Supporting Linux Mint

[tgmartin01]

First of all id like to start this by saying wow. What a great linux distro. Good job i was very impressed and wonder why i havent found this sooner now on to buisness. I wasnt really sure where to post this. So i guess this is a good place as any. What my plan is to make some linux mint live cd's 64 bit and 32 bit and show off the OS at a local walmart. Im doing this by showing any one who comes up to see the "stand setup" what the OS can do etc etc. Also, i will be taking donations from any one who wants to help the project out and handing out the cd's. The donations that i recieve I will send to You guys that are behind the linux mint project. All im asking here is what do you think about this?

[revdjenk]

Have you checked this out with Wal-Mart?

It is good if you can do it!
What would be ideal is maybe two systems, one to have Mint up and running, another to show a demonstration of livecd loading.
Better, have another one with a youtube video running showing Mint/compiz ?

God Bless
Doug

[tgmartin01]

Yes i have checked this out with walmart and they gave it the "OK". And yes i was gonna have two laptops running actually one with windows 7 and the other with mint comparing the two . And show them how easy the install is and let them know that there other os doesnt have to be deleted.. Here is where im caught with a dilemma. Which version should i use KDE or Gnome?

[tower]

I guess the KDE would look most like Vista W7

Maybe you should consider which applications would show off Mint to the best advantage.
Would a USB stick be an advantage? I run my Mint from a 2GB USB stick and it boots up a lot quicker than from a CD (Just a thought)
It would be a way to show how portable Mint is - take the USB from the main PC plug it into a another and look it just works!

I think it is great that you can do this!

[tgmartin01]

So any suggestions? Which apps to use. And any more votes for kde. after all this helps the mint community

[tower]

How about a presentation in Open Office , it could show which applications are the equivalent of the Windows ones that folks are familiar with?
Perhaps have examples of artwork made in Gimp
Newsletters produced in Open office

[tower]

A lot depends on the message you are trying to convey.
Mint can do all this for free
Mint is portable
Mint can revive your old PC
Mint has a bank of additional quality software you can download free

What would the average Wallmart customer do with their PC?
What do you think is a killer application that you could show them?

[feed3]

Hi..
Here's some of my suggestions that might not worth much..
- Maybe you can show them kde plasma for netbook. Nowadays, netbook seems become more popular and yet i think netbook plasma is somehow a bit eye-cachy (i like it more than gnome netbook launcher)
- How flexible kde desktop can be use with the virtual desktop plus "desktop activity" that can be added/removed in regard on how many they want it to be.
- Built-in desktop effect that come with kwin without even needs to install compiz, they will have desktop cube, several nice desktop animations etc etc..
- how easy to update their system
- how easy to install and uninstall any apps with synaptic and software manager and you can show them there's even some other package manager like kpackagekit.

plasmoids+synaptic/kpackagekit/software manager(mintinstall)+desktop effect+system update+NO VIRUS/MALWARE/SPYWARE will at least caught their attention towards mint..

edit: 1 biggest advantages that you can mention is, should they trash they mint installations, there's always a live cd that you gave them that can be used, they can create live usb from it and there's also a remastersys that they can use to backup their current mint which also can be burned and can be use as live cd/usb!

as always, cheers..

[tgmartin01]

Thanks for the suggestions feed3 and tower. great community and support is what makes mint my os of choice . Well I think the kde edition has more eye candy as you said. And in todays world looks mean everything, "which is sad". So if i was trying to appeal to the walmart customer, in my opinion "looks, ease of use, speed." And show them that for free they can do everything that windows can do well "almost" everything. After all they are coming to walmart to "save money." So is that a definite vote for comparing it to a windows 7 laptop? very good points tower i think that a demonstration of all that you listed would be ideal. And in my opinion instead of going with a "killer app" for the punch line. The punch line would be Safety and FREE. What do you guys think, oh btw Im doing all this next weekend.

[FedoraRefugee]

I think flash and eyecandy is good, and while I would be VERY careful to not criticize Windows!!! I think showing why Mint can be the better system is also a great idea, but I think the basis of my message would be ease of use.

At this stage of the game most people will have at least heard about Linux. The thing holding most people back is the fear of the unknown. What are they getting themselves into? If they buy a laptop/netbook with Linux and they do not like it...then what? What if they cannot do the things they need to do? Most people do not know a single thing about installing an OS! In their minds they are stuck with what came on the computer and if anything goes wrong they take it to "the man" to get it fixed. This is the big hurdle you need to get over.

Ironically, in the US, "free" means much less than you think it would. The economy certainly is putting the squeeze on some, but most of us make a decent living and when you get Windows preinstalled on your new computer anyway the fact that Linux is free is really not much of a factor. If anyone wants to dispute that then I will simply point out the sale of new cars in this country. Despite high gas prices just look at what models still sell! Americans have the money to burn, they are still buying SUVs, big trucks, and muscle cars with big V8s.

While free (as in money and principle) is a selling point, it will not be the major deciding point. To spark people's interest you will need to alleviate their fears. Show how a live CD can run on any computer. Show how the live disc you give them can be used to rescue a crashed Windows install. Why not rig up a USB pen or two? Maybe offer to burn the Mint ISO on anyone's USB pen for them? It is a Walmart after all, let them know that if they run inside and buy a 2GB flash drive you can hook them up. I think I would showcase the Mint install above everything else. Simply use a computer just to install Mint on. Do it over and over. It will take under ten minutes to install. You are somewhat limited if you do not have wifi, but you can at least explain the package manager also.

