Linux-Advocacy Digest #128, Volume #33 Tue, 27 Mar 01 04:13:05 EST
Contents:
Re: I regretfully conclude that Linux is a piece of CRAP. ("Aaron R. Kulkis")
Re: Linux dying ("Aaron R. Kulkis")
Re: I regretfully conclude that Linux is a piece of CRAP. (Matthew Gardiner)
Re: I regretfully conclude that Linux is a piece of CRAP. (Brian Rourke)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: "Aaron R. Kulkis" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: I regretfully conclude that Linux is a piece of CRAP.
Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2001 03:22:40 -0500
Matthew Gardiner wrote:
>
> Just as a follow up. From 1990 to 1999 (three terms), the Government said, "we're
> cutting tariffs, and if you don't like it, tough luck!", then the pseudo
>intellectuals
> just had to fork things up, and start complaining because the 5.9% unemployed (mainly
> bums and low-lives) are living in poverty (yeah, like they know what REAL poverty
>is!),
> and now we have Labour in, hopefully with all the fork ups over the last 6 months,
>they
> get voted out, and the National Party and Act Party get this country back on track.
>
For the sake of honest, hard-working people...I hope so.
> Matthew Gardiner
>
> "Aaron R. Kulkis" wrote:
>
> > Matthew Gardiner wrote:
> > >
> > > Very easy accomplised with an ULTRA-ULTRA-ULTRA protected economy, example of
>this
> > > would be the fiasco made by the US claiming that New Zealand and Australia are
> > > dumping lamb on the US market, which is plain bullshit. Over the last 10 years,
> > > the US economy has mainly been fueled by internal demand, however, the end result
> > > has been the economic downturn as the market as become more and more saturated,
>and
> > > exporting goods is not possible as the value of the US dollar is too high, thus
> > > making less attractive for countries to import US made goods.
> > >
> >
> > Quite true. Unfortunately, the unskilled labor unions (translation:
> > labor cartels) have mostly dictated our international trade policy for
> > the last 70 years.
> >
> > However, I think that time is about to come to an end verrrrry soon now.
> >
> > Hehehhehe
> >
> > > "Aaron R. Kulkis" wrote:
> > >
> > > > Interconnect wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > Aaron R. Kulkis <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
> > > > > news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> > > > > > The beauty of America is that we have turned these dumb-asses into
> > > > > > the most productive workforce in the world.
> > > > >
> > > > > On do you base this assertation on?
> > > >
> > > > Experience in the auto industry.
> > > >
> > > > Only in Detroit do you have total dumbasses who own TWO houses, three
>late-model
> > > > cars, two or more snow mobiles, and an expensive power boat from doing work
> > > > that requires nothing more than a junior-high education.
> > > >
> > > > > How a tiny sample on a NG have problems
> > > > > installing an OS.
> > > >
> > > > My comment was entirely independant of the newsgroup.
> > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > Please Aaron you're a smart guy, you should make more intelligent statements
> > > > > than this.
> > > >
> > > > See above.
> > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > The whole is greater than the sum of it's parts.
> > > > >
> > > > > No man is an island.
> > > > >
> > > > > Peace.
> > > >
> > > > --
> > > > Aaron R. Kulkis
> > > > Unix Systems Engineer
> >
> > --
> > Aaron R. Kulkis
> > Unix Systems Engineer
--
Aaron R. Kulkis
Unix Systems Engineer
DNRC Minister of all I survey
ICQ # 3056642
K: Truth in advertising:
Left Wing Extremists Charles Schumer and Donna Shelala,
Black Seperatist Anti-Semite Louis Farrakan,
Special Interest Sierra Club,
Anarchist Members of the ACLU
Left Wing Corporate Extremist Ted Turner
The Drunken Woman Killer Ted Kennedy
Grass Roots Pro-Gun movement,
J: Other knee_jerk reactionaries: billh, david casey, redc1c4,
The retarded sisters: Raunchy (rauni) and Anencephielle (Enielle),
also known as old hags who've hit the wall....
