tlug: A message to the "Old Guard" - was "HTML again"

[Dave Gutteridge <dave@example.com>]

Okay, this is kind of long. I tend to get wordy. But what the hey....
here's my 2 cents:

>I'm going to unsubscribe from the TLUG mailing list immediately after
>sending this message, for several reasons... 
[rest of message ommitted}

Well, I suppose Chris here won't be really interested in reading this
response or any subsequent follow ups, but for everyone else, i felt it
worth to make a statement about his feelings that TLUG and Linux in general
is being swamped by people with a "gimme gimme" attitude.
I am essentially one of the "dead end users" to which he is presumeably
referring to when he states that the majority of people in this mailing
list are no longer interested in knowing how their box works, and simply
want it to work much like an Apple OS or a "Windoze".
I can't speak for others, but i know that I AM interested in how my machine
works, but being interested and being ABLE to do something about it, and
having the TIME to write my own code are seperate things. My work is as a
computer animator. The software is detail intensive and time consuming. At
the end of the day, i don't have much time to learn to many intricacies
(did i spell that right?) of how my new OS works. I would love to be able
to write code and develop new apps, and in fact i'm halfway through my
"teach yourself Java in 21 Days" book now. Serious programmers may laugh,
but i'm doing what i can, because i'm interested. I'm also interested in
the new Java OS coming out. And XML. And making my own web page, and
learning Japanese, and so on... 
But my own personal time issues aren't really at issue, though i think
probably most people can relate - I haven't met the person who claimed to
have "too much time".
What I see as the core issue is a contradiction, or maybe i can go as far
as calling it a hypocracy, in the attitude of people like Chris. (Don't
take this personal Chris, I'm just trying to make my point).
You see, for a while, I'm not sure how long, I heard rumblings of how great
an OS Linux was. People who were using it were raving about it. I think the
moment I decided I wanted to get it was on a web page about building your
own computer - something i was doing at the time - and i came across a line
which said something like "Now that you have your hardware together, it's
time to ruin it all by installing Windows95. But if you want to take real
advantage of your machine, I recomend Linux". I'm paraphrasing, but that is
essentially what it said, and that with the combined ravings of how great
Linux was and my own experience with what can go wrong with Microsoft
products, I started on the path to Linux.
So here I am. At first i was a little cocky because i had been using SGI
machines for a while, and thought i knew UNIX. But after the first hurdle
of installing the OS, i found i couldn't even figure out how to access my
floppy drive. I bought a stack of Linux books (Linux for dummies... Special
Edition Linux... Linux in a nutshell...) and somehow i couldn't get
straight answers. Sometimes when i post a question about something on that
level, i get "flamed" a bit for not checking the "man pages". Well, just in
case some of you have forgotten what it's like to be a newbie at something,
those pages are cryptic, not well cross referenced, and don't hold all the
answers to the mysteries of the universe.
Then I discovered TLUG. And the mailing list, and i found that when I asked
a simple question, like how to get to my floppy drive, not only did i get
the information i needed, i was also given a few tips and pointers on
related information which ensured that i didn't have to ask the next
question which was on my lips. Give me a human response over a man page any
day.
Anyways, Perhaps i digress. I was simply ensuring that we all know why it
is that I or someone as inexperienced as me comes in with a question most
of you think is as basic as breathing.
Back to the main: It was this "Old Guard" that Chris speaks of which kept
telling me in the past that Linux is better than windows in so many ways.
They sit around mocking NT ("Neandrethal Technology") and Win98 (Heard the
one comparing it to Princess Diana? Crashes spectacularly...). Okay, okay,
i'm sold. I'm here. But now you tell me i have to be a programmer in order
to use it? I was actually quite proud of learning how to install, configure
and run my Apache server, and how to install a Java virtual machine. But
that isn't good enough. Now if i want an HTML editor, i have to program the
app from scratch? You simply can't deny that Linux does not have as many
commercially available apps as Windows. That's just a function of the
market place. But that doesn't mean that I can rectify my complaints by
creating the lacking item. I just don't have that skill. That's what
specialisation is for.
I guess what it comes down to is these points:
1. It's simply unrealistic that you expect EVERY user of Linux to be part
of the huge and admirable team that modifies, improves, and develops apps
for it. Every "Old Guard" user i know has his or her eyes light up at the
idea that Linux may compete for market share with NT. You just can't get
there with only programmers. You need the people who just USE the OS.
2. You (All of y'all) convinced me that Linux was better than NT. And i
believe you. But don't get mad at me when I may point out something that
isn't there. I'm a user, and you are the programmer. I'm not demanding you
make it, but don't complain to me about what I can't do. Why don't you
impress me with what you CAN do?

Here ends the rant. I thank you for reading, and apologise if i have
inadvertently offended anyone. My intention was simply to give insight into
the point of view of those of us who look to others to keep Linux getting
better.

	Dave Gutteridge

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