Carl's post (grabbed from another thread) raises a good point - what would really be handy would be some promotional materials which assume no prior knowledge and are accessible in layperson language.Carl wrote:Ok I'll start =]
I think it would be good to create a standard text/Leaflet which people could post on non technical type forums ranging from things like gardening to cooking or other forums/websites which aren't necessarily related to computers in anyway that would explain what Linux Mint is and how it is perfectly capable of doing everything that windows currently does for them as I personally am a member of many gardening forums and other non-pc forums and no that if people actually new that they didn't have to update to widows vista and that they could hang on to there 512mb windows XP computer they would! especially if that meant a £200 saving
Furthermore, whatever copy or text is used, for any LM promotional material, needs to be mindful of it's context and intended audience.
To an audience which is already familiar with Linux and has heard of Mint, then "Get Linux Mint" or even "Taste Linux Mint" may well be appropriate. For John or Josephine Citizen surfing the net from XP using IE seeing a LM button, or someone walking down the street seeing a LM t-shirt, these same messages may be obscure - do they refer to a new brand of confectionery? A toothpaste? A car? So, a message's context (where/how/to whom it's displayed) & intended audience (& their familiarity with the "product") is everything.
On that topic, even the LM homepage presently assumes a degree of familiarity with LM, with one of the first things people see being the blog. I suggest taking a leaf out of Ubuntu's book (homepage) & including something which on the very first page people see, provides a broad introduction & answers the question, "What is Linux Mint?" (Answering the question, "why do I want to use it / how will I benefit?" would be very handy too.)
Now, that's not to say that ALL promotional materials need to be super-explanatory. Using a T-shirt as an example:
- having a shirt simply with the logo on it (& maybe the motto too) could be good for style value, & to some extent, brand recognition. Of course, many who see it may assume it's just a picture on a shirt, a fashion label, etc, without making the connection to computing.
- having the same shirt with the logo (& maybe motto) on one side, with something on the other side that puts LM in the context of computers, could also be good. Examples may include something like, "Have you freed your computer yet?" or "Give your PC a treat". This could potentially be far better in terms of generating interest / questions & more actively promoting Mint.
- Of course, why not have both? A variety of materials can be made available, according to various people's tastes / interests.
Anyway, some thoughts to build upon...
Snap.