Linux is cursed for this guy... [rant]

[sasKuatch]

Hello,

I have this friend, he pretty much hates Linux. It never works for him he says. I know you're thinking the same thing I am, "He doesn't know sh!t about Linux". True.

BUT, at our university, we have a Linux lab for the computer science students which we all hang out at. These machines are up for weeks, months even. One time, his machine locks up 3 or 4 times while he is there. I don't get it. :confused: He was just doing random things, like opening a folder in Gnome. It could only happen to him. Windows runs beautifully for him, yet he refuses to run a firewall and AV program just to prove how resilient windows is. Of course, he could be exagerrating, but I'm assuming there's a shred of truth there.

Oh, another of his problems is that Linux "fried" his laptop battery. Gimme a break.:rolleyes: He's also one of those people that professes that the only reason why Linux doesn't have any "virii" is because nobody uses it. :mad:

I'm telling you this because I have a hard time believing it myself. I'm the same way with windows, but that's because I'm stubborn, have high standards, and refuse to accomodate it by doing silly and unreasonable things to keep it working "right". I refuse to accept that an OS can run slowly because you have a few dozen programs installed. But that's just me. :)

So let me ask you this: Is it even possible for a professionally installed copy of FC 4 to crash that often? I say no, because it never happens to me. I guess I'm just ranting. I'd really like to be immature and call him out on this issue. Basically, we debate "Linux vs. Windows" all the time, and I'm losing. :)

I feel better having written this.

Rob

[Piko]

Well, i would have to say no. I've only used Fedora Core 3 though, but it's hard for be to believe that FC4 would crash that much.

Firstly, Gnome, I don't like it becuase it crashes like nuts for me too, also I love KDE. I don't know why but when I tried to use Gnome, it always F's up on me, and crashes at least one million times! I wasn't using a beta version, I was using the "Stable" versions. Right now I'm using KDE 3.5 beta 1, not a single problem, it's just AWESOME!

So I say this, get him using KDE, or something else, and see how it works. Becuase I don't care what people say, Gnome gave me the worst time I've had with a computer, EVER. I used Power Macs for 3 years BTW, I know what a bad time with a computer is! If the first window manager I used with Linux was Gnome, I wouldn't have ever used window managers. Thank god my first WM was KDE, and not something else.

Also if that fails try other distros. FC4 might just hate his computer system, and maybe the only hope is get a diffrent one.

[enshum]

I guess that must be why I pick kde when I decide to load up fc4 which I don't do very often.

ed

[blackbelt_jones]

Unless it really is evil spirits (possible, but unlikely) I think he just has to get used to it. The software and your friends brain just aren't interfacing properly. It's a very complex and subtle thing, but very real.

When I first tried Linux, there were functions and applications that just didn't seem to work for me, even though I followed directions, and now I seem to do the same exact things (apparently) in the same exact way and now they work. The same thing happened to me years ago, when I first tried to bake bread. As far as I can tell, I used to follow the same recipe that I follow now, but when I first tried it, it just didn't work. The bread came out all dense and hard and yeasty and now it comes out fine-- although I seem to be performing the same simple steps that I did back then. It almost seems like a supernatural force is at work, like the bread-gods and the linux-gods and I had to make friends or something-- but the truth is probably that I had to learn how to something different somewhere, something so tiny and so subtle I could only pick it up below the conscious level.

If he keeps it up, he'll get it. In the meantime, I suggest that you try something different... a different desktop environment, maybe, or a diferent distro if you can. A different interface may fit his brain better. Everybody told me that Debian was a terrible distro for newbies, but I took to it like to nothing else. Everybody's diferent, and I think that in the beginning, everybody deserves the most comfortable and natural entry possible.

[sharth]

could just be bad hardware. (ie, ram)

[mrBen]

I agree with sharth - the most likely problem is a hardware fault. I've only ever seen Linux boxes crash consistently when there has been a hardware issue.

Oh, and the 'not running Windows with AV and firewall' either means that:

a) He's running the built-in MS ones.
b) He's got a huge amount of trojans already on his machine, but just doesn't know it.

[NotJustANewbie]

I had a friend exactly (really, exactly) like that, I showed him the light, now he uses Fedora, not the best, but its a start!

[Piko]

Tell him if he uses it for one month, you'll give him a pie, with a hooker! :p That'll get him to use it.

I've been experimenting on my neighbors with SuSE Linux.... and crazy genetics! Mahaha Hamster MAN!

Well seriously, I've been giving them crash corses in Linux, and then letting them have at it.

I know, it's not a good idea, becuase they can get lost fast. Though the odd thing, is when I'm ready to watch these people sink, and break down into a pool of newly found hatered for their computer, they don't sink, they're god damn working with it! I had one person running around it like a vet in no time! Open office, Thunder bird, k3b, amarok, Firefox, Yast2 you name it she was flying threw it. Now she wants to learn how to use Blender3D.

When OpenSuSE 10.0 final comes out, I'm going to be converting one more computer, and a new user. Though I plan on just watching him, and not giving him my 2 hour crash coarse, and try to see how well a user with no help what so ever, can work with it. This should be fun, but I think he'll do well. Afterwards, they will all get pies, and hookers! PIES, AND HOOKERS FOR EVERYONE!

God, I've got to stop posting at 3:00am...

[sasKuatch]

Pies and hookers, that's pretty funny. :D

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

He'll get a chance to have fun with Ubuntu for our programming project. Everybody else is running Linux so he just had to deal with it and fit in. :) Nobody wants to make a 3D game portable if you only get 2 months to make it.

Rob