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RastaCalavera
November 7th, 2010, 03:03 AM
I am taking a computer class at my college and as part of my grade, I have to go once a week and help senior citizens with computer issues while furthering their knowledge. Recently, I was blown away from a question in class, "When are we going to cover Linux?"!! The majority of the senior citizens have heard "whispers" of this alternative OS called Linux and want to know more. Many are frustrated with windows and their feelings are indifferent about Mac. Now, by no means am I going to switch these people over to linux, I just want to give them a broad overview of two distros (thinking Ubuntu and Mint) and what Linux is and its origins. I was wondering if anyone has a powerpoint or open office presentation prepared on such a subject that they would be willing to share with me. I have done some digging on google and found a few slide shows that would be over the heads of these people (talk of file systems and kernelsm etc) I just want to present them with the idea behind open source and introductory levels of the distros. I have started a humble presentation but I think someone more experienced than myself is out there with knowledge that they want to share!! I will of course credit anyone that wishes to help. Thanks for your consideration and time and if you want to contribute, send me a pm <snip>

cchhrriiss121212
November 8th, 2010, 10:37 PM
It sounds like you already have all the knowledge you need for a quick introduction. Here is what I would show to new users (young or old) in brief sections:


Open source philosophy, freedom etc.
Now boot up the OS and show them Software Center
Run through basic functionality like Firefox, Open Office, e-mail
Benefits: zero cost, runs on old machines, no viruses/malware
Downsides: hardware support, software support
Bonus stuff like compiz and games if you feel like it is important

cariboo
November 8th, 2010, 11:46 PM
This really is the correct place for this question, moved to the cafe.

You may want to have a look at http://spreadubuntu.org/, for promtoional materials.

nlsthzn
November 9th, 2010, 12:02 AM
Have a look at the movie "Revolution OS"... it will give you awesome insight into what Linux is... might be worth it to actually show the movie rather than make slides from it.

Little Bones
November 9th, 2010, 12:32 AM
It sounds like you already have all the knowledge you need for a quick introduction. Here is what I would show to new users (young or old) in brief sections:


Open source philosophy, freedom etc.
Now boot up the OS and show them Software Center
Run through basic functionality like Firefox, Open Office, e-mail
Benefits: zero cost, runs on old machines, no viruses/malware
Downsides: hardware support, software support
Bonus stuff like compiz and games if you feel like it is important



I agree pretty well with what to talk about. Maybe show some screenshots of some simply customized desktops (to show you how customisable it is). Just simple things they could easily do like use Docky instead of a bar, change the background. Maybe show one of the photo programs (like F-Shot, Shotwell) for photos and simple edits (rotation, brighten/darken, red eye).

Maybe also mention Skype could be run? I hear now more grandparents using Skype to talk to family or make them aware that they could.

I think in terms of what OS to cover, I would cover Ubuntu definitely, and Fedora (you could explain how Fedora was derived from RedHat, which is used by many large businesses).

juancarlospaco
November 9th, 2010, 01:06 AM
I think to do school work is not allowed on this forums, ...but Mod not closed this,
i dont want to be warned anyways, good luck!

RastaCalavera
November 9th, 2010, 05:14 PM
I think to do school work is not allowed on this forums, ...but Mod not closed this,
i dont want to be warned anyways, good luck!

Just to clarify, your help is NOT helping me get a grade. I get an A by just showing up and helping these people. My linux presentation is solely for the purpose of advancing their knowledge. I don't even have to talk about or create a presentation but I want to because it is something that I am passionate about. I am not trying to abuse the help of others and pass it off as my own.

That being said, thanks for the great ideas and references!! I am using GTK-record my desktop to capture some footage of what I use linux for and how to do certain things. I have watched videos on youtube where people are able to Zoom into a certain area while recording, is there an extension I can get to do this or a different program? Istanbul keeps crashing for me and so does xvideo capture so GTK is the only one that works. Thanks for all the replies and advice!!!!

RastaCalavera
November 9th, 2010, 05:17 PM
Thanks for moving it to the correct location. I wasn't quite sure where this kind of post belonged. Sorry about including an email, I wasn't sure if that was allowed either but now I know :)

LowSky
November 9th, 2010, 05:31 PM
Grab a Gnome distro and a KDE distro.

Show them they can still use the internet, write letters and spreadsheets, and get email.

Tell them its free to download and to use.

Tell them the downsides. You might not be able to run certain aplpications easily, or support is mostly community based, unless they pay for it.

Spice Weasel
November 9th, 2010, 08:08 PM
Tell them the downsides. You might not be able to run certain aplpications easily, or support is mostly community based, unless they pay for it.

The support part is a good thing, it means the support is guaranteed to be good. With MS, the support is a monopoly. (which is probably why it is bad) Nobody else has the source code, so nobody else can provide support. However, there is competition in open source support which means if you don't like the support you are getting, you move on.

LowSky
November 9th, 2010, 09:11 PM
The support part is a good thing, it means the support is guaranteed to be good. With MS, the support is a monopoly. (which is probably why it is bad) Nobody else has the source code, so nobody else can provide support. However, there is competition in open source support which means if you don't like the support you are getting, you move on.

Windows support isn't that bad. And Linux support can be found wanting. Many people post issues here that go unfixed as no one has any idea on how to fix the problem. Some might not even know Canonical has paid technical support for Ubuntu.

Dr. C
November 10th, 2010, 07:23 AM
Presentations are a great idea but the practical side is also very important. I would bring a laptop with Ubuntu 10.04 or 10.10 and show them the basics of how to use Ubuntu, from a user perspective. Let them try it out for themselves. I would also bring some live CD's just in case they want to learn more about GNU / Linux on their own time. Make it fun.

Spice Weasel
November 10th, 2010, 09:32 AM
Some might not even know Canonical has paid technical support for Ubuntu.

Really? There's a big button on the front page.

Paqman
November 10th, 2010, 10:06 AM
Make it fun.

This. Flapping on about software freedom will bore most of the audience, and tbh a lot of people get the wrong idea about open source as well. I'd skip all that and just show how you'd do some common tasks. Stressing how much less maintenance Linux requires compared to Windows is also a good point to make. Most people find defragging, updating software, etc a bit of a pain.

Some people are skeptical of anything given away for free. Make sure you explain that the business model is that it's only free for home users, and that the companies behind Linux make their money through enterprise contracts. It's a common enough business model in the software world, so people should get it.

linuxforartists
November 23rd, 2010, 08:38 AM
Presentations are a great idea but the practical side is also very important. I would bring a laptop with Ubuntu 10.04 or 10.10 and show them the basics of how to use Ubuntu, from a user perspective. Let them try it out for themselves. I would also bring some live CD's just in case they want to learn more about GNU / Linux on their own time. Make it fun.

That's great advice. You could even do a demo install on a fresh laptop. Then show them all the things you do to set it up, like getting Flash and Java, DVD playback, etc.

A big worry for non-Linux users is compatibility with Microsoft Office. You should point out how to save files in .doc format or whatever they need.

One big stereotype is that Linux is all command line. You might want to show a cool Compiz Fusion video to dispel that notion. Here's a good one: Compiz Fusion Development (http://www.vimeo.com/701436). Eye candy is always fun.

If they're into social media, you might want to talk about new features available in Ubuntu for that, like the MeMenu.

Like Paqman said, don't preach about "freedom" and anything boring. Focus on the benefits and fun stuff. You could mention that Linux is already a part of their lives, since it runs a lot of servers, smartphones, etc.

Good luck with the presentation!

@cariboo907: That spreadubuntu.org is great! Cool discovery.