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View Full Version : Suggestion for "Ubuntu for grandma"



djay
May 1st, 2007, 09:43 AM
We all know, that in order to best other OSes, Ubuntu has to "win" in most battles. In order to make it easier on a desktop for general purpose users, I'd suggest creating the following:

1. Create a really beautiful interface for "Grandma computer", which will feature ala "Media Center" interface to Internet, Mail, Music/Videos and Documents. A user would not have to know how to operate the "computer", just this intuitive thing which should be as easy and stable as operating TV or VCR. Operating web browser or email program will take some learning curve, but it is pretty short one.
2. Create similar environment for Windows, so transition to Linux would be seamless.

I've explained this in much greater detail in my blog post (http://blog-of-gentoo.blogspot.com/2007/04/computer-for-gradma-and-world.html)

Does it have any merit? I don't think that implementation would be too complicated...

Thanks,
Alex.

richardjennings
May 1st, 2007, 09:50 AM
I like the idea. I wonder if there is a Talisman like interface program for gnome. That would make things very easy.

reclusivemonkey
May 1st, 2007, 12:44 PM
A user would not have to know how to operate the "computer", just this intuitive thing which should be as easy and stable as operating TV or VCR.

That's where this is going to fall down ;-)

Remotes are still an alien device to my mum, and she's not daft.

Erunno
May 1st, 2007, 01:12 PM
"Ubuntu for grandma"

Uhm, I thought GNOME's usuability tests had been carried out with senile, deaf, near-blind grandmas who think that an electric iron is state-of-the-art technology. :confused:

djay
May 1st, 2007, 02:45 PM
That's where this is going to fall down ;-)

Remotes are still an alien device to my mum, and she's not daft.

I didn't say you will work with it with remote.

I just said it has to be as easy as TV, and I'm sure 99.(9)% of people using television sets can easily operate them.