People in my family are scared of Linux and Firefox.

[kaldor]

My parents are absolutely refusing to use Linux. They just won't touch it. Since I got Ubuntu installed, told them about it, they just went out and bought a new virus firewall.

If I try to leave the computer on overnight in a transfer, they shut it off and boot up windows.. but for really idiotic reasons. "I wanted to check facebook" is what my mom says. I ask her why she can't do the same on Linux, and she'll respond " Linux is too hard to figure out"

An old computer in the house won't even work, but my mom claimed it as her's. I told her I could probably load on a Linux distro to make it work, but she says it wouldn't work for what she needs it for (typing)

Another thing is my uncle. He's a bank manager. He was talking to me one day about how he went through two laptops over the last year that had XP and vista on them because of viruses killing the system. I showed him Linux, but he refuses to touch it. He thinks it'll break his system because it's free. And I think that's quite funny considering he goes through about 2 or 3 laptops every year or so.

Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?

[zmjjmz]

Sorry, I had to laugh.

But seriously, this is evidence of a need for computer literacy education.

[LaRoza]

There is a theme for Firefox which makes it look almost exactly like IE7. I fooled people with it, so you might want to try that.

[kaldor]

I tried it with Opera, it's a no go. They just want Windows.

[damis648]

No offense, but i thought MY family was scared of linux... :popcorn::popcorn:

[cardinals_fan]

Is it your computer? If so, they should use whatever OS you want on it.

[Mazza558]

This is actually pretty similar to what I experienced in my thread. Funny how both appeared on the forums at pretty similar times.

[Mr. Picklesworth]

I think logging out of Ubuntu is the most difficult operation (System -> Quit makes a lot of sense, but is completely unusual), so consider it an encouraging sign that she figured it out. Granted, she may have just cut the power the hardware way...

[cardinals_fan]

They just want Windows.
So let them use Windows (provided it's not on your machine)

[bufsabre666]

well my mom still wont use linux, but my dad who is as basic a computer user there is uses it as his primary os, im close to getting mom to try it because of that, i mean if he can anyone can

my mom is actually the reason im a computer geek, she introduced me to mozilla suite and its been a slow drip towards complete open source since then

[Redrazor39]

I feel so sorry for you. So, so sorry.

When I installed linux I told my parents and my mom was like "If we get hacked and lose all of our personal info then it's your fault for this linux business!!!" and my dad was like "How can it be free? You didn't steal it, did you?" (I never pirate anything.. ever!)

Also, when explaining Macs and Linux to my mom, she was like "Well, if 90% of people use Windows, it must be good."

I laughed so hard right in her face because she's normally the one who can't figure out how to copy and paste something into her presentation and loses e-mails because she deletes them and uses AOL. I'm fixing that up now. I know, that seems really rude to do that to my own mom, but it was necessary. I never do anything bad; I do well in school and have never been grounded (and my parents are strict. REALLY strict).

But anyway, I'm starting them off by getting my dad to use Firefox (just got him from AOL) and I'm showing my mom Gmail and we got a Mac for her to use because to tell you the truth, the office stuff (iWork) is just much higher quality on a mac, and I wanted some of the cool software :D.

Slowly I'm getting them to use FOSS software and eventually Linux! yay!

[RiceMonster]

My mom and sister don't want to to use Linux, but I don't care, and neither do they because we have our own laptops.

On the other hand, my Dad's been interested in Ubuntu/Linux for a long time. Before I was even interested in it at all, he was. A few years ago he told was playing around with Live CDs. The other day too he said to me "I was so frustrated with Windows that I was this close to putting Ubuntu on it". I'm actually not sure why he hasn't. Maybe it's because of my Mom, but she has her own Laptop with Vista on it now (which she uses Firefox and Open Office on; both of which my Dad installed).

[oedipuss]

Hah, make them read the entire windows EULA :P For therapeutic reasons, ofc

[FyreBrand]

If it's their computer they should run what they want on it. I don't let my kids install anything on the computers unless they ask (they are really young though).

If I were you I would buy my own computer or build a modest system from scratch and run what you want on it. Then when they need to check facebook, check email, or type a quick note while the Windows box is tied up (dad's using while mom needs to do something) then offer to let them use yours. Show mom, dad, whoever that they can do the same things in the same or nearly the same way. This way they can see it's not scary, weird or whatever. Even though compositing is cool I would avoid too many flashy effects and whistles until they get used to it being around. And the hardest advice of all is try not to preach or come across as condescending. It's hard but that is very off-putting since they are older and might write off your knowledge as the belligerence of youth. Better for you to show your point than to "be right".

[isaacj87]

Yeah, I understand your pain. My Dad often ridicules Ubuntu and doesn't think of it as a viable alternative to Windows. I installed Hardy on their desktop (a comp that used to belong to me). My Mom is cool with it and easily adapted to Linux. She only uses the comp to check email and read up on sports, so it was pretty easy to "convert" her.

Not too sure why people are afraid of Ubuntu/Linux. I remember the day I installed Ubuntu on my lappy and thinking it was just the coolest thing ever. :)

[zmjjmz]

Ooh! It's "Your parents and Linux" time again!
Let me jump in.

Ok, so I came very close to getting my mom to buy a new Thinkpad with SLED, but I hesitated because she asked a lot of compatibility questions (she just got a new job and kinda needs a lot of stuff) so I played it safe and found her one with XP.
On the other hand, she asked me to put Linux on her old Thinkpad to see what it's like. I was going to do that anyways, but now it's official :D.

