Hi, my name is Jim and I’m a recovering Ubuntu fanboy.
The Urban Dictionary defines a fanboy as “a person who is completely loyal to a game or company regardless of if they suck or not.” In the past, I’ve been exactly that, and I think that a lot of other people in the Ubuntu community have been too. We’ve been loyal fans of Ubuntu, telling all our friends, blogging the praises of Ubuntu and Open Source Software, being quick to point out the faults of the evil Microsoft, and all this time overlooking whenever there’s a problem with our favorite operating system.
Let me be clear, I’m still a huge fan of Ubuntu. I still think Linux is the best operating system on the market today, and that Ubuntu is a great choice for most people’s desktop computers. What I’m saying today is that I no longer want to be a fanboy!
Below are some of the things I’ve said in the past, thing that we’ve all said, things that Canonical sometimes says … things that are not completely true.
Ubuntu is easy to learn
In the past, I’ve been guilty of installing Ubuntu on a new computer and leaving the poor user with words like “don’t worry, Ubuntu easy to learn, it’s really not that different from Windows.” While this is true for geeks and people who love experimenting with computers, I’ve learned that it’s simply not true for most users. Computers are difficult!
But it’s true, right? Yes, Ubuntu IS easy to learn. In many ways, it’s easier than Windows. The Linux community and the Ubuntu team have made amazing progress in the past few years and I can honestly say that Ubuntu is now easier to use than Windows or OS X. So what’s the problem?
The real problem is that people are accustomed to Windows, it’s the only system that most people have ever used, they know nothing else. Very few people have had formal training in computers and just had to figure things out by muddling through. They’ve found ways to do the things they want in Windows (even if those ways make us geeks cringe).
Without some guidance on how to do things in Ubuntu, they soon realize that they’re going to have to muddle through an entirely new system, learning everything from scratch. This can be terrifying. If we want people to use Ubuntu, we need to help them make the transition. There should be video guides to using Ubuntu right on the default desktop. I know that the Ubuntu team is working on new documentation for version 10.04, but this is not enough – we need to show people the basics right on their screens.
Also, as fanboys who help people install Ubuntu, we need to be understanding and helpful. We need to take time to help people understand Ubuntu and how to accomplish the things they want to do. Our instructions need to be simple, understandable and honest.
You can get support from the community
New Ubuntu users often ask where they can get support for their new system. They realize that most people around them are not using Ubuntu and wonder who they’ll ask for help when things go wrong. One answer I’ve given in the past is “you can get support from the Ubuntu community.” Sure, there are support forums, IRC channels, and you can find the answer to just about anything by googling for “Ubuntu + problem.” But is it practical to ask people to search forums, or ask for support in IRC?
Most of the support forums and tutorials you’ll find on google are full of technical details that make no sense to the average computer user. There’s talk of terminals, of “sudo”, “vim”, “nano”, “apt-get” and so on. I rarely see instructions for Ubuntu online that don’t include using the Terminal.
As Ubuntu fanboys, we need to realize that this stuff is hard for new users, when we’re posting on our blogs or showing our friends how to do something, we need to explain to them the easiest way to do something (preferably without a Terminal) and explain what we’re doing. We should be trying to help new users, not putting them down or getting angry with them in forums. This is a difficult task, but adding new users to the Ubuntu community depends on it.
You don’t need Microsoft Office
Ubuntu’s website says that “OpenOffice.org is compatible with all office applications including Microsoft Office.” I’ve told lots of people the same thing – I’ve told them that all they need is OpenOffice. After all, why should they pay hundreds of dollars just to write letters in Word?
While OpenOffice is perfectly fine for me, and great for people who just want to write letters and make simple presentations, it is often not a good fit for business professionals who have spent most of their adult lives working inside Microsoft Office. These people have spent their whole professional lives learning Microsoft Office, they understand it and can get their work done quickly. To many, the operating system is just the “thing that helps me get the computer going so that I can open Office.” Putting OpenOffice in front of someone like this can be frightening and frustrating for them.
