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Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 5:27 am
by dequire
Katzedecimal wrote:I have to agree with Lantesh and Dutchmaster, it depends on how one defines "easier." For the "average user" (ie Joe/Jane Rube), the one and only thing that makes Windows "easier" is that if something pooches up, he can take it to any fixit shop. To find a fixit shop that speaks Linux, he has to hit the yellow pages - or else learn to fix it himself, which Joe/Jane Rube typically does not want to do.
Well said. There's tremendous money involved in the way the whole system is set up. M$ Certifications, etc., that keep many people directly and indirectly tied to M$'s products. So literally thousands of people have a financial interest in keeping Microsoft firmly where it is. Everyone from MS employees to system VAR's to software designers to the local Best Buy selling you a $200 break/fix warranty on your new Windows computer...

The money is everywhere. Also, let's not forget MS Exchange and Office that keep people enslaved to Windows. The best thing to happen to Linux in a long time is the cloud...It's funny, really, that Linux has a great future ahead of it due to the fact that OS's are becoming transparent. And if you're running in a transparent OS environment, reliability and simplicity are all you need, really.

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 5:39 am
by dequire
SAHChandler wrote:...but still a little courtesy never killed anyone. Except you know... people in duels. And whatnot.
I lol'd :lol:

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 2:03 am
by catilley
Newbies who are fed up with the competition will want Linux. It's just a matter of what distro will run on their machines and being able to comprehend the OS. We had to learn Microsoft, didn't we? We could just as well learn Linux. I'm still learning myself. Don't give up on the first try. Also, there needs to be an aggressive push to get Linux in the schools, especially the elementary and middle levels. That would be a major step in the right direction. It would also empower the minds of students by exercising them. Windows and Mac are "one size fits all" solutions. Linux isn't. There are many distos, one for most anyone. I never had the chance to try it out, but what happened to Linux XP? Looking at the picture, it looked good. Why is it only in the Russian market? I know there was an English one as recent as 2008. If it was as simple as it looked, people would go for it. But if there is any one reason many will never switch, it is this: People are afraid of change. It is as simple as that. This group gets into a comfort zone, and they stay there, no matter what. I'm not part of that group. I like change and the challenges that comes with it. I was always the underdog that people expected nothing of, only to prove them wrong. I love Linux Mint and I'm here to stay!

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 2:50 pm
by vrkalak
A few years ago I taught in a middle school. Many classes were teaching courses that used the computer lab (computer classroom) ... all the systems in that school district were using XP. The children were eager to learn and use the computers.

I took a few courses at the local community college, for and about computers, a couple years back. I did learn a lot about how to use and work with computers
Unfortunately, all the courses, in my field, and every other field I could see -- were given in Windows Vista.
It was very informative but still Windows. When I asked, the professor and the IT specialist, they were not aware that there were Linux OS's for public use.

My sister is on the State School Board . . . and is partially responsible for purchasing. They must comply and stay within the main-frame of the states computer systems for education.
Hence, Windows is deeply rooted.

The up and coming generation of computer users, only know and are taught MS Windows. Linux will only surface when a person is inquiring about 'another/alternative'' Operating System.

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 5:31 pm
by AK Dave
SAHChandler wrote:Unless your name is Mark Shuttleworth.
This is common knowledge, so your lack of it is sharply galling, but Ubuntu does not even pay its own bills at this point and certainly doesn't pay Shuttleworth's bills. Shuttleworth was independantly wealthy long before Ubuntu was forked off of Debian, and to date has not reached a break-even point where Canonical runs in the black from year to year. If Shuttleworth were looking for a cash return on an IT investment portfolio, he would have been better advised to buy stock in Microsoft and Apple, instead of launching a red-ink company to "compete" with them.

Please don't spout off in ignorance.

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 5:41 pm
by AK Dave
rhY wrote:Other than that, Mint is more reliable, less bloated, has a nicer GUI.....
Linux is getting pretty darn bloated itself. Just the kernel alone is full of cruft and bloat. Doubt me? Ask Linus himself. As he puts it, "unacceptable, but probably unavoidable".

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 6:58 pm
by optimize me
OP hasn't logged in sice Feb. of this year. This thread is creeping up on a year and a half old and it should die.

I mean, I like discussion as much as the next guy, but do we really need another Windows vs. Linux thread? :?

Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2009 7:06 pm
by Martin Rabson
test test

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2009 7:34 pm
by dequire
It stays relevant because 99.9 pct of Linux users came from learning Windows. If this were not the case, Linux would have the 80 pct. market share that MS has (or at least more than the 1 pct it currently has...)

By the way, the increased usage of Linux in secondary education will come about when EMPLOYERS ask for people with Linux knowledge. Right now, in a MS world, schools can get away with only teaching computer classes on MS products. They are there to supply what the private and government sectors need. They are not getting asked to supply students with Linux knowledge in large numbers.

For example, aside from a COBAL course, all my CIS classes were MS-based (Access, SQL, VB, etc. etc.). I didn't have a choice. But then again, not one of my (many) employers have ever asked about my knowledge of Linux. Which would have been "zero" at the time.

When the T.C.O. of Linux deployment on the desktop on a large-scale can be proven, this will provide the downward push that represents how free-market societies work. We are here figuring out how to push from the bottom up, which is nearly an impossible task...Aside form making a top-nothch product (which Mint nearly is), that's about all most of us can do.

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2009 3:14 am
by catilley
I agree with optimise me, do we really need another Windows vs Linux forum? Aren't there more constructive things to discuss? Like getting the word out about Linux, and Mint in particular? As long as this debate continues, it may be hard to get others to use Linux. I've been spreading the word, but have as of yet to convert anyone. XP will be as far as I will go in Windows. I never knew Vista, and cannot afford (and do not want) Windows 7. If I had to learn another platform, it would be MAC. They, as Linux is, contains no viruses and are stable. But I don't want to go there, as long as I can help it. I love MINT! Get the word out! Make copies of install discs and hand them out. I mean, they can pass out religious pamplets, why cant we pass out Linux distros in public?

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2009 3:14 am
by catilley
I agree with optimise me, do we really need another Windows vs Linux forum? Aren't there more constructive things to discuss? Like getting the word out about Linux, and Mint in particular? As long as this debate continues, it may be hard to get others to use Linux. I've been spreading the word, but have as of yet to convert anyone. XP will be as far as I will go in Windows. I never knew Vista, and cannot afford (and do not want) Windows 7. If I had to learn another platform, it would be MAC. They, as Linux is, contains no viruses and are stable. But I don't want to go there, as long as I can help it. I love MINT! Get the word out! Make copies of install discs and hand them out. I mean, they can pass out religious pamplets, why cant we pass out Linux distros in public?

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2009 7:00 am
by optimize me
Colonel Schell wrote:I am going to mention Hitler and the <violates forum rules> here, so someone can invoke something akin to Godwin's law, even if this isn't really a debate.
All that's missing now is someone talking trash about someone else's mother.

I'll pass. Topic unsubscribed.

Re: reason many will never want Linux in general.

Posted: Sat Oct 03, 2009 8:58 pm
by yamawho
The distro I have used the longest is Mint xfce 5 ... it does everything I need at home.
I am still using it today :mrgreen:

Installed Mint 7 64bit but could not get the HDMI sound working on my HDTV, gave up and installed windows 7.
I was surprised that media player supports xVid's out of the box.

Just started playing around with Mint 7 64bit on another system today ... looks fresh and clean.

M$ really turned things around in the netbook market, I was sure linux would make big gains on those.
Linux netbooks in stores are very rare indeed ...