My dad on the other hand, was _open_ to it, but he's quite tied to his company which kinda relies on some Windows only products (BobCAD, Datalyzer, etc.), so I decided it best I don't put it on.
I'm trying to convince him to get FF though, (my mom loves Opera by the way), and currently he's just being lazy. His company's ISP already told them to start using FF/Thunderbird, so he's ok with it.


EDIT: Oh, my brother, he hates it, but he doesn't have anything substantial other than "It looks different than a Mac so I won't use it."

[cespinal]

Super entertainign thread, thank you!.

same case here!...

My brother just thinks linux is crap. He just saw me spending 3 days configuring linux upon a fresh install (installing drivers, ndiswrapper and stuff for the very first time on my life) and that triggerd his opinion about it. (update) a Vista loading file broke and my brother is blaming ubuntu for that!

Mom and dad find it preety and interesting, but they just wont try it.

And im still thinking Ubuntu FREAKING ROCKS... I have been able to do things in it that I woulnd never do using my vista home premium. \

[Saya]

So let them use Windows (provided it's not on your machine)
Yeah. If there's anything about Linux to hate, it's pesky new-converts trying to shove it down other people's throat.

[FyreBrand]

Ooh! It's "Your parents and Linux" time again!
Let me jump in.

Ok, so I came very close to getting my mom to buy a new Thinkpad with SLED, but I hesitated because she asked a lot of compatibility questions (she just got a new job and kinda needs a lot of stuff) so I played it safe and found her one with XP.
On the other hand, she asked me to put Linux on her old Thinkpad to see what it's like. I was going to do that anyways, but now it's official :D.
I think this is great. I love it when people explore technology and ask questions. Not only does it help us define our needs and what meets them better, but it also allows the flaws or inadequacies to be addressed.

PS: I'm a big SUSE fan so I hope it works out well for you.

[Delever]

No, I don't find it annoying. Having others scared of your computer is awesome :D.

On serious note, I use following strategy (or rules (and these are my rules, even if I use word "you", you do what you like)):

1. Never ever ask subject to install something. He will automatically see that as favor to you and refuse.
2. It HAS to be THEIR choice to try. All you can do is to tell about different choices. So educate.
3. Don't even suggest that any choice is stupid. This goes without saying.
5. You hardly can grab someones heart talking about philosophy and high skies, when all he sees is computer. It may be possible, but requires pre-education and some speech. And their attention...
4. "Free" never automatically means good. Never ever ever. It reminds - guess what? - advertisements! Don't use "free", unless subject is already educated and knows what you mean.
10. You can talk about facts, making them interesting. Also, make them simple. Many things depend on what subject is interested in.
9. Make it sound like you have just recently discovered it. You may even sound skeptical about it. Like: "Meh, firefox runs download day to reach guiness record. It's strange, people actually are going and downloading it!". This have few good things in it: your neutral point is good in both "it's great!" and "so what" responses, you inform them about event, and, if later they see something about it when browsing, they are likely to participate.
8. "My download manager is built in Firefox with no ads", "Firefox is blocking ads for me just fine", "I heard there is X plugin for Firefox". Make sure you repaint image of "just another browser with address bar above" in firefox colors. In other words, subject may think it's no more usefull that IE5.
7. "Once my sister got doc file and EVEN Word could not open it! Just as last resort, I tried Open Office, and it succeeded!". Highlight cases when open source application actually helped you, and did more.
6. "Google almost finished alternative OS to Windows, it even runs a lot of windows programs" (wine is too complicated to explain), "Sony, Intel, IBM and many other corporations were working for alternative OS for a while, and it looks great now.". You don't lie, you just tell things from more interesting point of view, in this case, businessman with no knowledge about open source. Full picture can be filled later, if he asks "how much does it cost?".
5. Don't be afraid to say that linux is different to windows. Again, neutral point of view. If case demands, you can even mention that as disadvantage.

Again, just what I do successfully :) Someone else use similar strategies?

P.S. numbering is screwed by design, it doesn't matter :D

[zmjjmz]

What makes you think I'll be putting SuSE on it? :P
Probably some obscure Debian distro like Dreamlinux.

[FyreBrand]

What makes you think I'll be putting SuSE on it? :P
Probably some obscure Debian distro like Dreamlinux.Well you mentioned SLED so I made a wrong assumption, and SUSE works really nicely (as many other distros do I'm sure) on a Thinkpad.

[easybake]

You should just trick them into thinking they still have windows. http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=821146&highlight=make+windows+theme

[zmjjmz]

No. I've never seen that ending out well.
Ever.

It makes for a great prank though, just use Minix instead of Linux

[mister_doctor]

If it's their computer they should run what they want on it. I don't let my kids install anything on the computers unless they ask (they are really young though).

If I were you I would buy my own computer or build a modest system from scratch and run what you want on it. Then when they need to check facebook, check email, or type a quick note while the Windows box is tied up (dad's using while mom needs to do something) then offer to let them use yours. Show mom, dad, whoever that they can do the same things in the same or nearly the same way. This way they can see it's not scary, weird or whatever. Even though compositing is cool I would avoid too many flashy effects and whistles until they get used to it being around. And the hardest advice of all is try not to preach or come across as condescending. It's hard but that is very off-putting since they are older and might write off your knowledge as the belligerence of youth. Better for you to show your point than to "be right".

