[aklug] Re: Install Fest - last minute info

On Fri, 12 Dec 2008 08:33:27 -0900, Lee Ross <leeross@gci.net> wrote:

> On Fri, 12 Dec 2008 07:01:48 -0900, Damien Hull <damien@linuxninjas.tv>
> wrote:
>
>> Number 3 is very important. It's also the reason I don't like calling
>> this event an "install fest". A monkey can figure out how to install
>> Linux.
>
> Thanks for the compliment Damien. I can remember how difficult it was to
> do the simple task of installing my first distribution of Linux.

AKLUG'rs,

I'm going to apologize in advance for this long message. I know it is
normally inappropriate to send this long messages but I believe it's
warranted in this case. Bear with me please.

Thanks for all the good response. All taken to heart and of course, very
educational and inspiring for me. I did get an email reply from Damien,
privately. However I think I like the idea of directing replies to the
mailing list unless solicited otherwise so I'm copying his message below.

Damien, in reference to your last line I'm also copying a message I sent
AKLUG almost two years ago, talking about what I needed and thought others
needed with reference to attacking the learning curve of a new OS. I
wasn't disagreeing with you as much as I was trying to say, "I don't like
being put in the monkey catagory". Same as the Caveman on those TV
commercials that say it is so simple, "even a caveman can do it".

Mike B. sent a message saying the AKLUG Archive search function was broken
so I went to my own archive on an old computer and found that email I had
sent almost two years ago. It's posted below Damien's private message.

Also, refer back to Robert Crowe's message. That message plus mine from a
couple of years back say it all for me and I will be taking a look at that
Newbies Friendly Forum so thank you for that Robert.

This is Damien's message:

I would love to see Linux take over the world. The problem in the "geek"
community is that too many of us think everyone should be like us. Being a
geek should not be a requirement to use Linux.

INSTALLING LINUX IS EASY
In the last couple of years the Open Source developers have created Linux
distributions that are very easy to install. Ubuntu requires you to boot
 from the CD, follow the instructions, point and click with a mouse, done!
How hard is that. Will there be times when things don't work? Sure! But
for the most part Linux is easy to install.

WHAT ARE MOST PEOPLE USING A COMPUTER FOR?
1. Checking email
2. Typing in a word processor
3. Surfing the net
4. Listening to music
5. Watching youtube

You can do some of that on the CLI but why would you want to. We aren't
going to convert anyone by showing them the CLI first. Linux has to
provide people with useful applications. If one can't get any work done on
Linux their going to go back to Windows.

WHAT IS AN "INSTALL FEST"?
I'm no marketing expert but I'm guessing the point of advertising is to
sell a product. How can one sell a product if the target audience has no
idea what the advertisement is about? Ask your non geek friends what an
"install fest" is. Let me know what they say.

We could have said something like "Join the Alaska Linux User Group and
learn how to use FREE, stable, secure and productivity enhancing software
like OpenOffice"

I HOPE THE INSTALL FEST GOES WELL
I hope to see new people learning about Open Source software. I hope to
see new people walking away with a useful new tool of some sort. I hope we
make a difference in the Anchorage community. I just don't think we are
doing a vary good job at the moment.

If you want to disagree with me that's fine. If you do, pleas tell the
rest of use how you would spread open source around the world. If it works
I'll join you.

This is my message from 16mar2007:

  From: "Lee Ross" <leeross@gci.net>
To: AKLUG <aklug@aklug.org>
Subject: Re: Those IT guys are loony
Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 18:15:49 -0900

On Fri, 16 Mar 2007 16:37:15 -0900, Jon Reynolds <jonr@destar.net> wrote:

Lee Ross wrote:
On Fri, 16 Mar 2007 12:07:27 -0900, Damien Hull
<dhull@digitaloverload.net> wrote:

yet to see anything develop for the new end user people. I like Arthur's
suggestion of two lists, one for hackers and one for end users.

I really miss Tux Magazine. They had to close their doors after only 17
or
18 issues. They published stuff the new guy could understand! Hint Hint.

-- 
Lee Ross
Anchorage, Ak
Got any suggestions Lee? What did Tux do in the way of helping out a new
users?
Jon
---------
I believe you can still subscribe to the old issues. Take a look at this
link
http://www.tuxmagazine.com/node/1000189
Without a doubt I can say Tux would explain things so everyone could
understand what was being said about any given subject. They always
explained what every acronym meant and would show you how to do
configurations and operations in the GUI as well as the command line. I've
saved all magazines to my desktop and refer to them whenever need be.....
Tux wasn't about one distribution, it was about Linux and they would help
you through the oddities of the different distros but mostly they talked
down to my level of understanding. ie If the subject was about file
systems they would show you how to use command line and GUI drag and drop
techniques alike.
I'm not an administrator by a long shot, I'm just a user that likes to do
browsing, email, photography, cad and building computers. I'm pretty much
a novice at all of this but continue to learn all these things as time
allows. I don't want to be an administrator or hacker as I wouldn't have
time to do anything else and my entire life would be consumed by learning
what makes these OS's tick. My first Linux attempt was Mandrake 6.5. I
then went to Red Hat several years later.......found out about Suse and
have used that for the last four years. I've also tried Kubunto, Knoppix
and Debian. Suse has been by far the most user friendly to me and I've
become very comfortable with it. I've managed to luck out and create a
network behind a router with four machines all talking to each other. I've
even managed somehow to get fish working and have transferred files from
one computer to the other.
Having said all of that, Suse is not a very popular distro in Anchorage so
I spend the majority of my time following the opensuse mailing list. I
pick up something off there once in a while when someone slips and gives a
detailed explanation of how to remedy a problem. Most of the time you find
a question and the answer is a line of unintelligable jibberish to use on
command line leaving all details aside. It usually takes me a long time to
fix something I've messed up but I get the job done somehow.
Never have figured out how to view movies or burn cd's from my JVC Everio.
It has a 30 gig harddrive. I can't even get it to work on Windows xp.
Apologies for rambling on so,
--
Lee Ross
Anchorage, AK
---------
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