I: Loren Petrich's 2-week stubborn refusal to respond to the
challenge to describe even one philosophical difference
between himself and the communists demonstrates that, in fact,
Loren Petrich is a COMMUNIST ***hole
H: "Having found not one single carbon monoxide leak on the entire
premises, it is my belief, and Willard concurs, that the reason
you folks feel listless and disoriented is simply because
you are lazy, stupid people"
G: Knackos...you're a retard.
F: Unit_4's "Kook hunt" reminds me of "Jimmy Baker's" harangues against
adultery while concurrently committing adultery with Tammy Hahn.
E: Jet is not worthy of the time to compose a response until
her behavior improves.
D: Jet Silverman now follows me from newgroup to newsgroup
...despite (C) above.
C: Jet Silverman claims to have killfiled me.
B: Jet Silverman plays the fool and spews out nonsense as a
method of sidetracking discussions which are headed in a
direction that she doesn't like.
A: The wise man is mocked by fools.
------------------------------
From: "Aaron R. Kulkis" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Crossposted-To: comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy
Subject: Re: Linux dying
Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2001 03:25:59 -0500
GreyCloud wrote:
>
> "Aaron R. Kulkis" wrote:
> >
> > Chad Myers wrote:
> > >
> > > "Chad Everett" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
> > > news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> > > > On Mon, 26 Mar 2001, Chad Myers <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > >"Nick Condon" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
> > > > >>
> > > > >> MS wants out of the operating system business, hence we see .NET.
> > > > >
> > > > >No, MS wants to make the OS irrelevant. They want the decision
> > > > >in buying an OS not really matter. That way, people will by
> > > > >Windows just because it runs .NET better, but their main motivation
> > > > >will be in buying the best .NET Server for their services.
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > > Of course, none of Microsoft's HailStorm and .NET strategies have anything
> > > > at all to do with providing users with better products or computing power
> > > > and use, it's all about getting more control to Microsoft.
> > >
> > > WATCH OUT! HERE COME THE BLACK HELIOCOPTERS!
> > >
> > > > Will .NET benefit users: no.
> > >
> > > Let's see, getting real time flight information, being able to notify
> > > my loved ones 30 minutes before I land so that they can come pick me up,
> > > being instant messaged when I'm outbid on an auction, getting real-time
> > > customer support chat with an American Express customer support
> > > representative...
> > > nah, that doesn't benefit the consumers at all!
> >
> > And this requires .NET to get functionality that doesn't already
> > exist today how, exactly?
> >
> > Accuracy counts, so be precise, Chad.
>
> I see Chad is still caught up in that coconut!
Can't....open.....fist.......must....keep.....sparkly.....trinket........
--
Aaron R. Kulkis
Unix Systems Engineer
DNRC Minister of all I survey
ICQ # 3056642
K: Truth in advertising:
Left Wing Extremists Charles Schumer and Donna Shelala,
Black Seperatist Anti-Semite Louis Farrakan,
Special Interest Sierra Club,
Anarchist Members of the ACLU
Left Wing Corporate Extremist Ted Turner
The Drunken Woman Killer Ted Kennedy
Grass Roots Pro-Gun movement,
J: Other knee_jerk reactionaries: billh, david casey, redc1c4,
The retarded sisters: Raunchy (rauni) and Anencephielle (Enielle),
also known as old hags who've hit the wall....
I: Loren Petrich's 2-week stubborn refusal to respond to the
challenge to describe even one philosophical difference
between himself and the communists demonstrates that, in fact,
Loren Petrich is a COMMUNIST ***hole
H: "Having found not one single carbon monoxide leak on the entire
premises, it is my belief, and Willard concurs, that the reason
you folks feel listless and disoriented is simply because
you are lazy, stupid people"
G: Knackos...you're a retard.