Then there’s the issue of compatibility. OpenOffice’s compatibility with other office suites is amazing, and things will work most of the time. The problem comes when the new Ubuntu user sends their first document to their boss and it’s an ODF document instead of a Word DOC. The boss doesn’t have OpenOffice, so she calls the person and says she can’t open the file. About 90% of the time, the new user’s confidence in Ubuntu is now lost. They’re now convinced that this new system of theirs is not compatible with the Windows world and it’s already starting to cause them trouble. Soon enough, someone from accounting will send them an Excel spreadsheet with lots of formulas and it won’t open or save right in OpenOffice. The user is now sick of this “Linux thing” and ready to reinstall Windows. As the most important program for most users, if OpenOffice fails, Ubuntu fails.
What’s the solution to this problem? For starters, we could be more open about the issues that people could face with OpenOffice. If someone does most of their work in Microsoft Office 2007, they’re most likely not going to be happy with OpenOffice. We need to warn them about incompatibilities and show them how to save documents in DOC format. If they really need Microsoft Office, we should tell them about the many ways you can install Microsoft Office on Ubuntu. As a free software advocate and former Ubuntu fanboy, I don’t like the idea of running Microsoft Office on Ubuntu, but I have to admit that it’s better than people running Microsoft Office on Windows – baby steps.
You don’t need iTunes
I have to confess, moving away from iTunes was a problem for me. I started my move away from Windows almost 6 years ago, and because I had so much music in the iTunes DRM format and several iPods, I just couldn’t do without iTunes. Media players on Ubuntu have come a long way, and with the upcoming 10.04 release, Ubuntu will even have its own music store. This is great, but it doesn’t solve the problem for many people.
Ubuntu’s website advertises that you can just plug in your iPod and use it with Rhythmbox. If you have an older iPod, you might be able to use it with Ubuntu. Unfortunately, for those users of modern iPods, Apple has completely locked them down to iTunes … you simply can’t access them in Ubuntu! So what’s a person supposed to do, throw away their iPods just so the can use a new operating system that they’re not really sure about in the first place? This just isn’t going to happen.
If Canonical wants to gain ground on the desktop, they need to put a lot of resources behind making a world-class competitor to iTunes, and it needs to support iPods. Period.
You don’t need Adobe
One of the first questions that people ask me when I’m trying to convince them to try Ubuntu is “can it run Adobe?” Usually, they want run Photoshop or Acrobat. I used to tell them that Ubuntu has “a program that is like Photoshop.” Unfortunately, I’ve never had anyone try GIMP and actually like it or agree with me that it’s “like Photoshop.” The GIMP is hard for people to use (as is Photoshop) and if you grew up on Photoshop, nothing will easily replace it. Direct replacements for other Adobe products like Acrobat, Dreamweaver and inDesign either don’t exist or are not very mature.
Again, what can be done about this? Personally, I’ve stopped telling people to use the GIMP and started telling people who want the Adobe Suite that they can install it right inside Ubuntu with the help of something like Crossover. Why not just use the applications they’re used to, especially if they already have a license?
I really believe that Canonical should partner with a company like CodeWeavers to bring Adobe support directly into Ubuntu. If someone wants to install Adobe CS4, let’s help them. We can be Free Software fanboys and push people away, or we can help them transition to the world of Ubuntu and bring their legacy applications with them. It’s a choice between fanaticism and being practical.
Conclusion
From now on, I want to be more practical about Ubuntu and the world of Open Source. I want to be more helpful to those who are looking for answers. I want to be a productive member of the Ubuntu and Linux community and be more respectful and helpful to those computer users around me. I don’t want to be a fanboy anymore. Who will join me?
What do you think about these topics? Leave your comments below!