I agree with this entirely.

Family computer is not YOUR computer. If the owner wants windows on the box then that's what it should run. Don't like that? well, you can either get your own, or if the computer is powerful enough you could use VMWare or something and run Linux all you want without getting in the way of the other user's experience (aside from a small loss in performance of course).

[zmjjmz]

I'd actually ask to use Wubi.

[gameryoshi600]

put linux on their computers and make it look like whatever windows version they use ;)

[FyreBrand]

I'd actually ask to use Wubi.This is a good idea.

[DrMega]

I think you're all crazy and the OP's parents are right. Don't you all know that Lunix is an evil hacking tool? Here's the evidence:

http://www.adequacy.org/stories/2001.12.2.42056.2147.html


....








....(Sorry, I know its an old one but oldies can be goodies).

[blazercist]

@OP: you should find the largest stick you can possibly swing and start beating stupid people (no offense). I installed Ubuntu on my parents' laptop and theyve never been happier and they havent called me in months to fix it. My parents are 60 year old immigrants with ZERO computer literacy. All they kno how to do is play solitare and surf websites. If anything it was Vista that broke their system in the first place and it was brand new pre-installed lol. I couldn't figure out Vista (and thats after 10 years of XP Guru-dom) so I just gave up and installed Ubuntu lol. sounds backwards.

[lisati]

It's interesting how people can be "scared" of something that is different, merely because it is different.

I tried to sell the idea of going broadband to my Dad - he reckoned he couldn't afford it, even though the telco he uses had a special offer of 6 months of broadband at dial-up prices, including a free modem and an offer of "your money back if you decide it's not for you in the first month" thrown in for good measure.

[geo909]

Another thing is my uncle. He's a bank manager. He was talking to me one day about how he went through two laptops over the last year that had XP and vista on them because of viruses killing the system. I showed him Linux, but he refuses to touch it. He thinks it'll break his system because it's free. And I think that's quite funny considering he goes through about 2 or 3 laptops every year or so.

Tell your uncle to give you one of his virus-infected laptops. They don't work, right? ;)

[geo909]

No, I don't find it annoying. Having others scared of your computer is awesome :D.

On serious note, I use following strategy (or rules (and these are my rules, even if I use word "you", you do what you like)):

1. Never ever ask subject to install something. He will automatically see that as favor to you and refuse.
2. It HAS to be THEIR choice to try. All you can do is to tell about different choices. So educate.
3. Don't even suggest that any choice is stupid. This goes without saying.
5. You hardly can grab someones heart talking about philosophy and high skies, when all he sees is computer. It may be possible, but requires pre-education and some speech. And their attention...
4. "Free" never automatically means good. Never ever ever. It reminds - guess what? - advertisements! Don't use "free", unless subject is already educated and knows what you mean.
10. You can talk about facts, making them interesting. Also, make them simple. Many things depend on what subject is interested in.
9. Make it sound like you have just recently discovered it. You may even sound skeptical about it. Like: "Meh, firefox runs download day to reach guiness record. It's strange, people actually are going and downloading it!". This have few good things in it: your neutral point is good in both "it's great!" and "so what" responses, you inform them about event, and, if later they see something about it when browsing, they are likely to participate.
8. "My download manager is built in Firefox with no ads", "Firefox is blocking ads for me just fine", "I heard there is X plugin for Firefox". Make sure you repaint image of "just another browser with address bar above" in firefox colors. In other words, subject may think it's no more usefull that IE5.
7. "Once my sister got doc file and EVEN Word could not open it! Just as last resort, I tried Open Office, and it succeeded!". Highlight cases when open source application actually helped you, and did more.
6. "Google almost finished alternative OS to Windows, it even runs a lot of windows programs" (wine is too complicated to explain), "Sony, Intel, IBM and many other corporations were working for alternative OS for a while, and it looks great now.". You don't lie, you just tell things from more interesting point of view, in this case, businessman with no knowledge about open source. Full picture can be filled later, if he asks "how much does it cost?".
5. Don't be afraid to say that linux is different to windows. Again, neutral point of view. If case demands, you can even mention that as disadvantage.

Again, just what I do successfully :) Someone else use similar strategies?

P.S. numbering is screwed by design, it doesn't matter :D

Good points! Really.

Btw :P ,all you hardcore linux fans out there! I'm not such a linux enthusiast but MY family is into Linux! My father is almost 60 and he uses Linux for about 8 years! Also, my sister uses latex and when she saw kile and other stuff she was amazed. She asked me to put Linux on her machine this summer. I got a cool family!

[DrMega]

I tried to sell the idea of going broadband to my Dad - he reckoned he couldn't afford it, even though the telco he uses had a special offer of 6 months of broadband at dial-up prices, including a free modem and an offer of "your money back if you decide it's not for you in the first month" thrown in for good measure.

The terms of such trial offers are such that if you forget to cancel in time (as most people do), then you enter by default into a longer term contract at full price.

[madjr]

if it's your PC, then make it auto-skip GRUB

and load directly to Ubuntu (say that windows is temporarily infected or something and you will fix it soon).

you can do so with Startup Manager

http://www.geekspot.com.ar/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/startup-manager.png

http://getdeb.net/app/Startup+Manager

set the timeout for bootloader menu to 0 seconds. When you need windows again set it back to 7 or 10 seconds.

after a month or so they should be comfortable. Then test if they keep using it or not.

