[kwlug-disc] Open Source intro handout

[Raul Suarez]

--- On Wed, 4/29/09, Chris Frey <cdfrey at foursquare.net> wrote:

> Linux on a PII with 256megs of RAM just can't compete with Windows 
> on a P4 with a gig of RAM.

It's a common mistake "we" make. That you "can" run in older hardware does not mean that you should. Leave the older hardware for Windows XP and use the new hardware with linux which can take advantage of it all.
> I want to be frank about the most common things
> people find aggravating, so that they don't get all pumped up
> about open source only to be disappointed. 

I approach it as a trade off. If the trade off is not advantageous for them then it's not worth it. 

> Free Software are just a bit too nebulous for the new,
> non-programming user to understand... especially on the initial sales
> pitch.  This is something to wow them with later, after they've used 
> the system for a while.

Here is where I disagree. On the trade off Freedom is one of the main values on the FLOSS side. If they understand Freedom initially they'll be more lenient (fair?) with the trade off.



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