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View Full Version : Linux: Spreading the word. Stories, post some!



derrick1985
April 23rd, 2005, 03:07 PM
Well, yesterday I was working (i'm an electronics clerk) and I had a customer come in looking for something, and we started talking about computers, that led to hardware, which went to security which eventually led to security. So, I started talking about Linux (not knowing this guy at all, of if he even knew anything about it) and he knew! So, we started talking about distro's that we've tried and what we were using (he isn't right now) so, I of course told him about Ubuntu (since it's what i've chosen) and what not, and caught his attention.

Eventually, he started asking me questions about it, and told him about the site, the forum the great community (it truly is amazing) and told him about the Live CD's. (both Ubuntu and Kubuntu) and said he was going to give it a try!

What amazed me about it all, was an end user (this guy isn't a programmer or anything) knew something about Linux, I didn't think the word has spread that far quite yet.

Anyone else have some interesting stories the would like to share?

Brunellus
April 23rd, 2005, 06:33 PM
Well, yesterday I was working (i'm an electronics clerk) and I had a customer come in looking for something, and we started talking about computers, that led to hardware, which went to security which eventually led to security. So, I started talking about Linux (not knowing this guy at all, of if he even knew anything about it) and he knew! So, we started talking about distro's that we've tried and what we were using (he isn't right now) so, I of course told him about Ubuntu (since it's what i've chosen) and what not, and caught his attention.

Eventually, he started asking me questions about it, and told him about the site, the forum the great community (it truly is amazing) and told him about the Live CD's. (both Ubuntu and Kubuntu) and said he was going to give it a try!

What amazed me about it all, was an end user (this guy isn't a programmer or anything) knew something about Linux, I didn't think the word has spread that far quite yet.

Anyone else have some interesting stories the would like to share?
I'm not a programmer...just an end-user. Linux saved me a bunch of dough my making an unuseable system useable again. For 90% of what I need, Ubuntu does just fine. The other 10% I don't miss all that much.

So yeah, non-technical end-users are using Linux. We're after something more stable and saner than Windows, I think. I'd guess that the early adopters are the minority of the population that doesn't mind reading man pages, and have access to the documentation available on the internet.

The party is over. All you cool 1337 kids can go and be 1337 at each other; us end-users will just hang out here and endure your contempt and abuse and maybe even get to enjoy our computers every now and again.

totalshredder
April 23rd, 2005, 07:18 PM
Well, yesterday I was working (i'm an electronics clerk) and I had a customer come in looking for something, and we started talking about computers, that led to hardware, which went to security which eventually led to security. So, I started talking about Linux (not knowing this guy at all, of if he even knew anything about it) and he knew! So, we started talking about distro's that we've tried and what we were using (he isn't right now) so, I of course told him about Ubuntu (since it's what i've chosen) and what not, and caught his attention.

Eventually, he started asking me questions about it, and told him about the site, the forum the great community (it truly is amazing) and told him about the Live CD's. (both Ubuntu and Kubuntu) and said he was going to give it a try!

What amazed me about it all, was an end user (this guy isn't a programmer or anything) knew something about Linux, I didn't think the word has spread that far quite yet.

Anyone else have some interesting stories the would like to share?
lol, it's just funny how all you geeky people think linux is unpopular. I've met sooo many people who have heard of linux before; linux is popular, but not used.

Luke

Thomas Schneller
April 23rd, 2005, 07:44 PM
lol, it's just funny how all you geeky people think linux is unpopular. I've met sooo many people who have heard of linux before; linux is popular, but not used.

Luke
Anyone else have some interesting stories the would like to share?

Well, I am going some development right now for Linux on Laptops based on Ubuntu. One of my colleges then desided to give it a try. He already had some experience with Linux. Some long ago Suse 5.x installation or so. His experience was bad. You all now this times. No x-server, hardware? What's that? I am a kernel! I only need to do basic input-output operations!

But as it is a topic right now in our team, he wanted to try it. He is a long time Win user. So I gave him an Ubuntu CD and said, just insert it in the CD rom drive. Everything else is selfe explaining. Some days later I visited him and ask for his experience. And he was amaced. Was a piece of cake.

Just let him alone then and came back some days later, asking for his opinion. And he was even more amaced. Told me, he has tried some things like getting his office documents onto the hard drive. And surprise, his USB stick showed up on the desktop and he immediatly could open them and work with them. USB mouse? The same. Plug it in and it's working. Then he wants to see more.

So I set up network for him. Just to mention it, he is doing this tests in the office, where the network is a windows only enviroment. So I set up proxy server for browser and synaptic and connected evolution by using IMAP protocol to access the win exchange server. And opps, he got his mails, his schedule entries and anything else just like in outlook.

Conclusion: he is convinced now, that Linux is ready for the desktop. And is using this Laptop loaded with Ubuntu now in all meetings he needs to attend.

Do I need to mention, that this makes me smile..... (:

Best regards

Thomas