While I agree with the thrust of your argument, I have to say it only applies to a subset of users. I fix a lot of dudded Windows XP machines and very few home users have Photoshop, although a few have a pirated copy that they do not know how to use. The majority are quite happy with the photo tools of Picasa or the software that came with their camera or scanner. Some people must have MS Office for their work, but most do not need this capability as they do not work from home. Nearly all the MS Office installs on these machines are either pirate or OEM that came with the computer, and are only used at a trivial level. These are the people who do benefit from Ubuntu or Mint or OpenSuse. All they want is a web terminal, flash videos and to write the odd letter. Set the default save in OpenOffice to docx, install Picasa and setup their email and they soon learn that viruses and spyware are someone else’s problem.
The more sophisticated Windows users that you write of are a different group and often I just say to them that they should just keep using Windows. If they are curious then I will help them, via an old computer or a non-default dual boot.
Now we come to the music. Again if you have DRM infested music that you have paid for, then you have to keep using Mac/Windows and their software. That is why it was created in the first place – to lock you in. I do not like iPod Touch or iPhone for music playing, they are big and heavy and have limited battery life, because playing music is only a secondary function on these devices. I do not have any DRMed music, all of mine is encoded from my own CDs or is purchased as non-DRM MP3s. I use a Creative Zen 32gb with Sennheiser headphones. The sound is superb, it is the size of a thick credit card, weighs almost nothing and plays for 30hours plus on a charge from USB. And best of all if you plug it in while Amarok is running it is immediately recognized without any manual configuration. Amarok can then control the player and move music back and forth. Creative do not support GNU/Linux, but unlike Apple they do not hinder compatibility created by FOSS developers. There are other players that also work, like Sansa, iRiver and Cowen. A bit of homework before purchase goes a long way in this area.
It is silly to buy an Apple product and then complain it does not work in Ubuntu. That is the way they are designed. To break free you need to leave Apple behind. If you are unwilling to do this then you are chained to Mac/Windows.
Well,
There is no “perfect” and “omni comprehensive” solution to the transition out of the windows problem, until Microsoft transitions out of windows into a real operating system. Not too much to laugh about, Apple OSX success proves “factually” and “empirically” that going from proprietary towards (more) open is a step forward. As usual there are no black and white solutions, but only degrees of “openness”, I am not really sure at this moment if it is accurate to call Red Hat an OOS or a semi-open OS, given that Red Hat degree of openness is much lower than Debian or even more Puppy, and surely windows is on the other hand more of a closed proprietary system than OSX.
Given the above after having been forced by software manufacturers to use “proprietary” operating systems for decades because the IT industry held the “standards” monopoli, now the “real need” of using “proprietary software” becomes “minimal”, as pinpointed also by others, and only related to very strict “professional” needs, with the exception of Microsoft and adobe products, that have “chosen” for economic convenience to make miserable the life of open software adepts.
I don’t have the silver bullet to solve the “planet wise” abuse of the US IT industry versus consumers, but what I have “personally” chosen in the last two decades, has been to solve practically the operational need with the minimum waste of resources (this includes labor time to fix intentionally faulty designed broken windows), as evidenced by the time line below:
-1994-1996 from kernel 0.97 up,386, 486 and 586 boxes could route dial-in users to share high speed Internet access, and provide mail and web hosting.
-from 1996 on several proprietary programming languages were available for Linux, therefore “niche” software companies could use Linux to port Accounting, ERP, CRM and several other business applications, without paying Sun or SCO “very steep” operating system bucks.
-1998 on, Suse becomes usable as everyday system, even on laptops, dual boot with several windows, no crashes, no viruses, no hijacking any longer, as long as Internet was accessed with linux.
-2003 on, computers are fast enough to run virtual machines, no more hardware windows for me, only VMs, now no need to dual boot either, and can run old Mac software (MacOS) and old windows software virtually, network on the VM’s can be turned on and off as required (mostly off). Tasks as non linear video editing become available on linux at amateur level, “and” at professional level for the ones that can spend the big bucks, sound and semi-professional video is still an Apple monopoli, windows does not exist any longer, except for premiere fanatics that have not left the 90’s yet, Adobe professional design and pre print software can be run on OSX, for the ones that “need” it, which are a minority, since this days you can print your books on-line without the need of other than a word processor, they do the “professional” part of the pre press work.
