Re: Truly Pathetic

From: Ad (graphi47uk_at_y.a.h.o.o.co.uk)
Date: 02/28/05 

Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2005 21:48:30 +0000

Leythos wrote:
>
>
> My mother in-law, a person with NO technical skills thought it was easier
> to install Fedora than XP.
>

I not sure if I believe that or not, I am sorry, but windows XP is so
easy to install. you just stick the disk in and follow the prompts more
or less. the only time Xp gets a bit tricky is when you want to
partition the drive.
>
> That has little to do with it, and it's changing slowly, many vendors are

It has a lot to do with it.

> offering Linux - Gateway, Dell, IBM, etc... Even WalMart offers a linux
> variant.

Dell? that have surprised me, they are too scared to try a different
CPU, or is it because Intel fills their back pockets as well?
IBM do not make computers anymore. WalMart means nothing in most
countries since it is an American company and do not really do much
outside the U.S

I had a look at Dells UK site, yep they offer Linux, on servers, but I
can not see anything about Linux for the home user, just windows and
more windows.

On the Gateway site, for the U.K a big notice that says "Gateway
recommends Microsoft windows XP" nothing about Linux.

IBM, I do not are getting behind Linux, but they are not making
computers anymore, well not home computers anyway.

> Maybe you didn't try it long enough and expected it to look/feel like
> Windows. I've been using Win systems since they hit the market and DOS
> before that, and even AIX, but it took a couple days to break the habit of
> hitting the Windows+L key as I got up from the desk on the Linux box :)

I do not expect it to look or feel like windows, after all, the whole
point of changing to another OS is to get rid of the Windows look and
feel, and other reasons.

But I do not have time to muck around with things, If they do not
work,right away then what is the point? One of the reasons, why I was
looking at the Mac.
>
> Yes, and they work quite well. Sure, you can't edit an existing MS Word
> 2003 document without a little work, but if you create a NEW document in
> Linux and then send it to a Windows user, MS Office will open in perfectly
> most times - let them edit it - and they can send it back to the Linux
> person who can edit it natively without any problem.

But you are just talking about Office stuff, my Amiga can do that, a 14
year old computer. I do not use MS office anyway, I use Openoffice.org,
I refuse to pay the high price MS wants for Office.

>
> It's a matter of perspective - you don't HAVE to be 100% MS compliant,
> only able to import/export most times.
>
I did not say you did,

>>Until you come to more advanced software with more specific uses.
>
>
> Actually, there is a LOT of software on the Linux platform that you can't
> get on the MS Platform - security, scanning, etc...
>

Scanning for what and what security? I am on about the normal person in
the street and what they want with a computer.

>>There you then, Microsoft still got the monopoly and you can not say it
>>have not.
>
> It's not a Monopoly, it's a choice - no one is forcing you to purchase MS
> apps in order to be a business. What about all the MAC people that run
> companies on just a MAC OS based system? What about all the people that
> run on a Unix/Linux platform that don't even have a Win based OS computer
> in their offices.... It's only a Monopoly if YOU determine that you can't
> or don't know enough to use anything else.

Ok, lets go about this another way, it is a monopoly for the public then
and Gates knows it. Most companies that use Mac uses them for graphics,
and use a P.C for their office work.
A mate of mine is a Mortgage adviser, the software that he have to run
is P.C and windows only, not Mac, not Linux, just Windows.

>
> Do you really think that MS has any say in how Linux progresses? It
> doesn't and that's obvious in the gains they developers have made in the
> GUI's. Linux is not going to be the next Windows and Windows is not going
> to be much other than Windows until they abandon support of prior
> platforms. With Linux being FREE and having almost every app that most
> users could need, it's got a great marketing drive.

Oh yes, I agree, but it is not going to come up to windows standards, I
am sorry, but what ever you think of Microsoft, they have got the
market. He may lose a few customers, but he is gaining a lot more than
he is losing, because he knows that his Os is easier to use and got more
software than any other.

That is because we got little choice.
You go out and buy a T.v and you have lots of manufactures out there,
You want to get an OS, what have got? 3.
Windows is the standard and runs on most P.Cs
Linux is classed as the nerd OS and with so many computer manufactures
sticking to windows, it got very little chance of doing much.
Mac Os which means you got to buy a very expensive computer. Mind you
the Mac Os is based on Linux, so I been told.

