On Sun, 2007-12-30 at 11:44 -0500, David Boles wrote:
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Karl Larsen wrote:
It, Linux, is not always easy. But I think that sometimes users actually
make it harder for themselves.
It is somewhat more difficult if the subject is unknown and steps to
get it are unknown and you do not know what it does. This is typical of
Fedora when you first see it.
What, please give me an example subject, do you think is, or was,
difficult? Perhaps I can give you some 'instruction searching tips'.
That, along with some books, was how i learned what I know.
Dave, I liked the Stanton-Finlay site as it had step-by-step
instructions that even Mom could follow. That's the point, for "users"
to make things happen for themselves.
It's not a point that Linux is going to hell for the newbies that want
to use it. The point is that a newbie can make something happen that is
useful, outside the sphere of tool making, by using the applications.
Changing a life is not a bad thing and Linux can empower a lot of people
to do the things that they do, like writing, artwork, music composition,
video editing and so forth. Not everyone is gifted with a coder brain.
But maybe one of those great-unwashed will create something of benefit
within their own sphere of interests that benefits others, as well as
ourselves, in return of our generosity.
Installing java from the java site would not have happened for me if not
for some simplistic instructions that Stanton Finlay provided. I was
tired, confused and a bit angry at myself, Life, the Universe and
Everything at the time. Having my hand held was not a bad thing, as it
re-assured me that someone had enough -empathy- to dumb down and that a
person like that would be thoughtful, as well as thorough, enough to be
a good mentor. Someone I could trust that I have never met.
While I know enough to hit the enter key when appropriate, maybe some
other poor bastard doesn't and needs that additional instruction. How
many people know that many conf scripts need that extra blank line in
them? The instruction to "hit return" again and then to save is
certainly appropriate for someone who doesn't.
I can certainly ignore what I believe I already know, but I leave room
for those that need the additional prompting. So, I applaud things that
show some heart in them, the world needs a helluva lot more of that.
It's loving the unlovable. ...and the greatest of these three; hope,
faith and charity, is charity. And, that's the way it is. <smiles> Ric
