* Ralf Corsepius <rc040203@xxxxxxxxxx> [20080827 21:41]:
> On Wed, 2008-08-27 at 11:47 -0500, Mike McCarty wrote:
[snip]
> > Umm, the distro does not come with strings attached.
> Of cause it does. You might want to have some closer looks into the
> details, e.g. think about why you can't find certain SW bundled with the
> distro, think about why some people are agitating against OSS licenses
> or subsets of them?
>
> A bit bluntly formulated: Linux is more than a "simple OS", Linux is
> part of a sociological and political movement.
Correct.
However, using Linux or requesting help with Linux does not require a
full-blown "education" of that sociological and political movement in
order to receive the help.
> > > What's not true is the percieved need to ram political and
> > > philosophical views down the neck of some poor newcomer that requires
> > > technical assistance. (I've made this point before.)
> Agreed, nevertheless, these folks should learn and understand about the
> backgrounds - It's why I am saying, restricting a "fedora users"-list to
> mere technical topics would be a severe mistake.
Yes, they could learn about the background of Linux, FSF, the Fedora
Project and all things good. But forcing them to assimilate your
political and philosophical views in order to receive help or
technical advice - that is simply bad attitude IMNSHO.
If someone asks the question:
- "How can I create mp3's from my CD's in my clean new install of
Fedora 9?"
answering that a simple explanation that the mp3 codec is not Free and
can not be included in Fedora proper, but if you want it anyway, Livna
has "lame" and quickly describe how to enable Livna and install it
is IMHO a sensible approach.
It does not require a lecture, it does not require them to be educated
on sociological and political ideologies. It requires only a straight
answer. The answer could contain a pointer to a Wiki page about Fedora
policy on patent encumbered tools and codecs. Leave it at that.
> > I agree heartily. I suggest that the non-technical/political aspects
> > be reserved for another group, like Fedora-Advocacy or sth similar.
> You don't want to lean about your distro's heritage, backgrounds,
> objectives and the consequences of these?
Learning about this you can do without having flame-fests on the very
list people come to for help. An advocacy forum where people can
debate ideological, philosophical and political viewpoints is plain
and simple the sensible solution. It is not a new idea either. IIRC,
FidoNet had forums specifically for the argumentative people. So does
UseNet.
Why? To keep the technical forums technical. This really is not rocket
surgery. Any regularly posted FAQ to the list can contain links to
Wiki pages that explain heritage, goals and reasons for doing some
things a certain way. These pages can even explain the ideological,
philosophical and political viewpoints.
> You want to keep you head in the sand - Ostrich policy?
No. I happen to work in support, it's my job. If I started treating my
customers the way you propose to treat the users that turn up here, I
would be told in no uncertain terms what they think of such an
arrogant attitude and what I could do with that attitude.
Whether a customer is paying or not, treat them with respect. That may
include swallowing your pride that they simply are not interested in
knowing about your particular philosophical and political
standpoint. If they are interested, they'll ask for or seek out/be
directed to the appropriate forum.
/Anders
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