Sometimes you need to force people for a while, so they loose the stupid fear.

remember that we all were forced to use and learn windows, that's why people don't fear it any longer.

it's widespread and forced into the society.

That's how i got my kids to eat their frigging vegetables and take their **** vitamins.

[conehead77]

Just let them use what they want. I installed Ubuntu (dualboot) on a computer of a friend and all was fine. After about 1 year he did sthg with XP and grub showed error 19 (He didnt use Ubuntu anyway because gaming was too much of a hassle for him). He lives 800km away and i couldnt solve his problem without using his computer. So he reinstalled windows and blamed Ubuntu for this incident.

[Changturkey]

I removed the I.E icon off my parents desktop, so they only know that Firefox is the "Internet" now.

[regomodo]

I know exactly how you feel. I'm getting thoroughly pissed off having to fix family's pcs with xp/vista. I slapped Ubuntu on one pc which always (despite best efforts) get's virii as sort of a backup. Sure enough, 1 month down the line a trojan horse appears and causes it to not boot so they use Ubuntu for 2months.

Despite no problems with Ubuntu they "just don't want it" and want me to "put that other thing back on". I think next time something goes wrong i'm going to tell them no as they constantly ignore me.

[Le-Froid]

I think you're all crazy and the OP's parents are right. Don't you all know that Lunix is an evil hacking tool? Here's the evidence:

http://www.adequacy.org/stories/2001.12.2.42056.2147.html


....








....(Sorry, I know its an old one but oldies can be goodies).

MY GAWD!!!! According to this:


8. Is your son obsessed with "Lunix"?

BSD, Lunix, Debian and Mandrake are all versions of an illegal hacker operation system, invented by a Soviet computer hacker named Linyos Torovoltos, before the Russians lost the Cold War. It is based on a program called "xenix", which was written by Microsoft for the US government. These programs are used by hackers to break into other people's computer systems to steal credit card numbers. They may also be used to break into people's stereos to steal their music, using the "mp3" program. Torovoltos is a notorious hacker, responsible for writing many hacker programs, such as "telnet", which is used by hackers to connect to machines on the internet without using a telephone.

Your son may try to install "lunix" on your hard drive. If he is careful, you may not notice its presence, however, lunix is a capricious beast, and if handled incorrectly, your son may damage your computer, and even break it completely by deleting Windows, at which point you will have to have your computer repaired by a professional.

If you see the word "LILO" during your windows startup (just after you turn the machine on), your son has installed lunix. In order to get rid of it, you will have to send your computer back to the manufacturer, and have them fit a new hard drive. Lunix is extremely dangerous software, and cannot be removed without destroying part of your hard disk surface.


I gosta send mah computer away to its manufacturer! Damn you, Linyos Torovoltos!

[lisati]

The terms of such trial offers are such that if you forget to cancel in time (as most people do), then you enter by default into a longer term contract at full price.
Well spotted! It's sometimes easy to forget that!

[ad_267]

I've got my sister to use Ubuntu on my computer. I had the Hardy live CD running on another computer because I'm trying to convince my family to switch it to Ubuntu, it runs ridiculously slow with XP and has so many problems. I showed my mum she could check her emails fine in Evolution and she went crazy saying she didn't like change and thought I'd broken the computer, shouting "I wan't my Outlook back."

I still think I'll manage to convince them eventually though.

[Tom Mann]

I have a mother who is entirely computer illiterate to the point of even turning a computer on!...

...Which is not a bad thing as she knows neither Windows nor Linux, and I can show her Ubuntu on my eeePC (the PC she'll be using most)

I think she'll be happy :)

[nick09]

I first found about Ubuntu when I took a trip to the New York BOCES program Computer Networking.

I switched the computer(this one I'm using to type this with) to Ubuntu when spyware jumped onto XP, we had it so bad that when you tried to boot into XP the computer would constantly reboot XP in a pattern, so I told my parents I would save them money by installing a new (free) OS called Ubuntu onto the 3 year old computer so my parents would not have to buy a new computer. So when I booted the PC after the compaq logo disappeared to a boot menu I hit F8 so I could enter the Safe Mode with Networking to download Ubuntu and I downloaded just in time after Ubuntu 8.04 was released(downloaded 1-2 days after release). I did not have any spare CD-R's laying around so I took a DVD-R and a not-so-legal dvd burning software; burned the DVD while I played my PS3. The DVD only took something like 15 minutes to burn. I could not run the live CD feature so I installed it on a space portion of the computer to try it out, and I ended up installing Ubuntu with every piece of hardware supported. And my parents did not complain!:lolflag:

So Kaldor I hope you will be able show them the light and truth of Linux.

[kool_kat_os]

my parents think that ubuntu is generic...and think windows is what is supposed to be on all computers :-|

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

To the OP,

It doesn't seem like it is your computer. Let mom and dad run what they want.

I have the opposite problem. I can't get my children to use Linux. My youngest child is 25 years old. They all own their own computers, so they can use whatever they want.

The grandchildren just want to play games, and don't notice what OS is running -- theirs or mine. They can find the Firefox icon no matter where it is located. :lolflag:

[yamfox]

Meh, none of my family thinks Linux is going to kill them but my mom requires certain Windows programs for work, my brothers are too much into gaming and my dad needs Windows to sync his Zune.

[Tom Mann]

You don't need Windows to sync a Zune (unless you're in DRM hell), just use Amarok with MTP device or gnomad2 - I have a Creative Zen Vision:M which uses the same protocol (I believe anyway) as the Zune.