-2004 Red Hat 9 runs Oracle 9 “nice”, (not really critical because Oracle runs even better on Solaris Sparc), but no need for windows for database either, with support of MySQL,Postgres,Oracle,Miner,Interbase,SAP,Ingres and more (covering 86% of the planet database market) don’t need windows any longer (windows addicts are advised to switch their SQL server code to Sybase compatibility before is too late), the Oracle CASE designer can run only on the VM, but is going to be replaced sooner or later by something newer.
-2007 emerges the problem that windows 2007 office software is “non compatible”, tell clients that if they need the work done, they need “not” to use, asked for older 97/2000 format, not a single one complained, lot of this folks now run linux themselves, and in business “free” is a very valuable word, so they “know” the issue. Dealing with public agencies started making them print documents on paper, sooner or later they may realize that using 2007 format costs them money, but the public cow is always slow with syncing with reality.
Still run windows in the VMs, but so rarely that now sometimes have too look things up, but the “inevitability” of the continuous maintenance waste of time, is over. With this solutions I find myself back in the 80’s reliability, when systems had significant “uptime” and people could concentrate on their job, instead than fixing continuously broken windows.
So my advise is, since you wasted your time once learning broken windows, now invest your time once more, learning something useful, such as linux, BSD or Solaris, this is a better investment, to your consolation, I have “never” regretted the time I spent on Unix since the 70’s.
cheers to all
:)
When i tell people Linux is easy, i tell them it’s easy as in driving an standard/stick transmission automobile is easy, but you have to be willing to learn how to do it and expect to stall once in a while during the learning process.
For a home user, OOo is great. I would not recommend it for a business user without a serious talk about the challenges first. I don’t know any home user that ‘needs’ M$ Office. But yeah, for the noobs, i set doc/xls/ppt as the default save format – and explain why.
As far as Apple products go, i tell them like Neil Stephenson tells it in ‘In the Beginning… Was the Command Line”: Apple is is a sports car with the hood welded shut and Apple charges a lot when people (if they are so lucky for the privilege) beg and are allowed to peek inside (but just to look, not touch). Apple also keeps an extra set of keys to the car and only allows you to drive it if you buy special gas from Apple. So, stop being a sucker and take a look at all the other fabulous cars out there! (Like the Tank that goes 250mph! [Linux]) Sure, you may have paid a lot for that DRM-soaked crap, but eBay is a great way to reclaim some of your loss! iTunes is the biggest piece of trash music/media player i’ve ever seen. i come close to lecturing people when i see them use iTunes.
As far as Adobe goes, i would never recommend Linux to someone who makes a living on Adobe software. It’s the nature of the beast. But, for the home/casual/pirate user of Photoshop, i certainly push GIMP pretty hard, but explain it with the same car analogy. Yeah, it’s different, but it does everything most people need and a lot more.
Anyway, the only big selling point i push is security. I just casually talk to people about how M$ steals information from your computer (at least when you update), why it’s so insecure, talk about viruses/malware, talk about how Windows kills people (it does, google ‘Windows kills NHS’), and how M$ can install anything it wants and take full control of your PC anytime they want, and more. After about a dozen conversations, people start begging me for more information.
Anyway, good post to knock some sense into some fanboys.
I do tend to recommend Ubuntu only to my more technically-minded friends. Unfortunately, “easy” and “windows-like” have become synonymous. That’s why so many beginner Linux OS’s replicated aspects of Windows. I tell people that are interested in Linux that it is a powerful, easy operating system, but it is something new that requires some learning.
Great suggestion. I’ve come to the same conclusion too. I’ve been helping people to install Ubuntu or Linux Mint on their computers alongside Vista or XP.