F: Unit_4's "Kook hunt" reminds me of "Jimmy Baker's" harangues against
adultery while concurrently committing adultery with Tammy Hahn.
E: Jet is not worthy of the time to compose a response until
her behavior improves.
D: Jet Silverman now follows me from newgroup to newsgroup
...despite (C) above.
C: Jet Silverman claims to have killfiled me.
B: Jet Silverman plays the fool and spews out nonsense as a
method of sidetracking discussions which are headed in a
direction that she doesn't like.
A: The wise man is mocked by fools.
------------------------------
From: Matthew Gardiner <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: I regretfully conclude that Linux is a piece of CRAP.
Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2001 20:25:14 +1200
Could I but in a for a few secs...thanks :)
I was just going to say, from the last post, Brians comments that Windows is
the "industry standard", in what area? Most engineering companies I know use
UNIX workstations, animation studios (like the ones who did the cool graphics
for the America's Cup), use SGI UNIX workstations. In the server area, SUN is
growing at a rate of 40% as sysadmins get more and more pissed off at the
unreliability of Windows 2000, and yes, they could add patches, however, that
means downtime and money lost, SO, why doesn't Microsoft get it right in the
first time? About the only area where Windows is the most dominant is in the
luser area, where Jane and Joe Bloggs write their letter to aunt perl.
Also, saying "I've used Windows for x number of years" does not prove you are a
computer literate user. I have been using computers for 10 years, and I am
still learning new skills. Also, why didn't you (Brian) check with the with
the store attendent whether it was the latest version out? and if not, you
could have ordered in the latest version. Why Mandrake, why not look at SuSE
or Storm, or any number of other distro's out there. Simple things such as
that could have saved you hours of heart ache.
Matthew Gardiner
Chris Bennetts wrote:
> "Brian Rourke" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
> news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> > I don't mind learning things. In fact, I'm quite interested in
> > learning more. But the information has to be there, and accessible,
> > for me to be interested. I'm willing to wade through lots of dense
> > material and put in many hours, but I don't like esoterica or
> > mysteries. The problem is that none of these companies' websites
> > address my specific problem. None of the books I've seen do either.
> > I'll have a look at the book you mention below, if I decide to stick
> > with it.
>
> I also highly recommend the Linux Getting Started Guide, part of the LDP
> (http://www.linuxdoc.org). Entirely free, too.
>
> > That's what I set out to do. I read everything that I was given, and
> > spent lots of time looking for more information on the web. Some of
> > it was helpful, especially the stuff provided by hobbyists. The
> > information provided by the companies is crap.
>
> Unfortunately typical. However, the same thing happens with the software,
> since people actually care about what they are doing, and want the software
> to be as good as it can be for their own use, without commercial pressures
> like release dates, a much higher quality product can be produced, which is
> a very Good Thing.
>
> > I found myself looking
> > at dumbed-down, information-free happy-talk drivel, just the kind
> > people criticize Microsoft for handing out. And at some point, I
> > didn't want to spend more money on books without reason to believe
> > that it would do any good. In my experience, the real learning should
> > begin AFTER the os has been at least installed.
>
> Well, you learn to use vi after the OS is installed... but seriously, when I
> first installed an ancient verion of Slackware several years ago, I was
> heavily reading the LDP stuff, and I learnt more about computers then than I
> probably ever had before. Learning things before you do them is good, you
> tend not to dig yourself into too many holes. When you buy a new piece of
> hardware (for example), it is usually a good idea to familiarise yourself
> with it before you rip off the anti static wrap.
>
> > Perhaps, but if every distribution sucks then at some point the idea
> > of Linux's being really good starts looking a bit Platonic, except for
> > the hobbyists.
