[lug] my latest guilty pleasure -- Linuxhaters Blog

[Nate Duehr]

On Jul 27, 2008, at 11:27 AM, Collins Richey wrote:

> I think Jeffrey got it right. This is essentially a ¨troll-and- 
> response-fest¨.
>
> I respect your vast knowledge, Nate, but what did you expect from a
> linux-sucks thread on a linux advocates list?


Wasn't really "expecting" anything, just sharing what I'm thinking (a  
lot) about lately.  Usability.

Dead serious on this one too:  This Linux group has a lot of smart  
folks, but all groups easily get inward-focused and have no idea what  
the rest of the world thinks of them.  Now I know, we probably don't  
care -- but there are some themes in this other guy's blog that can't  
be denied about our favorite free OS.


> The essential answer is this: Linux is the loving product of many
> thousands of contributors over the years. It is far from perfect, but
> itś darn good and getting better.


I still ask what's getting better with a straight face, not a troll.   
How is the Linux Desktop better than it was 10 years ago?  Does it do  
more things normal people want?  I think this guy's blog is quite dead- 
on in this regard.  The Linux desktop developers are hopelessly  
fragmented and Linux will never make a serious run at being a usable  
desktop OS for most people.  It changes too much.


> There will always be niche
> applications funded by mega-bucks corporations that many users prefer,
> but there are slowing growing numbers of people who prefer linux for
> most of their work and either use the mega-bucks products for niche
> applications or choose to do without these functions or to use the
> more cumbersome FOSS alternatives.


About 1%-2% of computer users, best as anyone can tell.  And it hasn't  
grown at a rate faster than new computers and new computer users have  
been cranked out, has it?   Saying that Linux is growing is kinda like  
saying an investment is making 4% interest in a market that has 4%  
inflation.


> So, thatś about it, dude. You can chip away at linux, but many of us
> will continue to prefer it.


I completely understand.  I'm still using it too, but... there's a lot  
of truth in this guy's rants that the "community" is just not willing/ 
able to fix.  I think the "community" would be better served by not  
saying things like "you have the source so everyone can fix it!" to  
newbies who can't program, and instead say, "what doesn't it do that  
you want it to do?  *I* will fix it."   But I doubt there's any  
motivator that would cause that to happen...

Don't worry - I'm not a Linux detractor or becoming one.  Just  
interested in where people see the "chinks in the Linux armor".   
There's some biggies, that I was completely blind to.  It's just a  
different kind of learning experience for me to read this stuff and  
see what others think.

--
Nate Duehr
nate at natetech.com