Ask OSNews: Linux User-Friendliness
Linked by David Adams on Mon 24th Aug 2009 09:21 UTC
Linux A reader asks: Why is Linux still not as user friendly as the two other main OSes with all the people developing for Linux? Is it because it is mainly developed by geeks? My initial feeling when reading this question was that it was kind of a throwaway, kind of a slam in disguise as a genuine question. But the more I thought about it, the more intrigued I felt. There truly are a large amount of resources being dedicated to the development of Linux and its operating system halo (DEs, drivers, apps, etc). Some of these resources are from large companies (IBM, Red Hat, Novell). Why isn't Linux more user-friendly? Is this an inherent limitation with open source software?
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dragossh
Member since:
2008-12-16

Oh you mean like any file outside the users own file space? Again, once you actually get to the point that you have to or want to screw around with system files it does not matter if it's called "System Files", "Windows" or "/etc" or "/bin".
People aren't idiots, they can figure this stuff out when they need to.


While you and me can figure out what goes into /etc, most people get afraid only by looking at its name. But if the system is cleanly designed, the user will not be afraid to experiment (see Amiga).

Except the ones that goes in "Common Files", "c:\Windows" or one of it's many subfolders. This is of course only "documented" in the undocumented file format the particular installer system the application used, if at all.
Yes, I can see clearly now how that is much better than to actually have a built-in system for keeping track of what files goes where.


Can you tell me which sane piece of software installs things in \Windows? And Common Files are… common files used by the apps?

It's nice to see that Microsoft has learned from *nix to give each users his/hers own file space.
How is "Documents and Settings" and "User" any easier to understand than "/home"?


It’s not. In fact, /home is more user-friendly. Again, I’m not saying x is easier to understand than y. They are all equal. I’m talking about the illusion of user-friendliness (yes, there is one).

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