>
> No distro can be all things to all people. We will probably end up having
> Mandrake for the newbies, Redhat, SuSE, and Caldera for the business/general
> user types, and Debian and Slackware for the hacky-techy types (I use
> Slackware 7.0, and found that despite it not having a pretty UI, it was very
> eay to get going, and the various problems that I did have with it were very
> easy to solve with a bit of doc-reading and config file editing. *That* is
> ease of use.).
>
> --Chris
------------------------------
From: Brian Rourke <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: I regretfully conclude that Linux is a piece of CRAP.
Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2001 01:38:45 -0700
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
On Tue, 27 Mar 2001 01:59:18 GMT, Rex Ballard
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>Brian Rourke wrote:
>>
>> First, a disclaimer. I am not a programmer or an IT professional of
>> any kind. I am just an amateur, but a fairly competent user. I have
>> never had much trouble getting Windows and Windows programs to do what
>> I want them to do (and I *hate* Windows).
>
>From you comments, I'm going to assume that you are at least 20 years
>old,
>that you have been using windows since at least Windows 3.1 (10
>years), and
>that you have probably never used anything BUT Windows in the last 5
>years.
>
You're batting a pretty good average here.
>During that time, you probably took some time to ask questions of
>fellow
>users, to get support from IT support people (by phone or in person),
>that
>you've been to CompUSA to test-drive the latest versions of Windows
>such
>as Windows 98 and Windows ME. You may even have a copy of Windows
>2000
>at work.
>
>I will stretch a bit farther and assume that you average at least 40
>hours/week
>or roughly 2000 hours/year for the last 10 years. I realize this
>could be
>a flawed assumption, but from your writing style, you seem to be a bit
>more
>mature than many.
>
>In addition, you have probably seen many Microsoft ads in magazines,
>on
>television, and on the Internet.
>
Check, more or less.
>> It may be that Linux is
>> fine for experts and professionals, in which case my only mistake is
>> to have ever bothered. But, if so, why are Linux companies trying to
>> market their product to non-experts?
>
>Apparently they are more "expert" than you. No offense intended.
>How many times did you go to the computer store, say Best-Buy,
>CompUSA,
>Circuit City, or even WalMart and test drive Linux? How many hours
>did
>you spend on your friend's Linux workstation or laptop?
This is a problem, especially where I live and work.
>
>> My hunch is that Linux is just a
>> bad product and the companies involved in trying to market this snake
>> oil are second-raters, cultists and imbeciles.
>
>Or perhaps you really aren't yet qualified to make such a
>determination.
>About once a week, we get some poster who is rather upset because he
>has been unsuccessful in performing an unassisted configuration of
>Linux.
Well I never claimed to be qualified, except in the limited sense
described in my first post. I'm just a consumer in this case.
>
>This would be like deciding that Spanish was a terrible language
>because
>you spent three hours in Mexico, with no prior study of Spanish, and
>couldn't
>understand a word of the dialogue.
>
>It's not that you are stupid, you simply haven't had the chance to
>create
>a background of knowledge that approaches your current knowledge of
>English,
>or Windows.
>
I think your point about the time it takes to develop this level of
knowledge is very well taken. I didn't think of it that way because
of the invisibility of the hours I spent learning Windows. Like
everyone else, I have a time-consuming and demanding job, and as I'm
not in a technical field every minute I spend working on my computer
is time taken away from work. None of this is the fault of Linux, of
course, but it does raise questions in my mind about who will be able
to make use of this OS.
>> One clownish outfit, whose name begins with "M," is
>> also highly dishonest, having both lied
>> to me on an important matter and failed to
>> provide any promised support.
>
>> I have reached this conclusion based upon my personal experience only.
>
>Let's review the extent of this experience.
>
>> In my opinion, any operating system that will NOT INSTALL is by
>> definition crap.
>
>Perhaps. It may be something very simple. Which distribution did you
>install? Which hardware did you have trouble installing? Which
>programs
>did you try to install? Was your hardware actually supported?
>
>> A good PC operating system should be easily
>> installable by a moderately informed layperson on any common
>> equipment.