Just tonight, I demonstrated Linux Mint to father and son on the laptop that belonged to the son. Before this, Vista had become so infested with viruses that it could no longer be run reliably, so the son backed up all the family photos and I helped restore Vista and then installed Linux Mint.
During the demonstration, it was a pleasant surprise that not only did they both immediately grasp every step but were also one step ahead of me at times.
Neither of them are computer geeks nor expert users. The father works in a bank while the son is an ordinary student of about 14. I have had numerous calls for help from the son for Vista.
The same goes for a friend with XP. Even though I installed Ubuntu for him and he uses it occasionally to browse the web he obstinately sticks with Windows for the majority of his browsing and even his online banking. The majority of his calls, however, are false alarms in XP when he sees something he doesn’t understand. None of these ever happens in Ubuntu. So, a couple of days ago, I got tired and said that if he was so worried about the security in XP, why not use the Ubuntu I installed for him? Silence … Ok, I thought, I’ll wait. It’s just a matter of time before the whole XP edifice collapses over his head.
I’ve been helping people – ordinary folks – install and use Ubuntu. One student who started using Ubuntu last year in September has not made even one call for help concerning Ubuntu. XP? He has it on his PC ….. strictly for gaming.
By the way, during the demonstration, at one point, the son remarked Linux Mint was easier than Windows.
See my response here:
http://www.montanalinux.org/ubuntu-fanboy-confessions-response.html
After addressing all these issues When you pass them a CD, unless they explicitly ask, never say it’s free either. It seems to many people go into the evaluation of it then with “well if its free [as in beer] then its’s gotta be cheap [as in quality], or “you get what you pay for”. Quite honestly it’s easier to install and use now than windows these days. The best objective test would be to give a set of tasks to a big pool of young kids 1/2 with Linux and 1/2 with Macs and Windows; with no coaching. I’d put my money on any mainline distro at this point as having the highest success rate, successful installation would be even more skewed in Linux’s favor.
Jim, I know what you mean when you say you have decided to no longer be an Ubuntu fanboy. I too have come to that conclusion. As a companion to that realization, I think it is equally wrong to leave people with a Windows box that they are unable to use.
In our office, people know that their work computer does not have problems with virus or malware infections, I honestly can’t remember hearing about one in the last couple of years, but it’s a different story at home. They buy a new computer and expect it to just work. They have crapware and demoware that expires after a few months which leaves them with no office software, no virus protection, and a gummed up mess in a very short period of time.
From what I’ve seen it’s also no cakewalk to tell people how to maintain and use a Windows box either.
Bill,
Tell me more about why a business user should not use Star Office or Open Office, because, besides Sun service that seems to have a good list of complaints, I am curious of features I may have overlooked.
Sometimes Sun mentality is probably too “government” and “corporate”, they “assume” that their IT users are at a certain level of knowledge, just like the IBM mainframe folks would, they may need better interfacing with small businesses, but on the other hands I doubt M$ is any cheaper than Sun on a service call, any feedback on that ?
I find Star Office and Open Office “outstanding” given a minimum of understanding of computers and OS’s. This for several reasons, such as “scalability”, if you look at the porting page gives an idea of where open office is going, and secondly because of compatibility between the free version and the licensed and under service contract version. Also I find “interesting” that Star Office can “even” read IBM 8″ Display Writer format, along with a zillion other.
I can access easily any RDBMS, vector graphic support is very very nice, I “could” use an excel compatibility mode in Calc if it was available, but I have rather keep the mathematic logic of Calc versus the non-standard math of Excel, and use Excel on windows in a VM when I need to use some special plug-in. I never write environment dependent formulas, even if this may mean reinventing the wheel sometimes, nor use macros, this helps me to switch products at any time.
I have used the same approach for decades and for anything, such as programming languages, database, spreadsheets, everything I write “has to be portable” by requirement, across products, across different processor architectures and across operating systems. Some of my ‘c’ and “SQL” code is so vanilla that runs pretty much anywhere, with rare and minor modifications. My spreadsheets written in Star Office and Open Office, generally function in excel and only rarely need minor modifications.
