[kwlug-disc] Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux

[Robert P. J. Day]

On Sat, 2 May 2009, Robert P. J. Day wrote:

> On Sat, 2 May 2009, L.D. Paniak wrote:
>
> > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> > Hash: SHA1
> >
> > In light of Paul's sales pitch for Linux, it might be useful to look at
> > the flip-side:
> >
> > http://www.pcworld.com/article/164205/why_people_quit_linux.html
>
>   i wish i could praise that article, but i can't -- it's really
> pretty patronizing:
>
>   3. I tried Linux but I had to type commands!
>
>   OMG!!! Really?
>
>   But seriously. So what? Are you scared of the keyboard?
>
> when you're trying to make a case for linux, it's probably a bad
> idea to intellectually demean the people you're addressing.

  by the way, before people think i'm over-reacting, that article
would have been fine if it had been obviously tongue-in-cheek, written
for other geeks, that sort of thing.  but it wasn't -- it sits below a
sizable header that reads "PCW Business Center," suggesting that it's
targeting *business* people, and i can't think of a single business
person i know that wouldn't be put off totally by the unsympathetic
and condescending tone of that piece.

  quite frankly, that's the kind of "evangelism" we in the linux
culture can live without.  how that article made it past an editor is
a mystery.  i'm guessing that KWLUG has numerous members who could do
much better.

rday
--

========================================================================
Robert P. J. Day                               Waterloo, Ontario, CANADA

        Linux Consulting, Training and Annoying Kernel Pedantry.

Web page:                                          http://crashcourse.ca
Linked In:                             http://www.linkedin.com/in/rpjday
Twitter:                                       http://twitter.com/rpjday
========================================================================