure that damn problem out and fix it, don't reboot the
blasted thing.  This guy holds a Microsoft Certification.

I recently 'uninstalled' a modem on an NT 4.0 laptop,  it trashed all
the networking stuff and I had to remove and reload it all.  So you see,
Microsoft has these problems as well, they just have the marketers and
trainers telling people that it's okay.

As for the information provided by man pages, what the hell does MS give
you?  A dialog box that says 'It's screwed' with a little 'OK' button. 
Had one just today, that said, "Can't find specified file" problem was,
didn't tell me that bloody file name.  I'll take man pages over the MS
help any day.  Then again, I'm a wirehead I guess...

-- 
Until later:
Geoffrey Myers   geof at abraxis.com	http://www.abraxis.com/geof

	Opinions expressed by me are mine, all mine, only mine.....