I can write a pocket-size book all together and print a clean pdf in days, without going insane to get indexes, tables of contents, footnotes, format and so on fixed along the way continuously. I don’t need to write Leonardo Codex Atlanticus, so in my case using Adobe high line press products would be a waste of time and money, nor I need to rewrite the same pages over and over again, as per the popular definition of insanity, and that’s why I dropped Word 2000, believe me, not without regrets, since I had been using it since the mid 80’s after I dropped Word Star, for the ones that don’t remember it, “yes” I used Word on DOS, and so did with Word Perfect and many other.
I think Star Office meets the requirement of general office product use at “any” level of government (not sure about the US, but lots of your folks “up there” run Solaris, so I doubt they use M$ Office).
I must admit some lack of later information on current M$ functionality, just because I lost interest, especially after reading hardware requirements of the latest windows OS and office, I have been thinking I would rather buy a used HP Itanium and a used IBM 6000, and still spend less, and be better off. in terms of security, stability, reliability and saved headaches.
I ended up out of the M$ circle, just because tired of reinstalling broken windows, losing text and data on spreadsheets and Word crashes, and tired of Word mainly being hijacked and hit by worms and viruses every other day, and most of all, non interested in the M$ agenda of DRM issues introduced with XP, that is even uglier than Apple for OS and applications. Users of Ipods and other gadgets may think differently, but I don’t have an interest in that segment, and if I want to listen to music, I can just hit youtube.
Changing subject, anybody tried IBM Symphony ? Any comments ? There is a free download on their site. This week I was busy with checking out DB2 Express on Linux (nice, by the way).
cheers to all
:)
Good article! As a recent discoverer of Linux (Ubuntu 9.10 & Mint 7) who is attempting to migrate away from Windows, I have experienced (and still experiencing!) all these issues. I have used MS products for 20 years and my computer experience has been shaped by certain Legacy Programs, just like you described. While Linux provides nice substitutes for MOST, there is a learning curve with the unfamiliar…unfamiliar Linux AND unfamiliar program. That’s asking alot from someone who isn’t motivated to do it. I AM motivated and it’s still challenging trying to figure out what Linux CAN replace in a viable fashion and what software simply cannot be replaced, such as Quickbooks. Yes, I’m aware of GnuCash, KMoney, etc… and frankly, I like GnuCash a lot and think it is sufficient. Problem is, probably 90%+ of accountants/businesses utilize Quickbooks or Peachtree and they’re not gonna learn a new program just because I’m on an open source/Linux quest. Until those “irreplaceable” software titles are available for Linux, or can save data in a format to import to those programs, it just isn’t practical. As far as my MP3 player and the MS Zune software it uses (similar to the Apple analogy above), I already purchased it and set it up before I had Ubuntu; it isn’t practical to replace that also, just to use a “free” OS…it isn’t really “free” if you have to purchase other items to use the “free” item. The author has it correct…the process needs to be adapted to the user(s) Linux is courting, not the other way around. You can’t act like MS when you have a 1% COMBINED Linux OS market share. Until these issues are addressed, I’m running VM Windows for those “irreplaceable” programs, including Quickbooks, Zune, and proprietary Real Estate appraisal software. There is no other practical alternative at this time for those who WANT to migrate, and most aren’t willing to go to the efforts that I am to migrate. If I had been using Linux for 20 years and was familiar with Linux programs, this wouldn’t be an issue, as I would’ve selected programs and worked within their confines; in reverse, it’s a challenge.
