Jed Clampett wrote:[color=blue]
> This is part of an article from Computerworld talking about Open Source. A
> few Linux die-hards think that OpenSource is the answer to everything and to
> ditch Microsoft. Considering most of the business world uses Microsoft
> products and only a few use Open Source, this might be a window as to why
> Open Source hasn't caught on that well.
>
> I am so tired of seeing a few touting the benefits of Ubuntu and Linux over
> Windows. Windows has it's place for most and Linux has it's place for
> others, but to suggest that one ditch Vista or XP in favor of Linux/Ubuntu,
> they are short sighted.
>
> If you want to use Linux/Ubuntu, go ahead, but don't cram it down out
> throats each and every day.
>
> ---------------------------------
> ComputerWorld - Snippit.
>
>
> One of the reasons why free and open-source software development has been
> successful over disparate locations is that the work has been done by the
> users, and these developer-users determine the functionality, Herbsleb said.
>
> "Because work is done by the users, they're more likely to get the
> functionality right, so a major class of errors is eliminated," he noted,
> adding that developers of commercial software are rarely users of the
> software, and the functionality is determined by project managers.
>
> "Project managers tend to understand purchasing designs -- why companies buy
> software -- so they'll build a project that plays into those hands,"
> Herbsleb explained. This means that commercial software can be created
> without fully meeting user requirements. Because free and open-source
> software developers are its users, they create the functions they
> specifically need.
>
> But one of the drawbacks to the open-source software development model is
> that mainstream users often get left behind because the really technical
> people create the software design functionality for themselves, not for the
> average user. The geek creed -- "If you can't install it, you don't deserve
> to use it" -- is still alive in many open-source projects, said Nancy
> Frishberg who works on user-centered software design in the software
> division at Sun Microsystems Inc.
>
> As a result, "it is sometimes said [that lack of] usability is the Achilles'
> heel of open source," said Steve Easterbrook, associate professor in the
> department of computer science and associate director of the Knowledge and
> Media Institute at the University of Toronto.
> Sun's Frishberg added that the open-source mantra that "everyone can
> contribute" is actually misleading because adding to an open-source project
> is basically limited to code, bugs and patches.
>
>[/color]

Is there a desktop Linux revolution?

[url]http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/opensource/?p=92&tag=nl.e103[/url]

"DesktopLinux.com’s admittedly non-scientific recent poll indicates that
the number of desktop Linux users has more than doubled since last year.
Unsurprisingly, Ubuntu is the favorite distribution. In his discussion
of the results, Steven Vaughan-Nichols points out that whatever one may
think of the poll’s accuracy, Dell and Lenovo probably aren’t preloading
Linux just for kicks..."

--
Priceless quotes in m.p.w.vista.general group:
[url]http://protectfreedom.tripod.com/kick.html[/url]

"Fair use is not merely a nice concept--it is a federal law based on
free speech rights under the First Amendment and is a cornerstone of the
creativity and innovation that is a hallmark of this country. Consumer
rights in the digital age are not frivolous."
- Maura Corbett