Despite a comment above, I would NOT try and compare Linux apps to MS apps. ESPECIALLY Word to OO.o. The two do not compare. Instead concentrate on how the Linux apps are sufficient to fill the needs of most home users. OO.o is just fine for writing letters to the folks, copying recipes, or using Calc to balance the budget. Gimp is actually a powerful app that is hampered by a harder interface. Once you learn it you will never look back at any MS program. But it can be hard to master. You need to figure out what most people will want to use their computer for and then show them how to do it.

You will not be able to squeeze all of this in your "routine." Just pick the basics to demonstrate, but be prepared to answer some far out questions. Do not make Linux out to be the perfect OS. Do not try and cover over the weak spots. Be honest and open and recognize that most people will be very happy with Windows 7. Remember, you are not selling Linux, you are trying to give it away!

[tower]

Yes, having a CD to so easy to reinstall means you are never afraid of breaking the OS.
That is a big plus
Linux has regular releases and is always evolving and getting better
I think Walmart would welcome additional sales of USB sticks if you could install it for them Good idea FedoraRefugee!
Show that Linux allows you to open and edit documents created in MSoffice.
You can download and listen to music and watch movies
If you have an mp3 player show that you can manage your music from linux

How about some hobby applications? Gramps or Stellarium

Games tend to be the domain of Windows but you can use Linux to get onto SecondLife
Be prepared for lots of questions like can I do .... on Linux! Be honest!

In fact that sounds like a good slogan
Linux, what would you like to do today!

[tgmartin01]

excellent points, but i would also add that another reason linux isnt a house hold name is marketing. I mean hey, if your told that only one car company exits thats all you will ever know . Also, money is a factor for M$ is insane. As for the demonstration you guys are right. After all windows and linux is like apples to oranges just hard to compare. I think a good point is to put them at ease by letting them know that they dont have to delete anything on there comp to you use this and that it can be ran from the live aspect.

[travelinrob]

I recently had a friend with an XP, P4, 768 MB Ram machine that was running slowly. I suggested Mint and gave her a live USB. She had it for one day before it broke. Apparently, you cannot install the software updates on a live USB, even with persistence. Now she has lost interest and would rather I reinstall XP for her. So, if you are going to be giving out or setting up live USBs for people, make it clear that they should not install software updates, or you may lose a convert as I did. I was so close!

If you know a way to update the software on a live USB, please share.

Regards,
Rob

[revdjenk]

Another way to 'sell' Linux and Mint is to show the quality and quantity of Linux applications, and how easy it is to install them ... especially without the need to reboot.

BTW, is Walmart allowing you to use any of their laptops/netbooks for this "show?"

God bless
Doug

[feed3]

She had it for one day before it broke. Apparently, you cannot install the software updates on a live USB, even with persistence.

A bit odd to me as i'm using Mint Helena Main on live usb with 2gb persistent space for most of the time at my workplace and i've using it for about couple of week now with many apps installed and updated..

[revdjenk]

oh, and apps to install which seem to attract the most attention, and get the most "wow" factor...
stellerium (one of the best ways to teach astronomy, and it looks good,too)
tuxpaint (fun tools, fun sounds, great for all ages)

and, of course, have compiz configured, at least with these:
edge (to show all desktops, and how one can move apps freely from one to another)
scale (enabled to show all open apps on all desktops, and click to choose)
wobbly windows
and your choice of deformation, but I prefer cube, with animated skydome


God Bless
Doug

(you know...I might try this at my local Walmart!) With a projector, or attached to a large, screen TV/monitor would be easier for a larger crowd.)

[travelinrob]

@ feed3

I read in the forums that the live USB only acts as a live CD and that the extra space is only for your settings and files.

She told me it said that there were 215 updates, she clicked update, let it go, and when she came back her system stopped responding. She said it did not come back after reboot, either.

I created the USB with usb-creator from synaptic. I used a 4 gig USB and set the persistent space to 2 gigs. Did you do something special other than the default?

Thanks,
Rob

[feed3]

I created the USB with usb-creator from synaptic. I used a 4 gig USB and set the persistent space to 2 gigs. Did you do something special other than the default?

I'm using Lili's to create the usb live in win xp at my workplace - don't think it make any different though.. ( i want to do a dual-boot but my boss just refuse to let me to do it! )

She told me it said that there were 215 updates, she clicked update, let it go, and when she came back her system stopped responding. She said it did not come back after reboot, either.

As for the update, i'm not updating all of the items, i'm only pick the one that i want to update it and install some apps from mintinstall. - maybe here is what had trashing her live usb..

I read in the forums that the live USB only acts as a live CD and that the extra space is only for your settings and files.

Yes that's true.. when you said

Apparently, you cannot install the software updates on a live USB, even with persistence.

never thought it was that many updates. Sorry..

[markfiend]

stellerium (one of the best ways to teach astronomy, and it looks good,too)

Hi, another Stellarium fan! (I'm a bit of an astronomy geek, just got a 4½" telescope for my birthday.)

[FedoraRefugee]

@ feed3

I read in the forums that the live USB only acts as a live CD and that the extra space is only for your settings and files.

She told me it said that there were 215 updates, she clicked update, let it go, and when she came back her system stopped responding. She said it did not come back after reboot, either.

I created the USB with usb-creator from synaptic. I used a 4 gig USB and set the persistent space to 2 gigs. Did you do something special other than the default?

Thanks,
Rob

It is true that the updates and such get put on the persistent partition, but they still act the same in the install. I think she simply ran out of space. I had the same problem on a smaller USB but when I put it on a larger, 16GB pen it worked.

Be warned though, it can act all wonkey! I think there are problems with this system. I occasionally lose my desktop, have problems booting, and even have periodic shutdowns. It might be my USB pen at fault, but it has never given me any problems before as far as just transferring data and such.