On 2/7/06, Kenneth Gonsalves lawgon@thenilgiris.com wrote:
from a programmer's point of view, for my typist it is just a glorified typewriter. The only thing is, the more functionality one needs, the more work one has to do - and the more one values open source over closed source. But this does not justify the attitude that 'i am good enough to use linux - not you'. For those who just need a black box that just 'works' - linux should provide it.
<rant> No one said that on this list. All that has been said is you need to make an effort to learn and this goes beyond computers. Linux is not a black box. If Linux is a black box, it defeats the whole purpose of Linux as it is supposed to help people what they want to do easily. This can be as easy as changing a preference or as complex and difficult as writing a patch. Choosing what approach you want depends on you. Linux is a choice you make, not what is thrust upon you.
Linux means different things to different people. Assuming that Linux will solve all you problems is unrealistic. It is in this context I said that linux is not for everyone. World domination is not one of the goals of FOSS. But then according to some members it is.
Also increasingly the attitude I am seeing on this list is: I am using linux. Linux is free. Linux has a active community. You people are bound to help me by answering all my queries however ill-researched they may be. Linux may be free as in beer and as in freedom. But support is not a right, it is a privilege. That privilege is the reason why this list exists. Some of us stumbled onto linux and stuck with it. People on this list helped us get started. We are helping people do the same. </rant>
--> Vinayak H