[linux-help] Re: FreeRadius server

["James O. Harms" <joharms@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Flimzy said:
> > If someone isn't willing to do their own legwork, they shouldn't be
> > using Linux anyway.

Come off it, Jon.  That's crap and you know it.  Unless, of course you REALLY
DO believe that (quoting Matt here) "Linux (is) the stomping grounds for
boorish, elitist, and exclusionary geeks."

If my mother wanted a computer, I would give her a Linux box, and show her how
to use it.  She couldn't set it up.  She wouldn't know how to do her "own
legwork".  She would simply use it as a means to get something done, and if
there was a problem, she would ask for help.  This is the same situation that
millions of office workers find themselves in every day.  They sit in front of
a computer and run it, but they couldn't set it up to save their lives.  But
these are the people who will be running Linux if Linux is going to be more
than a footnote in a book about the history of computing.

I have run Linux (Slackware) for years now.  I have helped friends switch when
they wanted to quit making Bill Gates richer, or simply wanted a more stable
system.  I have put Linux/Samba servers in offices that ran Windows on all the
desktops, and people have noticed that things just "worked better".  Yes, you
do have to hold their hand for a while.  Just remember that every little bit
helps spread the word.

It seems to me that if we really want to promote Linux, if we really want
Linux to replace Windows, then the idea that Linux is only a toy for geeks
will have to go away.  

--joh

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