[Kronie]

thank god noone in my family(except me) know how to use computers!:lolflag:

[kaldor]

Well, yes it is a family computer. The main reason I keep trying to get my parents to run Linux is because they keep screwing up stuff. They waste money on stuff they can get for free (400 for corel, 60 for virus scan, etc). Then, they still get viruses dispite the protection. The most time they spend on the computer is trying to fix stuff. Last week a trojan got into the computer and we wasted $80 on tech support. My dad even asked the support people from symantec about the Linux protection. They said that it's more stable than windows. After hearing that, my dad asks me what virus protector we should buy.

It just annoys me that they refuse to use something perfectly suited for their needs that would save a lot of headaches.

My mom: Facebook, email
My dad: Checking the weather site

It's not like they're doing something that requires Windows. All they do basically is browse the internet. I've used IE in wine, but it's "fake" so that doesn't work.

[madjr]

Well, yes it is a family computer. The main reason I keep trying to get my parents to run Linux is because they keep screwing up stuff. They waste money on stuff they can get for free (400 for corel, 60 for virus scan, etc). Then, they still get viruses dispite the protection. The most time they spend on the computer is trying to fix stuff. Last week a trojan got into the computer and we wasted $80 on tech support. My dad even asked the support people from symantec about the Linux protection. They said that it's more stable than windows. After hearing that, my dad asks me what virus protector we should buy.

It just annoys me that they refuse to use something perfectly suited for their needs that would save a lot of headaches.

My mom: Facebook, email
My dad: Checking the weather site

It's not like they're doing something that requires Windows. All they do basically is browse the internet. I've used IE in wine, but it's "fake" so that doesn't work.


the problem is you're not the family's tech support.

am my family's and neighbors tech support so i decide how to fix the problems.

if you're the one who fixes the PC you'll get to choose and they'll see you as a MAN, not a child.

If you show them you're da MAN, they'll start listening.

no one hears kids

[ladr0n]

My girlfriend's parents were having all kinds of on their laptop running XP. They are two of the least computer literate people I know, but they do need access to a few websites and such. Doing almost nothing but web browsing, XP managed to grind their system to a halt every couple weeks, and they would take it to a friend at work who would run a bunch of freeware magical windows fixer-upper utilities (we all know how those go...). They finally got sick of this cycle, and, seeing how few problems their daughter was having with her computer (Toshiba laptop running ubuntu) they asked me to put "that linux thing" on theirs also. They haven't complained yet.

[billgoldberg]

My parents are absolutely refusing to use Linux. They just won't touch it. Since I got Ubuntu installed, told them about it, they just went out and bought a new virus firewall.

If I try to leave the computer on overnight in a transfer, they shut it off and boot up windows.. but for really idiotic reasons. "I wanted to check facebook" is what my mom says. I ask her why she can't do the same on Linux, and she'll respond " Linux is too hard to figure out"

An old computer in the house won't even work, but my mom claimed it as her's. I told her I could probably load on a Linux distro to make it work, but she says it wouldn't work for what she needs it for (typing)

Another thing is my uncle. He's a bank manager. He was talking to me one day about how he went through two laptops over the last year that had XP and vista on them because of viruses killing the system. I showed him Linux, but he refuses to touch it. He thinks it'll break his system because it's free. And I think that's quite funny considering he goes through about 2 or 3 laptops every year or so.

Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?

I'm laughing when I read this.

The microsoft marketing machine sure know how to "inform" their followers.

I just removed windows when I was still living with my mother and put ubuntu on it.

The first week she was complaining, then I never heard here complaining again.

She even prefered it over xp and vista.

[kaldor]

My mom is 100% against Linux, Mac, and anything else. If it isn't Windows XP, it's no good.

My dad on the other hand, can function on Linux. But he prefers Windows. I ask him what Windows has over Ubuntu, and he comes up with:

-stability
-more users
-support

[steveneddy]

People who use Windows have been "had" by the "free software" movement for Windows, which just means that you get a new virus or trojan.

I don't blame them for being scared.

Don't force it on them. Show them that you don't have to restart after an update, that you don't get those virus/trojan/spam/spyware things anymore.

Stop telling everyone that it is free. That scares them away faster than anything else.

Let them be the way that they want to be. Don't let others stop you from being you.

So be you, and use Ubuntu.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

Sorry if this is off topic.

This is a little funny considering this thread.

While I was browsing the Ubuntu Forum, my 6 year old grandson pulled an old 400MHz PPC G4 out of the closet. I had install a version of PPC Ubuntu on it about a year ago. He hooked up the monitor, which is about half his size, then connected the monitor to the computer, and connected the speakers, keyboard, and mouse. He booted it up and got stopped because he didn't know the User ID and Password. I gave him the User ID and Password after straining my brain to remember what it was. He is playing the "Same GNOME" game on it right now so I will not interrupt him to find out what version of Ubuntu is installed on it.

:guitar:

[Jordanwb]

Tell them it's a secret version of Windows and see what happens.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

It just annoys me that they refuse to use something perfectly suited for their needs that would save a lot of headaches.

My mom: Facebook, email
My dad: Checking the weather site

It's not like they're doing something that requires Windows. All they do basically is browse the internet. I've used IE in wine, but it's "fake" so that doesn't work.

I like Linux; but, it is not your computer. When my children were young, they wanted to watch TV shows that conflicted with what my wife and I wanted to watch.

