Linked by Iain Alexander on Thu 17th Apr 2003 07:28 UTC
Several days ago I wrote a rather scathing article about my utter dismay and disappoint with Mandrake 9.1 and by association, Linux as a whole. Since then I have had many many flames and equally as many agreeing emails (is there a simple opposite word for flame?) Since then I have been trying, really really trying to get my system working fully. But time and again I'm coming up against the same brick wall of (un)usability, computer esotericism and down right idiocy. 
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Can people please stop complaining about how Linux doesn't do everything for you...like windows or MAC OSX. Windows and MAC OSX are designed for people who have minimal computer knowledge. Face it, it requires no real understanding of computers and/or software to put a system together or to install windows or MAC OSX -- to my point, I put my first computer (a 286) together when I was 12.
Unix administration requires solid understanding of computer hardware/software. I can't remember ever hearing a CS major complain about configuration problems in linux or BSD. On the other side, non-CS people bitch and moan about having to edit any configuration files because they don't know where they are or what the stuff in them means. Well...buy a book on Linux, read the man pages, read some how-to's, read documentation provided by the developer(s).
And the funny thing is...windows processes and programs are just as tough to configure, if not tougher. Ever run into problem that the basic configuration options of a program or process don't solve (it's happening less and less these days but it still happens..take for instance you sound card and graphics card want the same IRQ and don't play nicely together and don't). Ever heard of the windows registry? If you know what to look for, you can fix some of these problems in the registry. However, try hunting through that to see what the setting are for a process or program and then have fun changing them if you even know what to change and to what...microsoft won't help you and neither will tech support for the program. Your screwed!
Well, in unix your not.
As it currently stands, Linux development is currently focusing on performance enhancements and expanding operational capability. (BTW--there is support for USB ISDN modems, just ask for some help) The linux development community is not as capable and as coordinated as apple and/or microsoft. By that I mean that while linux has an incredibly talented poole of developers working on the kernel, X, kde, gnome, etc., most of the developers do not work on linux dev. full time -AND- the community programming managerial structure that is present in many of the development groups doesn't lend itself well to streamlining progress. In some cases, XFree86 for example, the project heads in a direction that is actually retarded and has to be corrected by a fork or someother major fall-out (unix programmers have the highest concentration of arrogance of any professional group I can think of..and rightly so some extent but it can really hurt progress when one or more blowhards railroad a project down an obsolete path).
Usability of features contained within linux is important...but most users of linux will concede that features within linux are usable, not always easy to use, but usable. As the feature set of linux improves and matures...developer focus will shift to the usability of features.
But honestly, people need to stop wasting time writing these articles.