Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 12:19:15 -0700 From: "Derek J. Balling" <dballing@yahoo-inc.com> To: freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: exposure Message-ID: <4.1.19990428121143.00a40630@pop1.yahoo.com> In-Reply-To: <Pine.BSF.3.96.990428140917.10204e-100000@cygnus.rush.net> References: <000701be91a6$d3aa3ae0$31dec28e@css273>
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OK, the counter to this [and is this topic appropriate here, or should it
move somewhere else?]
>HOWTOs aren't that great, instead of a user learning how to make the most
>out of a program, they are told how to do the most simplistic tasks with
>such program. They are akin to the "dummies" books and don't make
>"power users" out of anyone. Not only that but there is a plethora(sp?)
>of information available in man pages and info documents.
Maybe, but, as a predominantly-Linux user myself, I'd have to say that when
you've got a new-to-(FreeBSD|Linux) user coming to the table, you want to
make it as easy as possible for them to at least approximate what they had
under {insert-crappy-old-OS-from-Washington-State-here}.
HOWTO's aren't meant to be a good substitute for learning WHY things work,
they're a lesson in HOW things work. Their goal is not to make "power
users" out of anyone, but to make "bare minimum functional users" out of
people - letting them get their box up and running and connected so that
they can start to learn.
I think, on this front, what the Linux community has learned through
experience is that you will NEVER "teach" a newbie what he needs to admin a
system. People LEARN that knowledge through experience, trial-and-error,
etc. There doesn't exist yet a book that can teach that knowledge adequately.
>FreeBSD just doesn't have the userbase to create such documents, the
>FreeBSD 'culture' assumes a certain amount of 'do it yourself'-ness.
>One of the things that hurts FreeBSD is that it doesn't cater to the
>newbie and/or ex-MSDOS user, it assumes a bit of unix knowledge.
Agreed. Linux is gaining ground because it has exactly the opposite
mindset. Not saying that is necessarily better because that brings its own
share of problems to the table, but that's the truth of the matter. Making
"conversion" easier for people encourages them to adopt the platform.
And no, my goal here isn't to start a Linux vs. FreeBSD flame war, jihad
and holy quest. I use FreeBSD at work (note the From address, we're one of
your biggest supporters *grin*), and aside from the complaints about "Why
hasn't vendor X ported their app to FreeBSD, but they've got a Linux
port?", I don't have any real complaints about it. Let's not turn this
into a flame-fest, but better a discussion of how best to take care of new
people (like myself, really)...
D
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