>
>That isn't necessarily true. Installing Windows 2000 on a 486/SX with
>VLB and ST-506 hard drive controllers is likely to be unpleasant, to
>say
>the least. Windows 95 First Edition had a very difficult time with
>EISA
>and VLB.
>
>> Though it is a terrible OS, Windows can be installed in
>> less than an hour, which means that it beats Linux hands down right
>> there.
>
>True, the OS can be installed in about an hour, but if you want a full
>suite of applications, system management tools, server capabilities,
>games,
>and utility programs, this installation process generally takes quite
>a bit
>longer. If you are using manual installation using InstallShield, on
>a
>Windows NT machine, you will have to reboot the machine numerous
>times,
>will have to be physically located in front of the machine for several
>hours,
>and mistakes can render certain applications inoperable. DLL
>conflicts,
>faulty uninstalls, and conflicts between service packs.
>
Ah, DLL conflicts....fun fun fun.
>> I have tried to install three different Linux distributions on my PC,
>> and each attempt has failed in exactly the same way. Though my hard
>> drive is partitioned in exactly the way the manuals instruct, the
>> installation software always fails to detect my hard drive and
>> reboots. Now, I do not own any obscure hardware. My computer a
>> recent Gateway E-4200. Of course, Gateway is one of the most common
>> brands out there. In my opinion anyone marketing a piece of software
>> that cannot run with 100% compatibility on common equipment is at
>> least an idiot, at worst a crook.
>
>Gateway makes a number of computers that are Linux compatible. If you
>were planning on installing Linux, you might have found the sales
>staff
>quite supportive in helping you select the options most suited to that
>use.
>
Yes, but I'll just say that I wasn't fully in the driver's seat for
this purchase. Also, I didn't think of trying Linux until I played
around with Windows 98 and came to think it was very limited.
>Microsoft and Linux often leap-frog each other. Keep in mind that
>Gateway
>creates a custom CD-ROM designed to install Windows ME (or whatever)
>on your
>machine. Try using a Hewlett-Packard CD-ROM to install Windows on
>your
>Gateway machine. It doesn't work very well. Even a "stock" Windows
>ME
>CD-ROM may require custom drivers (usually included on the CD included
>with your computer).
>
>Someone has gotten Linux to run on a similar machine.
>http://www.pubs.gmu.edu/tools.html
>http://www-oss.fnal.gov/fss/hypermail/archives/hyp-linux/0106.html
>
>In fact, a simple search of Google indicates that there this is a
>pretty popular Linux machine.
>
I did a Deja search or two back in early Fall, when I was wrestling
with this big time. I found some similar pages, especially those
dealing with large drives. I even tried some of the fixes that where
within my means, to no avail. I may be misreading the second site,
but it looks like that person had a pretty different problem from
mine. Nonetheless, these are interesting. Thanks.
>There does seem to be reference to a Problem with Red Hat 6.2, a
>configuration problem.
>
>You do have more memory and larger disk drives than the "default"
>system configurations support. No problem though. you can still
>install Mandrake, Caldera, and SuSE with some moderate support.
>
>> The first time this failure happened it may have been my fault, as the
>> developers may not have had time to make their distributions
>> compatible with my newish computer.
>
>Keep in mind that many OEMs have machines that are deliberately
>designed
>to exploit the best features of Linux. They run Windows pretty well
>as well.
>Many will run Linux with no difficulty at all.
>
>> But I have waited for new
>> versions of popular distributions, again with no success. These
>> cretins aren't even trying to make their product work with common
>> hardware types.
>
>A quick look ad google shows that several recent releases support
>the Gateway E-4200.
>
Well, I may try one of these down the road.
>It's not that you are somehow deficient. It took you some time to
>learn Windows tricks, it will take you some time to learn Linux
>tricks.
