Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
The launch of Windows Vista has created a huge opportunity for Linux vendors to take a larger share of the corporate desktop market, according to the president of Linux Australia. New features combined with a slightly different look and feel mean that migrating to Vista from an older version of Windows will cause disruption in the workplace. On the first day of Linux.conf.au, the president of Linux Australia, Jonathon Oxer, told ZDNet Australia that instead of retraining staff on the new version of Windows, administrators could make the switch to Linux."
Posted Jan 16, 2007 9:38 UTC (Tue)
by lacostej (guest, #2760)
[Link] (11 responses)
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/End_to_Win98_su...
"End to Win98 support may boost desktop Linux"
By Munir Kotadia, ZDNet Australia
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/US_100_laptop_w...
"US$100 laptop 'will boost desktop Linux'"
By Andrew Donoghue, ZDNet UK
bla bla bla...
I've used Linux on the desktop for more than 10 years. It's much better than before, but I feel that something is missing before Linux really get a chance to go above the 3% usage it has had for a year.
Posted Jan 16, 2007 10:13 UTC (Tue)
by frankie (subscriber, #13593)
[Link] (1 responses)
I hope that 'something' will miss for ever. What people looks for is a Windows-zation of the Linux desktop. That day, I will switch os.
Posted Jan 16, 2007 14:23 UTC (Tue)
by yodermk (subscriber, #3803)
[Link]
Surely getting the masses on a Free system (whatever that system is, but Linux seems the only really credible candidate) would only be a good thing for everyone?
Posted Jan 16, 2007 17:47 UTC (Tue)
by chuck97224 (guest, #40161)
[Link] (6 responses)
I think the biggest obstacle to linux desktop adoption by the masses is the CLI. You really can't
Posted Jan 16, 2007 19:07 UTC (Tue)
by hathawsh (guest, #11289)
[Link] (3 responses)
In fact, my brother, his wife, my sister, and my mom all do the same thing. None of them are techies, and all of them are too far away for me to provide much tech support. They have all turned out to be self-sufficient and have learned a lot on their own.
IMHO, everyone who believes Linux is not ready for the desktop should try the same experiment I did, if they have the resources to do so: take a used but relatively new machine, load Ubuntu Dapper on it, and give it to a family member or friend who doesn't have a computer or whose computer is very old. Guide them through the installation of games and a music player. Set up web browsing and email. Then let them dive in on their own. If the experiment is successful, they will happily use the computer often and won't need much help. I've certainly seen the experiment succeed.
Posted Jan 16, 2007 20:09 UTC (Tue)
by macson_g (guest, #12717)
[Link] (2 responses)
I'm using my girlfriend as guinea pig, and she is doing quite well, but still there were times where i had to step in and use shell or edit config file:
1. adding new repositories require shell or editing command line. This is well documented, but still scary. Besides
2. documentation is mostly in english (we ae using polish i18n). The admin tools (kde control center, adept) are ot translated or translated partially with few BROKEN_TRNALATIONs
3. Adding repositories is required to add software like Kadu( gadu-gadu IM cient, must-have here in poland), multimedia codecs, Flash or Sun-Java.
4. Few times I had to use lsof to seek'n'destroy process blocking dvd drive , preventing it from ejecting.
Please don't tell me about using ogg, gnash, Flash-less browsing etc. I have no desire to ignite flamewar. I'm just trying to point that there are still small but important problems that make users like my girlfriend or my sister turn back to Windows(TM)
Posted Jan 16, 2007 23:08 UTC (Tue)
by hathawsh (guest, #11289)
[Link] (1 responses)
#1: Adding repositories isn't an end-user activity, it's administrative. I don't expect desktop users to do much administration. For my family, I enabled the "multiverse" repository, and now they can choose non-free software if they desire. Also, Synaptic does indeed have GUI dialog for selecting or adding new repositories, but I haven't bothered telling anyone about Synaptic, since it's an administrative tool.
#2: I haven't tested languages other than English, although my perception is that i18n is very important to the Ubuntu developers. Sorry you haven't had much luck with your language, but good translation generally must be done by a native speaker of the target language, so please help.
https://translations.launchpad.net/
#3: Not a problem once you've set up her computer.
#4: Yes, occasionally things freeze or crash, but my family has observed much worse breakage on other operating systems, so they're tolerant.
I've given up on the idea that end users should successfully install their own operating system. Even with Ubuntu, you still have to be quite computer literate to succeed in all aspects of installation. The more reasonable goal is usability and maintainability by end users, and I believe Ubuntu meets that goal.
Posted Jan 18, 2007 10:14 UTC (Thu)
by gnb (subscriber, #5132)
[Link]
Posted Jan 16, 2007 21:48 UTC (Tue)
by AJWM (guest, #15888)
[Link]
(Not quite true -- I do use the CLI on windows for some networking issues, fortunately most of the relevant commands -- ping, ipconfig, tracert, route -- are not far removed from their *nix ancestors -- but regedit is a long way from running vi on a text file.)
