----- Original Message -----
From: "David A. Bandel" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Sunday, January 20, 2002 8:49 PM
Subject: Re: an interesting experience
> I was told (don't know first-hand) that Windoze didn't (does it now?)
> allow you to just pop stuff in and out at leisure. Had to stop it by hand
> first, then it would tell you that you could safely eject it. And folks
> whine about having to mount and unmount a floppy in Linux. Geesh.
Yes I'll "whine" that about having to mount and unmount a floppy in Linux.
For 2 reasons: 1) because when I forget I end up with an utterly corrupt
floppy and it seems obvious the system ought to at least make an attempt to
protect me from such blunders. And, 2) because it isn't necessary. I don't
have to m&um on my win boxes. So that proves there's no cast-in-stone need
for it. So why does it have to be made artificially harder in Linux than it
must be? It's easy in Windows. Why not make it easy in Linux. (Of course,
amd does to some extent, but the example could be lots of things for which
there is no amd).
> Now, someone, somewhere may have a GUI way to edit those /etc/pcmcia/*.opt
> files. I don't, it would just slow me down. And the edit is a one-time
> thing. Done once, forgotten forever.
But how many times did you have to do it to become so quick at it? Is there
anything intuitive or user-friendly about editing a *.opt script in some far
flung directory? How many users could do that correctly the 1st time (or the
20th time).
What about the other 6 billion people on terra firma who may not have an
interest in learning to edit arcane script files? Do we just leave them as
fodder to help Gates become a trillionaire?
> So please don't tell me Windoze is easier, because it just ain't true.
Yes, Windows is easier - about a great many things that matter to users.
Linux is easier - about a great many things that matter to gurus.
I just spent a very long frustrating week working for many hours every day
to get an ATI XPERT 128 card to work under Linux. Xfree says it works. The
COL list says it works. But I tried 2+ different distros and 3 different
machines and more XF86Config files than I care to remember and it would not
function under X even at 640x480/60Hz. All the helpful ideas from the COL
list were to no avail. I put it in a Win2k box and it is configured 1st time
correctly (and no reboot required). I put it in a Win98 box and it at least
comes up and works at VGA resolution. {Many other examples could be cited -
this is just the one I'm infuriated about at this moment.}
> My prime example is the registry -- now there's a nightmare.
Indeed. Biggest house of cards ever invented.
But even something as awful as the registry did have one very beneficial
side effect. It finally got the software authors off their behinds to write
gui tools to do all the config stuff so that we would no longer have to hand
edit c:\windows\win.ini. I just don't find editing /etc/pcmcia/network.opts
to be any fun either.
And if the day comes when I know every secret trick in every script file
everywhere, I may be utterly proud of myself. I'm a guru now. Part of the
priesthood. Secret handshake & all. I can even contribute on lists like this
one rather than just learning. But I've done nothing to unseat the monopoly
or put Linux on any desktops. Wal-Mart will still be selling WindowsXP
machines by the truckload. And Bill Gates will be running on the Innovation
Party ticket for President of Earth.
Best regards,
Michael
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