And for the most part, people in forums have been helpful with their support. But occasionally, there is the ultimate know-it-all who questions your intelligence with the inability to understand how to do something. I was told Linux “just works”; was practically begged to “just give it a try”; and am struggling with new terminology and concepts, but am making an attempt. The last thing I want to hear is a bunch of techno jargon to explain a process I didn’t already understand…plain english PLEASE! Even worse are the comments from some smart ass that “this was discussed in another thread…use the search feature”…thanks for the help, buddy… Seems to me if you’re trying to recruit new users and expand the user base, a little “marketing” goes a long way; i.e. sincere efforts to help, instead of insults and cherished moments of technical superiority.
Eventually, I’ll figure it out and Linux will be as second nature as Windows already is. Until then, if the definition of a fanboy is “a person who is completely loyal to a game or company regardless of if they suck or not”, wouldn’t that definition more aptly describe a Windows user?
While I agree with you that being a fanboy probably has not helped you being more objective (and objectiveness is one thing the linux community need), I think you’re article here does very little justice to Linux.
1.- Ubuntu is easy to learn. My opinion is that it is way easier to learn than Windows. It is certain that not all graphic applications are well integrated into the Window Manager (i.e use of gvfs, etc). However, most people I know are also terrified of Windows, thinking that a wrong action could led to a virus infection, or a BSOD. Think of it. You buy a TV and it fails, you return it as defective. Your Windows system gets a BSOD, and you think to yourself what you’ve done wrong.
2.- You can get support from the community. I do work in the IT industry, and if you got OEM licenses for your Microsoft software, you are not entitled for any Microsoft support. People in the Linux community get any kind of support, including support for terminal-based commands. People should not be afraid of typing. In fact, after some practice they’ll realize how powerful it can be sometimes.
3.- You don’t need Microsoft Office. In fact, more than 90% of all Office users would never need anything more than MS Wordpad for their stuff. I’ve been an advanced Office user for years and although there are still things in OpenOffice.org that irritate me, my transition to OpenOffice has been painless.
4.- You don’t need iTunes. Well, I believe that having Linux recognize most multi-function printers, wifi cards, 3d graphic cards, data sync with major telephone and smartphone manufacturers, and new hardware present in netbooks and stuff like that is more important than having full multimedia support for the ipod/iphone, which, people outside the US tend not to be so dependant on them.
5.- You don’t need Adobe. If you mean by that that I do not need Photoshop, you can’t be more than right. When I was in college, I took several graphic design courses, where, among other things, I learnt advanced Photoshop. I can assure more than 99% of computer users than use Photoshop to remove red-eyes and stuff like that would be more productive using other software. And for most professionals, having Photoshop in Linux would not mean more than have it on Windows. OTOH, having good Flash, Air, and Acrobat support in Linux is in my opinion more important.
6.- Conclussion. Let’s not bother that much with the lack of certain applications in Linux. The same thing happens on the Macintosh platform, yet nobody cares. IMHO, Linux developers/distributors should focus now on improving the user experience by providing better hardware support and better desktop integration. Once that goal is accomplished, more and more casual computer users will switch, and as their numbers grow, a new market for software companies will emerge. And do not forget that most Windows users also have their own frustations with their OS (virus, malware, BSOD, boot up problems after official updates…)
Hi – my name is Nevyn. I’ve never been an Ubuntu fanboy though I still use Ubuntu on the desktop (while calling some fanboys a bollocks for suggesting it’s the hardware – it’s got to be right? It couldn’t possibly be a problem with Ubuntu)
I’m finding it difficult at the moment as a geek with my tinkering urges to improve things and make things better for myself. I recently brought a netbook and found that there were some limitations to the video card that’s within which basically means that if I’m plugged into a monitor and hit the video out key, things WILL crash. So I wrote a script that takes the limitations into account. The script works great. Only, there doesn’t seem to be any documentation on what happens when the video out key is pressed. So I’m unable to use my own script as the action for this button. It also turns out that Ubuntu has a problem with acpid logging so I couldn’t even see the event generated for the button!
A couple of months ago, I hit my low point. You see, I normally have a terminal only option in my grub menu. And it turns out grub2 was in there with it’s non menu.lst configuration. Also, my init system no longer works in the way I’m well accustomed to. Rather than learn those two new ways of doing things I grumbled to myself and did NOTHING!
