Once again for the thousandth time I've heard someone say "Linux is hard... bash, cron, scripts, emacs, python. bla...bla...bla ...". No matter how much I try, I can't seem to get people to believe me that Ubuntu Linux is easier to use than other OS's. In the recent Ubuntu releases, they've worked perfectly on my hardware - takes 10 minutes in install now and drivers are a non-issue. You don't have to install anything - it just works. 10 minutes and you're done. Stupidly, a while ago I decided to set up a dual booting machine for gaming and work. (I didn't end up using Vista anyway, but that's besides the point...) It took more than 45 minutes to install Vista and the required drivers whereas, it didn't take more than 15 minutes to complete Ubuntu. Now there's a head to head! And I may point out that the Linux includes Open Office as well... OK, as I've said before, it's not as good as MS Office IMO, but it works... I agree, it doesn't always go as smoothly as I've described for some hardware - it can get painful trying to use NDISwrapper if your hardware isn't supported or you can't get drivers but that doesn't often happen. And this is only the installation - for the most part, the applications are really easy to use as well - very user friendly. I've often been blown away by the fact that just clicking a button can "make it work or do it's thing".
So, what's with people saying it's "hard"??? It's all about first impressions and stories they've heard. Most of the time they're going on hearsay, but sometimes they may have tried it out a few years ago... Linux used to be "hard" and you had to be pretty clued up in what you're doing, there were hardware support issues etc. Ubuntu/Linux has come a really long way in a short period of time and is no longer what it used to be. So, these statements are no longer valid at all...
Linux's legacy seems to be hurting it these days and somehow these perception have to be changed! I don't know how this is going to happen, but even IT professionals sometimes seem hesitant to try it. One thing that I've seeen though is that young kids are open to trying out new things - they seem to be totally oblivious to the "it's hard status" of Linux. Maybe and hopefully, these are the new users that are going to be pushing it forward for years to come because of the willingness to try.
My rant for the day out....
So, what's with people saying it's "hard"??? It's all about first impressions and stories they've heard. Most of the time they're going on hearsay, but sometimes they may have tried it out a few years ago... Linux used to be "hard" and you had to be pretty clued up in what you're doing, there were hardware support issues etc. Ubuntu/Linux has come a really long way in a short period of time and is no longer what it used to be. So, these statements are no longer valid at all...
Linux's legacy seems to be hurting it these days and somehow these perception have to be changed! I don't know how this is going to happen, but even IT professionals sometimes seem hesitant to try it. One thing that I've seeen though is that young kids are open to trying out new things - they seem to be totally oblivious to the "it's hard status" of Linux. Maybe and hopefully, these are the new users that are going to be pushing it forward for years to come because of the willingness to try.
My rant for the day out....
Just to add to your point. I usually setup my machine to use ICS(Internet connection sharing) to share my connection with my console down stairs since I do not have broadband and only 3G, this is the only way. Anyhoo. Usually with windows this is pretty easy to do, but in the realm of linux it was pretty tricky.= as you would have to setup routing tables and iptable (Definitely a job for someone with tech savvy), until now. I am running the new ubuntu 10.10 and within it you setup your wired or wireless connection as a shared and it instantly turns you notebook or machine into a router. Brilliant. I'll post details with screenshots on this soon. look out for that. ciao ciao