Tough, I'm paying the electric bill to run the TV/Computer, I'm paying the Cable TV/Internet bill, and I bought the TV/Computer in the first place.

To top it off, I'm the parent. I brought the child into this world and I'm taking responsibility for supporting the child. The child can give me some respect in exchange.

[Gordy]

Most people that I have talked to about installing Linux are afraid that there warranty would be void if they did it. They do not know hardware from software and some even think that the hard drive is actually the whole computer. Where do these people come from? As you well know, most do not read the manual that came with their computer. Sometimes I just nod my head and just hope that one day they will learn a few things. Could these people be ignorant? Who knows!

[matchstich]

a supervisor at work was telling me that his xp machine was showing the

blue screen of death. and they pay about $200 a shot when this happens to get

it working again. said it happens about once a year.

i offered him a disc. told him about live cd's and he could use it to check

email and surf till they got the system fixed. he took it home to show his wife. she refused to

use it , said linux is a virus. he later told me that his wife is a MS

IT tech at her job. not sure what kind of tech she is, she could not

fix her own machine.

[Happy_Man]

Meh, I just got my mom and dad to start using Firefox on Vista. Baby steps, baby steps...

[Jordanwb]

I'd like to put Ubuntu onto the other computers in our LAN but my dad is... well technologically an idiot. It's not something you can force on them. But it's good you getting them to stop being so stubborn.

[steveneddy]

.... his wife is a MS

IT tech at her job. not sure what kind of tech she is, she could not

fix her own machine.

I see this all the time.

MCSE and the like are all brain washed into thinking that Microsoft is the only OS on the planet and anything else is just rubbish.

[yamfox]

You don't need Windows to sync a Zune (unless you're in DRM hell), just use Amarok with MTP device or gnomad2 - I have a Creative Zen Vision:M which uses the same protocol (I believe anyway) as the Zune.
Actually, no. It uses a modified version of MTP that doesn't work with any Linux program yet. The Windows version of Songbird has experimental support for it, but not yet the Linux version :frown:. Amarok works fine for me and my Nano though. See:

----------------
Now playing: Coldplay - 42 (http://www.foxytunes.com/artist/coldplay/track/42)
via FoxyTunes (http://www.foxytunes.com/signatunes/)

[nsramkishen]

My wife prefers Hardy to Vista for these reasons:

1. Ubuntu boots/shuts down fast.
2. Firfox is lightning fast.

[mini_g]

I'd personally recommend:
* Buying/getting your own computer and installing Linux on it.
* Don't actively force or constantly show them the differences between Windows and Linux, as they will eventually give you a deaf ear.
* :KSParticipate as a family member.:KS If nothing else, when you are called for, immediately put down what you are working on and come back to it later.
* Don't have Linux become a sore point between you & them.
* Do spend less time on the computer (but do it so that it's not obvious that you're doing this to appease them into using Linux) than you did under Windows as it will give them more time to spend.
* Do what you normally would in Windows, only in Linux.
* Try to passively make it look more appealing, but not sickly sweet (ie. too much application of Compiz to your install), to your family members.
* Stay off Terminal as much as possible when you are around them, as this may give cause for alarm.
* Try to keep the number of times that you have to reinstall to a minimum, again, this may be a cause for alarm.

It's taken me YEARS to get my mom to want to use Linux (In part due to me not knowing about some of what I've stated above). My giving her my lappy for playing games from time to time has given her a seed of want that I am cultivating slowly.
Fortunately, my father already has had some interest in Linux since he got his 386/486 brand new (Still have that copy of Slackware ver 2.3, tis a pity that it didn't work for him... :mad: ), so it's just a matter of showing him what Linux can do nowadays.

Remember, brute force seldom works when converting family to another OS.

Hrm, now to follow my own advise about participation... :-$

[LookTJ]

My mom and sister don't want to use Linux or anything, they just want to keep it simple. So I let them use what they want, under my setup on XP Pro. My brother won't try Linux due to games and we don't have a powerful enough video card for wine. My dad doesn't care what he uses, what on it is what he uses. :)

[quanumphaze]

I think it's a psychological thing.

Trying to get my mother change from Mozilla suite to Seamonkey suite was difficult. It's the same bloody thing, the only apparent difference is the icon, but she said "it's completely different".

Getting everyone to use Linux on the family PC (OpenSUSE10.3/Vista) wouldn't have much success since my brother plays games and rebooting to use the internet after he gets off is too much hassle. No one has any really critical Windows only software anyway so a Windows-died-on-me forced conversion would be relatively painless, though noisy.

But I have had success with my new policy of installing a suitable distro on every computer after it's reformatted since January, even if it's unused. just so that if and when Windows fails there is something to fall back on to print that assignment due in tomorrow.

[powerpleb]

EDIT: Oh, my brother, he hates it, but he doesn't have anything substantial other than "It looks different than a Mac so I won't use it."
God forbid he might find out that there are more colors than just white, black and gray.

[regomodo]

To the OP,

It doesn't seem like it is your computer. Let mom and dad run what they want.


THe problem is not that they don't want to use Linux, it's the fact that they want you to put an os on that you have to maintain constantly for them. I've been at uni for the last 4 years. Every time i've gone home i've had to find virii, trojans, sort crashes, reinstall xp due to corrupt bootfiles,etc,etc. It gets trying.

