begin oe_protect.scr
Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
> __/ [ JEDIDIAH ] on Wednesday 15 March 2006 19:28 \__
>
>> On 2006-03-15, Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>> __/ [ Sandman ] on Wednesday 15 March 2006 18:37 \__
>>>
>>>> In article <dv9mb5$2f7g$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
>>>> Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>> [deletia]
>>>> Indeed. I've done four Debian installs in two weeks now, and they've
>>>> all went problem free. You downlaod the net install CD, pop it in, it
>>>> asks for network information and what kind of system you want (these
>>>> are servers, so nothing more than 'base system' for me) and five
>>>> minutes later it has booted into a working OS, after which the only
>>>> thing I had to apt-get was curl and screen (and a new kernel image).
>>>>
>>>> Smooth and pain free. Of course, the Debian text-based installation
>>>> procedure isn't very sexy. :)
>>>
>>> While it works for you and me, it repels the user who is accustomed to
>>> Control Panel -> Add/Remove software. Familiarity is often a crucial bit;
>>> whether it is an optimal route or not is virtually irrelevant.
>>>
>>> I know Linux users who 'attempt' to have friends, colleagues and family
>>> hop onto Linux by raving with some command-line vanity. Rather than
>>> encourage adoption, they promote negative stereotypes (sometimes
>>> intentionally so).
>>
>> Idiot.
>>
>> The flip side of that is that I can support any of my family
>> and friends anywhere in the world with nothing more than a 2400bps
>> serial connection.
>>
>> [deletia]
>>
>> The most shiny and happy tool in the world can still spit
>> out information that scares the novice or simply isn't what was
>> desired. The shiny happiness is fine, but the kicker is the fact
>> that I can still help people out of their jams directly even if
>> I happen to be on the other side of the planet.
>
> I do the same things, but you are missing the point that command line
> interfaces do not sell computers. To most users they are daunting, so they
> are better left out of sight.
>
I remain unconvinced about that. People will usually learn whatever
they need to learn in order to get things done. I recall secretaries
years back discussing norton commander in detail on the train before
most desktop machines (except Macs) even had a usable GUI.
It's more about teaching people the best way to get the maximum from
their systems; unfortunately, at the moment, as most people use the
NT5.1 gui, then anything which isn't the same as it in function and
layout is going to have some kind of learning curve, although perhaps
not a huge one.
My kids are quite capable of starting multi-player games in DOS from the
menu system I created ages back, and they can equally start games from
an xterm. They can drive the linux machines, the dos machines, the mac
and also windows machines.
I think you're confusing familiarity with ease of use; the most
important thing in using a computer is having someone to help in the
first place, be it a command line, xterm, menu or icon based interface.
CLIs are not inherently a problem, any more than any other kind of
interface; familiarity, training, help and support are all factors. The
CLI has the singular advantage that through programmes like screen, you
can directly share the experience with someone a /long/ way away...
--
| Mark Kent -- mark at ellandroad dot demon dot co dot uk |
Dr. Livingston?
Dr. Livingston I. Presume?
|
|