Posted Jan 26, 2007 9:25 UTC (Fri)
by ldo (guest, #40946)
[Link]
Yeah ... and guess what? Microsoft has discovered that having a powerful CLI is a competitive edge after all. Which is why they're developing PowerShell. Which I think is doomed to fail ... but that's another story.
Posted Jan 16, 2007 19:16 UTC (Tue)
by grouch (guest, #27289)
[Link]
I've used Linux on the desktop for more than 10 years. It's much better than before, but I feel that something is missing before Linux really get a chance to go above the 3% usage it has had for a year.
What's missing is a level playing field. When the average person can walk into a brick-and-mortar store and find computers sporting multiple operating systems, and be able to choose to mix and match those operating systems, the only things missing will be those which have yet to be created. The monopoly, and its cascading influences on all PC hardware, is still maintained with artificial barriers against ordinary shoppers choosing for themselves.
Posted Jan 17, 2007 4:44 UTC (Wed)
by oblio (guest, #33465)
[Link]
Frankly, I think that it will happen someday, but not quite as everyone sees it, with Linux having the same market share as Windows has today (maybe 90-95%). But I do believe that when it does happen, 10-15% will be more than enough. By that time, the important people (hardware companies, ISV, corporations), will take notice, and it will be more than enough for a pleasurable experience using desktop Linux.
Till then... hang on :)
Posted Jan 17, 2007 14:44 UTC (Wed)
by ottavio (guest, #42268)
[Link]
Ottavio
Posted Jan 18, 2007 20:52 UTC (Thu)
by dw (subscriber, #12017)
[Link] (1 responses)
I will be introducing my father to Inkscape and GIMP, and will probably be putting Qemu, VMWare, or perhaps even Wine to the use of getting Sage Line 50 running on the new desktop.
I don't know if it'll work out, but for me at least, it's finally worth the try. The new 'security' features in Vista look to be a usability nightmare that I really don't want to have to try and debug over the phone after a few pints.
Posted Jan 19, 2007 21:41 UTC (Fri)
by MortenSickel (subscriber, #3238)
[Link]
How many of the home windows users are more or less dependent on someone they know to administer their PC?
And how many of those (these, I am among them) home administrators are using linux on their own computers?
What happens when windows changes and a lot of 'administrators' really dont care and have no plans to follow up what is happening in that world?
To take my self as an example, I have about 10 persons (family and friends) who have me as the person they call when their PCs don't behave. I used to be quite familiar with Wins up to 98 and NT 4.0. After those times, I have not been much involoved in administration of 2000 / XP machines (although I have to use them at work) I am forgetting how things (didn't) work in Win 98 / NT and often I have no ideas how things are working in XP and I have no plans to dive deeper than I have to into Vista.
M.
(or maybe I'm just starting to get old...)
Video: Vista launch will boost desktop LinuxVista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
By Munir Kotadia, ZDNet Australia
11 July 2006 11:59 AM
05 June 2006 09:03 AM
> I've used Linux on the desktop for more than 10 years. It's much better thanVista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
> before, but I feel that something is missing before Linux really get a
> chance to go above the 3% usage it has had for a year.
Why? Linux is flexible enough to accommodate both a "windows-ized" desktop and whatever power user desktop you use.Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
install and use linux without at some point, opening a terminal and typing in "cryptic commnads".
Don't get me wrong, I love the CLI. But I have have watched several newbies (my wife and by
brother) give up on linux and go back to windoze in frustration because they couldn't do something
they wanted by just "clicking" like in windoze.
Really? My non-techie wife runs Ubuntu 6.06.1 on her laptop. She never uses the command line, but she never needs it. She uses Gnucash and OpenOffice.org, browses the web, uses email, prints stuff, plays games, and even installs new software using the "Add Applications" feature on the main menu. She has the option of booting to Windows XP instead, but she nearly always chooses Linux because she considers Linux more reliable and safer.Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
Really. I love the (K)ubuntu's admin tools, they provide user with possibility to do _almost_ everything without touching terminalVista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
Well...Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
#1 is a fair point for office users, but many or most home users are Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
their own admins (all the ones who don't have a friend or family member
willing/able to do this for them). That's a lot of people.
On the other hand, one of my frustrations with windows is that I can't go into a command prompt and enter a cryptic command or edit a config file to figure out what's going on or just fix something.Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
Re: CLI
I think the biggest obstacle to linux desktop adoption by the masses is the CLI.
Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
You're right, there's a lot of talk about this. It happens every year, "the year of desktop for Linux".Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
Vista will not boost Linux until people will keep on buying pc's with preinstalled Windows. Easy peasy!Vista will not boost Linux until....
http://www.pledgebank.com/boycottvista
Vista is the first Windows upgrade where I have finally given serious consideration to moving my parent's home computer to Linux. This is a huge undertaking, given the fairly large amount of proprietary software they are trained on and require the use of to work with their customers.Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)
Here you hit one of my pet peeves:Vista launch will boost desktop Linux (ZDNet Australia)