[powerpleb]

THe problem is not that they don't want to use Linux, it's the fact that they want you to put an os on that you have to maintain constantly for them. I've been at uni for the last 4 years. Every time i've gone home i've had to find virii, trojans, sort crashes, reinstall xp due to corrupt bootfiles,etc,etc. It gets trying.

My Dad literally threw his XP system in the bin (it was a great Dell P4 - I was outraged) when I was overseas and bought a cheap Mac instead. Now he's surfing a sea of gray.
When I told him I could have put Linux on it for free and it would have been faster and more secure than his crummy Mac he really didn't want to hear it. I don't blame him.

[William Dojinn]

Reminds me of my family. Won't touch firefox, only touched linux when I ran knoppix to limp along till I could get a new ahrddrive a few years back, and claims 'linux breaks stuff' despite my attempts to educate to the contrary.

Eh well. They do what they want with theirs, I do what i want with mine.

[Chame_Wizard]

My parents are absolutely refusing to use Linux. They just won't touch it. Since I got Ubuntu installed, told them about it, they just went out and bought a new virus firewall.

If I try to leave the computer on overnight in a transfer, they shut it off and boot up windows.. but for really idiotic reasons. "I wanted to check facebook" is what my mom says. I ask her why she can't do the same on Linux, and she'll respond " Linux is too hard to figure out"

An old computer in the house won't even work, but my mom claimed it as her's. I told her I could probably load on a Linux distro to make it work, but she says it wouldn't work for what she needs it for (typing)

Another thing is my uncle. He's a bank manager. He was talking to me one day about how he went through two laptops over the last year that had XP and vista on them because of viruses killing the system. I showed him Linux, but he refuses to touch it. He thinks it'll break his system because it's free. And I think that's quite funny considering he goes through about 2 or 3 laptops every year or so.

Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?

M$ makes people stupid :popcorn:

[zmjjmz]

No.
Lack of computer education does.
It's just that XP tends to have worse effects for computer illiterate people.

[Linuxratty]

I don't know what it is with people..:roll::rolleyes:.
I've used Linux for three years...Nothing scary about it...

[Chame_Wizard]

Since 17 may 2007,i am the only one in the family,that using GNU/Linux Kubuntu.No problem at all,except that i had Kernel panic last October(with 7.04,due to low expert with Gnu/Linux commands).

Thankfully(after resizing and good educations/help)i manage to install 7.10,without any f****** problem on 19th February.

So decided to learn everything 100% about(Unix)GNU/Linux,F/OSS and Japanese.Also decided to use XP SP2 for games only(2.5%*),while rest is 97.5%* Kubuntu.:lolflag:

*of my PC time
:guitar:

[Pogeymanz]

I'm all for people doing whatever they want, including using crappy OS's.

But I feel bad for the people who have posted stories of family members declaring that linux is a virus. It's one thing to say "no thanks, I'm comfortable with Windows even though it sucks," but to say "No. Linux is a virus and Windows is the only thing that will work on my computer." Is a whole other story.

My family wont even take care of their Windows machines, though. I often ask my Dad: "Would you drive your car without ever changing the oil? Then why the heck wont you defrag your computer?" I even told him to just go to start->programs->accessories->system tools->disk defragmenter and leave it on while he sleeps and he wont do it. This computer has had Windows XP on it for probably 4-5 years and has not been defragged once.

What's worse is that they spend money like it's going out of style on tech support. And they cannot afford to spend anything on tech support, really... The guy begged them to use Firefox, which did help a lot. Of course, when I told them to use Firefox, they didn't listen.

Unfortunately the only time my family has seen linux, it was when I installed DSL on a laptop with 128MB RAM that had Windows ME on it, so that we could get wireless working on it. Of course, I did all that work and it collects dust except when I come home to visit.

[zmjjmz]

I'd take that lappy with me.

[yamfox]

My Mom was a Firefox 0.1 beta tester, only uses IE when she needs to be on her online classes that 'require' it for no apparent reason.

[zmjjmz]

IEtab?
Or better, User Agent Switcher?

[RebounD11]

I think they had bad experiences with penguins when they were younger [joke]

[markp1989]

when i first mentioned ubuntu to my family, my parents thought it was illegal, because it was free, and when i told them it was free and open source , she wasnt convinced because she thinks you can only get stuff you pay for

[markp1989]

This is a good idea.

i wouldnt, my sister has a habbit of going through add/remove programs and uninstalling stuff she doesnt use, even thou at the time it was a family pc

[nick09]

As you well know, most do not read the manual that came with their computer.

QFT! That is so true!

My mom does not read instructions, like for example my mom makes some mac and she pours a ton of milk in the pot and ends up wasting good milk and making the mac watery which I hate.

I at least have common sense and read manuals when I need help.:lolflag:

[Delever]

I also always read manual before making mistakes. Then make them.

[zmjjmz]

i wouldnt, my sister has a habbit of going through add/remove programs and uninstalling stuff she doesnt use, even thou at the time it was a family pc

Your sister has an admin account...
why?

[heyho]

My Parents have a creaky old P3 running XP, which must take at least 5 minutes to boot and update AVG before it's even usable - even then, FF takes about 40 seconds to load! I put a copy of puppy linux in the CD drive and set up the basic config folder on the HDD. I told them that if they didn't like it, take the CD out and they would have XP back - they haven't looked back - they can now be on the web within about 90 seconds of pressing the power button.