Sometimes it feels like Ubuntu has taken over. It’s on my computer but my computer isn’t quite going the way that I want it to so I start tinkering and before I know it, the sun has risen on a new day, I’m a hell of a lot smellier than when I started and quite often I’ve only gotten half way to the solution.
I have always remained fairly skeptical of Ubuntu. It seemed they were getting all the credit. Wow! Ubuntu now supports Kernel Mode Switching for my video card! And the kernel developers got none. It just seems now, when I’m getting more and more irritated with it and it’s locked down feeling, and people all over the net saying “oh it’s alright, it’ll be fixed in 10.04″ – when there will be new problems that won’t be fixed until some time in October but it’ll be alright because it’ll be fixed in the next cycle and no they won’t correct it for the version I’m using at the time because it’ll be fixed in the next version. If it’s not a problem in the next version it’s not a problem except that most of us are still running versions that are apparently completely out of date as there are bugs that are no longer being fixed.
*takes a big breath*. I guess, what I’m saying, to the group, is that you don’t need to be an Ubuntu fanboy to need help :/
I usually tell people anything is easy – not just software. I say, “It’s easy!” People need to stop thinking they are dumb or cannot do something. That is defeatist and lazy. With a positive attitude of “I am smart, I can do this,” you’ll surprise yourself with what you can do. However, with Linux, I don’t blame it on being difficult. I say, it is different. There is lots to learn. Just like when they started using Windows, they had a hard time. There was lots to learn. I also really drive home the hardware compatibility issue and explain IP and lame hardware developers. Then I explain how to check if something works with Linux.
Of course, I always say that there is no reason to use Linux and if they are happy with Windows and what is going on there, then don’t get worried about this Linux thing. If they really really desire to learn and expand there skills, you may even phone me when you have a problem. Otherwise please just GTFO. I don’t support Microsoft or Apple platforms or software. Sorry. It’s too difficult for me.
I moved from a still-dying imac 9.2 which I like, did what I needed. i have Win98 at work (yes, my pay rate is along those lines as well) and a good person gave me a PC with Ubuntu prepped. Over the last 3 years I’ve tried on a number of occasions to do the processed in the three mega-books (ubuntu-bible, etc) and when I try the steps listed I do not get the same results as outlined. There’s always ’some error’. Also: I’ve had a number of posts on the ubuntu help forums that have gone unanswered and bumped for a couple of weeks. When I expressed my dissatisfaction, I nearly got censured. I did not ‘attack’ but expressed my dissatisfaction with “where do i -get- the knowledge?”.
Working in Teminal is -scary-, excuse me very much! one mis-type and you’re screwed; there’s no back / undo button in Terminal.
So, basically, though I have “enough” to get online and type out some things on Open Office and make some flyers, etc., I cannot even see YouTube, watch most DVDs (though several updates ago I could) on my computer, don’t know how to activate part of my in-computer flash-card reader for a digital photo-frame (no replies on that one, still have it all in the box) and though I’ve re-loaded from cd (clean wipe) once to start again, my CPU does not even shut down off the pull-down menu-never has… as well as two or three “back up your computer to external drive” programs just don’t work!/ get error messages. Pretty ‘basic’ stuff. I’m not an idiot (or ID10-T, for code users) but after really -reading- the popular, idealized-experience Ubuntu books, find that when you do not achieve the results outlined that I’m really on my own.(aka: limited /screwed). So: do any of you have a kindergarten-level explanation of 1) what you need to know about working in Terminal (how much time is required to learn it, how to back up properly so as not to lose all data, etc.) and 2) what you need to know when you don’t get the same expected results as written in the books? (they never cover that; just “go online”-but I’ve only had about a third of my messages resolved)
anywhoo, I hope I don’t seem ungrateful, but the gap between the have’s- and have-not’s in the knowledge department is truly frustrating.