>
>It's a very good idea to start with a release that targets newcomers
>(Mandrake 7.2 specializes in this market). You should also pay for
>the software, and don't be bashful about calling the support number.
>
I paid for one distro, but as I said that fiasco was partly my fault.
I thought I had an arrangement with them to work it out with me, but
they didn't come through. Thus I have a pretty low opinion of them
now. I don't think they have figured out how to support their US
market, though others' mileage may vary.
>These companies know that new Linux users have trouble with
>installations
>and often know some very simple techniques to make that first install
>much easier. If you can get a friend who uses Linux to help you,
>that's
>even better. Usually, they've been through it a time or two and will
>sidestep some of the nastier problems.
>
As you can see, I'm great at making friends. Seriously, I'm going to
see if there are some Linux people in my area. I tried looking around
at work without too much luck at first.
>> Why not test? It only takes a minute to see that the
>> product DOES NOT WORK. Why is it that even the awful Microsoft stuff
>> never has this problem?
>
>Actually, Linux gets some very exhaustive testing, and when problems
>are
>found, bug reports -- AND -- fixes, usually follow quite quickly.
>There
>are hundreds of video cards, lan cards, motherboards, and sound cards,
>and
>the permutations can be staggering. Generally, however, Linux does a
>pretty good job of configuring itself once you get beyond some simple
>problems.
>
>> If your product won't install with great ease on common equipment,
>> then it sucks. If someone tried to market some great new tire that
>> didn't work on GM, Nissan or Ford cars, that person would immediately
>> be dismissed as a lunatic.
>
>Yes, but if you tried to put Suburban tires on your Honda Civic, and
>you
>fished the tires out of a dumpster, and tried to mount them yourself,
>you'd
>be displaying your lack of knowledge of tires if you tried to claim
>that
>Suburban tires were really bad because they were the wrong size for
>your
>Civic.
>
>> I am also struck by how difficult it is to get even basic information
>> about hardware compatibility on these companies' websites.
>
>A quick search of Google gave me over 700 listings. I used
>+Linux +Gateway "E 4200"
>as a search target. There are a few unusual things about your system,
>and the work-arounds are pretty simple.
>
I meant the company sites only.
>> My hard drive and controller are not even mentioned,
>> though they are very common models.
>
>Most IDE drives are supported. Some SCSI controllers require special
>handling (typing different answers during the configuration dialogue).
>Unless you special ordered some really esoteric drives, you shouldn't
>have
>too much problem. You will have to specify your transfer speed for
>systems
>over 33 mhz. Both Mandrake and SuSE provide a way to specify these
>options
>in the dialogue.
>
>> How hard is it to say, "We don't support these."?
>
>Call the distributor. It's very likely that they do support them.
>As I said, you have a faster Ultra-IDE controller, a larger disk
>drive,
>and more RAM than is found by default. Often, Linux assumes that you
>will be using the rest for something else such as WINE, VMWare, or
>Lin4Win.
>
>> Again, incompetence and arrogance are the rule with these Linux
>> developers, IMO. Even worse, there's nothing mentioned in the Red Hat
>> or Mandrake FAQs about this very simple problem. I know from browsing
>> the USENET archives that I'm not the only person to have this problem.
>
>But did you call the maker? I've had a few situations where I have
>had to
>call Red Hat, Mandrake (LinuxCare actually), and Caldera. Each gave
>me
>immediate answers to problems that I hadn't solved in nearly 2 hours.
>In one case, there was a known problem in some of the CD-Printings.
>I typed in a one line command and everything was working normally.
I won't go into the details of my dealings with the one company whose
software I paid for, but this wasn't my experience at all.
>
>> Why not try to help people, even if only to say "We can't help you.
>> Stick with your old OS until we can."? The reason is obvious: they
>> don't want to admit their product has such a basic, fundamental flaw.
>
>Actually, Comp.os.linux.advocacy is not the best place to get help.