> What I see is that with the desktop being simple now, and getting easier
> to use for the common home user, Linux will grow exponentially in users
> starting this year. It has nothing to do with MS, except the security

We will see,

> flaws in MS default installs. Sure, Linux has their exploits too, but I

Tell me about it, Windows got more holes in than my tea strainer.

> put a FC3 box directly on one of my public IP as a Apache web server, did
> all the updates and followed the security directions, and it's as secure
> as my IIS web servers, I suspect even more secure - they point is that it
> didn't take near the effort to lock it down as IIS does.
>
No, maybe not, but not everyone in fact very few people are going to use
it for a web server. Come on I am talking about the normal person in the
street, not some person who been using computers for a few years.

If my parents was going to buy a computer ( which they never will) what
Os do you think they will go for?

>
> No, people are buying a computer without understanding what they are
> buying - they are uninformed consumers (which is very common with most

That is normal anyway, they buy 3gig machines with 200GB hard drive
which cost them the best part of £1,500, when all they are going to do
is type a few letters, and browse the net, something which a £500
machine could do just as well.
But they all know that Windows is the standard, and they know that you
can go into any computer store and buy software for it.

> consumers). I love MS Office and use it all the time, even on my Linux

I hate Office

> box (don't miss that part, ON MY LINUX Box) without any problem. There is
> nothing FORCING me or anyone else to use a product/OS.

I suppose not, we can just stop using computers.

>
> If you really take the time to use FC3 or other variant (FC3 seems like
> the best Windows replacement to me), and approach it with no preconceived
> notion that it's Windows, only a tool, then you will find that it works as
> well, if not better, than Windows.
>
Maybe so, but the software is still not there, and a lot of hardware
will not work with it.

>>Oh great, that is going forwards, use it on a old system.
>

> You didn't read the entire sentence - I said it worked on everything from
> a P2 through a Dual Xeon system and P4 with Hyper Threading. The point was
> that it installed on older computers which don't do well with XP and newer
> computers with multiple CPU's just fine.

I am running XP on a 400Mhz AMd and it works ok. I know Windows XP will
not work on a duel CPu unless it is the pro version.

> Then you miss the direction it's taking. While I agree that it's always
> been a technical persons OS, with the direction shift to making the user
> interfaces and desktop MAC like, it's almost perfect for the masses right
> now.

But no software. You got to admit that Linux will always be the Nerd
software, maybe with some corporations using it, it is never going to be
any thing more.
It is ashame, but that is life.

> It's no more text based than you want it to be - I've not used a single
> command line to configure the computer as a file server, web server, ftp
> server, or any other functions I'm using on this machine. I was able to
> use the provided GUI's and a GUI based text editor when needed.

I am not saying you did, what I am saying is that what people think it is.

>
> People are always ignorant, in general, when it comes to computers, more
> when it comes to OS's, and need to have their hands held as they progress
> into something that even slightly different.
>

Then I will say it again, Microsoft is a monopoly.

>
>>We will just have to wait and see what happens
>
>
> It's already here and happening.
>

Well, I can not see it yet, maybe it is where you live, but I only know
one person who is interested in Linux and I know a fair few people that
uses computers.

Everyone I know uses Windows, apart from this one person and he still
got windows machines.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Demand That Microsoft Sell No Code Before Its Time
    ... > would find that linux vulnerabilities are on the up. ... >> Gate$ a chance to fix a lame product with patch after patch after ... >> patch as they continue to struggle to keep their computers working. ... Windows is less secure just because it is installed on 95% of all PCs. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: MS Politics
    ... It also adds a whole slew of media center capabilities. ... a tiny percentage of Windows users have ever installed it. ... and have powerful computers and high-bandwidth ... Turn Mac on. ...
    (borland.public.delphi.non-technical)
  • Re: Initial experiences moving to Mac
    ... 2Ghz Intel Core Duo processor a few weeks ago. ... Mac platform is to replace both my Linux boxes ... and my Windows boxes (for music and occasionally other stuff Linux ...
    (comp.sys.mac.advocacy)
  • Re: More malicious bots than ever before
    ... dropout controlled thousands of compromised PCs, or "bots," that helped ... If people don't secure their computers, ... The reason there are so many Windows computers hacked is because ... People in the Mac community who tout OS X as some kind of invulnerable ...
    (comp.sys.mac.advocacy)
  • Re: The Palladium (NGSCB) rollout has begun!!!
    ... >>willing to make the phones with Windows CE. ... Can you imagine a WindowsCE based cellphone? ... In most ways Linux ... Look at Mac Office and IE. ...
    (comp.os.linux.misc)