5 years of support..!!??

[rterry at pacific.net.au]

On Tuesday 06 March 2012 02:36:31 Bruce Bales wrote:
> On 03/05/2012 05:07 AM, Mark Greenwood wrote:
> >> On Mar 5, 2012 2:33 AM, "James Cain" <james.cain.25 at gmail.com
> >> <mailto:james.cain.25 at gmail.com>> wrote:
> >>
> >>
> >>     On Sun, Mar 4, 2012 at 6:12 PM, Leslie Anne Chatterton
> >>     <lahc2007 at gmail.com <mailto:lahc2007 at gmail.com>> wrote:
> >>
> >>         Hi Bruce,
> >>
> >>         Well I guess Kubuntu isn't for everyone and we need to hear
> >>         experiences like yours to bring us back to reality. I think
> >>         there are
> >>         probably lots of Windows and Mac users who have had similarly
> >>         frustrating experiences but don't want to speak up and appear
> >>         like
> >>         dummies. Linux will become mainstream only when it offers a
> >>         "foolproof" edition that is unbreakable, as well as the
> >>         tinkerer's
> >>         versions that most of us now enjoy.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>     Good point in pointing out that we need brought back to reality
> >>     now and again :)
> >>     However, 3 key points here that we free software users
> >>     occasionally need reminded of:
> >>
> >>         * Kubuntu is developed (99%) by volunteers. For those who
> >>           rant and rave about how nothing works, if you can't donate
> >>           to the KDE e.V., help the community, or at least report
> >>           bugs (if not triage them), what gives you the right to
> >>           complain at all?
> 
> A few years ago there was lots of talk about "Linux on the desktop,"
> where the intention
> was that everyone could use the open source Linux and be free from
> Microsoft.  I write a
> newsletter that goes to 165 former High School classmates.  All use
> Windows or Macs
> and I am certain that none could install and configure and be satisfied
> using Kubuntu 10-4.
> If it is unusable, should we complain?
> bruce

That's almost enough to start a flame war!

Kubuntu 10-4 is very very stable. 

I've had a number of my windows friends install this on their machines and 
were blown away by how easy it was to install, how quick the install was 
compared to Windows.

Yes, like any new operating system one has to learn a slightly different way of 
getting around, but the same applies to Macs for windows users.

None of your 165 high school mates would need linux to read a newsletter you 
wrote on a linux machine!

A number of my windows based friends - tired of the perpetual problem with 
malware and virus's are now running Kubuntu side by side on a separate box on 
their desktop doing the comparison.

I suspect there are a huge number of 'silent' linux users out there like 
myself, who have never registered with the wider community that they run linux  
- as mentioned in a previous post  I have (let me do an accurate mental count) 
10 machines here at work including 2 servers and 1 laptop and 1 server at home 
running linux - all uncounted in the grand stats).

I'd be keen for you to list all the unsuable features of a linux desktop.

Regards

Richard