Re: [tlug] Help with Mint

["Stephen J. Turnbull" <stephen@example.com>]

Thomas Blasejewicz writes:

 > > Setting either of those up will require some care, but the
 > > benefit is that you'll have a working machine if your experiments
 > > fail disasterously.

 > I ***DO*** a working machine: the WinXP one.  With a nice cable I
 > am currently using at home, I can run TWO computers sharing
 > monitor, mouse and keyboard and switch between them with a little
 > button. (was something like 8 USD)

But you can't access files on the Linux machine from the WinXP
machine, and you can't fix the Linux machine from the WinXP machine.
Those are the big advantages of having multiple systems (whether
multiboot or VMs) on the same physical hardware.

 > You cannot really remember and/or document EVERY single operation you 
 > perform on a computer.

Humans can't, but the computer can.  That's what we call "logging".

 > No offense, but the frequency of these "disasters" is with Windows (or 
 > Mac) in my experience a lot lower than with Linux.

Mac and Windows users are beyond help, by design and by license.  So
the system had better just work.  Open source users have access to
massive amounts of help, and mostly get their software for price zero.
In return they pay in learning effort, in documenting with they do,
and a requirement to be careful.

I could also say my experience has been the reverse.  I've had many
more work-stopping disasters on Windows than on Linux.  (Mac is a
different case because the mission-critical software I use on Mac is
more or less the same as it would be on Linux.  It's often convenient
or merely aesthetic to use Mac GUI applications, though.)

 > I just want to "make the transition" ...

I have to admit that more and more I wonder why.  I don't question
your desire, but I'm having trouble figuring out what advice to give.