>We discuss issues like yours, but more with regard to having the legal
>barriers created by Microsoft's illegal lock-out contracts nullified.
>
>The reality is that you really haven't even tried Linux yet. You have
>had to suffer through repeated unsuccessful installations because you
>weren't able to get the system preinstalled by the manufacturer, you
>weren't
>able to get a distribution configured for your machine customized by
>the
>manufacturer, and you weren't able to take Linux for a test-drive at
>your
>local Circuit City, Best-Buy, CompUSA, or Gateway dealership. Keep in
>mind that Microsoft has used intense legal leverage to make sure that
>you didn't.
>
>> When I first decided to give Linux a try, it was with great
>> enthusiasm. I have never liked Windows, and have often wanted a more
>> stable and flexible alternative.
>
>I'm very sorry that you weren't able to find anyone willing to help
>you get Linux properly configured and working. Many Linux users are
>quite happy to help others get Linux running. The first installation
>is a bit challenging. It takes some time, you need to read the
>directions
>carefully, and you need to ask for help if your aren't sure. But once
>everything is working correctly, you may be quite happy with Linux.
>
>> But I have been forced to conclude,
>> after many hours of frustrating and fruitless labor over several
>> months, that Linux is not it and never will be.
>
>I have always suggested to new Linux users that they need to start
>with
>a fully functional, properly installed Linux system, spend at least 20
>hours per week for 13 weeks USING Linux, trying out the different
>features,
>before they can really make any reccomendations to others. You have
>20,000 hours worth of Windows experience, it's really not unreasonable
>to ask for 130 hours (not including installation and configuration)
>to learn a bit about Linux before you begin pontificating in a public
>forum.
Where's the fun in that? I'll admit to pontificating, but I was only
doing so as a self-admitted ignorant consumer.
>
>> For those of you out there who are, like me,
>> amateur computer users, my advice is to avoid
>> Linux like the plague.
>
>More importantly, don't make the same mistake Brian made. Don't
>expect
>to be able to download some assorted packages off your cable modem,
>install them on hardware that is known to require special
>configuration
>terms, refuse to ask for help from anybody, and then publish your
>"Expert Opinion" on a group read by over 35,000 of the most militant
>Linux supporters in the industry (comp.os.linux.advocacy).
That's not what I did. Well, except for the last part. When this
happened the first time, I did ask for lots of help. One of my other
posts contains a copy of my first posting on to the Mandrake newbie
list.
>
>If you MUST attempt to install Linux entirely on your own, start with
>a fairly standard machine (Pentium, IDE, S3 video, SoundBlaster sound,
>and no USB).
>
>If you are thinking about installing Linux in the future and you are
>buying
>a new machine, ask very pointed questions. Ask for a machine that has
>been
>certified to run Linux. If the sales clerk can't help you, leave the
>store,
>hang up, or go to another site. There are dozens of computer makers
>who would be happy to help you get a Linux compatible system. Why
>purchase
>from a Linux-hostile or Linux-ignorant clerk whose only interest is
>the
>commission he get if he can sell you the most expensive Microsoft-only
>hardware and tons of software at $100-$400/package.
>
>> This is just my opinion, but it is based on
>> lots of experience that, believe me, you don't want to repeat.
>
>I feel bad for you. It's very unfortunate that you had so much
>difficulty.
>
>> In short, Linux will be remembered before too long as just another
>> bump on Microsoft's road to industry domination. And its failure will
>> be in part the fault of inept companies out to make a fast buck.
>
>Much the way UNIX will be remembered as just another bump in the road
>on DEC's road to industry domination of the Minicomputer market. :-)
>
lol...
This was a very smart posting/rebuttal, thanks. I'm going to give
your points lots of thought as I consider whether or not to persevere
with this.
Thanks again.
Brian
The late spring sunshine flooded,
like a bursted tepid star,
the pink Boulevard. The people
beneath crawled like wounded insects
of cloth.
Wyndham Lewis
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