By Brother refers to Ubuntu as "that communist os", then comes to me cap-in-hand begging me to burn some iso's for him, because XP is refusing for no apparent reason.

My Sister has a macbook, and therefore has no valid opinion.:lolflag:

[markp1989]

Your sister has an admin account...
why?

that was back when we only had 1 computer and i wasnt in charge of it

[Jordanwb]

that was back when we only had 1 computer and i wasnt in charge of it

Well now you know who shouldn't be in charge.

[JT9161]

i wouldnt, my sister has a habbit of going through add/remove programs and uninstalling stuff she doesnt use, even thou at the time it was a family pc

He could always just change the the sudo password.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

THe problem is not that they don't want to use Linux, it's the fact that they want you to put an os on that you have to maintain constantly for them. I've been at uni for the last 4 years. Every time i've gone home i've had to find virii, trojans, sort crashes, reinstall xp due to corrupt bootfiles,etc,etc. It gets trying.

In the original post, the OP didn't say he maintained the system.

I'm old enough to be the father or grandfather of most of the people posting on this forum. I was giving replies to posts that shows how a parent thinks when they are computer literate enough to maintain their own computer. They don't what to be forced to use something they don't want.

I have Fedora 8, Ubuntu 7.10, Ubuntu 8.04, XP, and Vista on several computers in dual/triple boot environments. So, I'm in agreement to some extent.

Even at my age, I'm the guy that has to maintain computers for my wife's family. I got tired of driving to their homes to fix their messed up computers. Now I make them bring them to me. There is one of my wife's Aunts that will get Linux installed if she has to bring it back to me again because her 50 year old son got it infected again by downloading p0rn.

[2cute4u]

. Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?
Well personally I'm afraid to use Windows, I can't imagine anyone using something so complicated, that has everything in the wrong place. :shock:

[Robocoastie]

My parents are absolutely refusing to use Linux. They just won't touch it. Since I got Ubuntu installed, told them about it, they just went out and bought a new virus firewall.

If I try to leave the computer on overnight in a transfer, they shut it off and boot up windows.. but for really idiotic reasons. "I wanted to check facebook" is what my mom says. I ask her why she can't do the same on Linux, and she'll respond " Linux is too hard to figure out"

An old computer in the house won't even work, but my mom claimed it as her's. I told her I could probably load on a Linux distro to make it work, but she says it wouldn't work for what she needs it for (typing)

Another thing is my uncle. He's a bank manager. He was talking to me one day about how he went through two laptops over the last year that had XP and vista on them because of viruses killing the system. I showed him Linux, but he refuses to touch it. He thinks it'll break his system because it's free. And I think that's quite funny considering he goes through about 2 or 3 laptops every year or so.

Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?

Then let them use Windows (I assume it's their computer) but let them know this too: their free ride of getting tech-help from you is over. Not because you think they should do as you say but simply because you know how much of a support hassele windows can be for people who aren't computer literate. And thinking another OS is hard is a sign of pure computer illiteracy. (especially when it's GUI'd the same way and has the same tools etc... like we can make gnome and KDE be).

We had far better computer education in both our schools and in adult ed. classes when the most used pc was C-64's and AppleII's than we have today. Today we don't have "computer" class, instead we have MSFT Office class. The former teaches how all programs tend to work regardless of the machine, the latter just makes drones/slaves to MSFT products and they deserve to be nickel and dimed to death their whole lives by MSFT et al.

[etnlIcarus]

Yeah. If there's anything about Linux to hate, it's pesky new-converts trying to shove it down other people's throat.

I'm the one who has to constantly fix my sister's computer. She could make things a hell of a lot easier for me if she used *nix, not that I've tried to convert her.

When either of my siblings come over here, the worst problem they have with ubuntu is the mouse acceleration, which I've adjusted for my, "I can't be arsed moving my arm much", use. Other than that, the layout of my desktop isn't that different to Windows and they're familiar with Firefox.

[powerpleb]

Well personally I'm afraid to use Windows, I can't imagine anyone using something so complicated, that has everything in the wrong place. :shock:

I think Windows is for people who hate using computers. Of course if I use Windows for too long I start to hate computers too.

[ma_nkooo]

Well personally I'm afraid to use Windows, I can't imagine anyone using something so complicated, that has everything in the wrong place. :shock:is it?

[etnlIcarus]

I removed the I.E icon off my parents desktop, so they only know that Firefox is the "Internet" now.

Hahah, man, you have no idea how many people I know who've done just this. i've had to do it on a couple of people's computer as well. Even after you tell them, flat out: "IE + porn = reason you had to call me to fix your computer", they're usually not convinced until you tell them IE is broken beyond repair and, sadly, their only option is to use, "The Firefox".

[R_U_Q_R_U]

I had to laugh when reading this thread. Why do folks feel the need to act like Jehovah Witnesses and "convert" everyone in sight? Don't you just hate it when then come knocking on your door and telling you they have the "one true way"!

If your family likes using Windows or Macs or Atari 800s or whatever leave them alone. No one wants to be hounded by religious zealots trying to "save" them from all their earthly "problems."

We are talking about an OS -- not some life-saving cure for cancer. People use what the like even if you cannot believe that. Leave them alone!

My .02

RU!
________________________
DELL XPS 420 - Vista Ultimate
DELL Insperion 600 Laptop - Ubuntu 8.04
Home Built PIII - Ubuntu 8.04 (file server)

[Chame_Wizard]

M$ zombies IMHO:-({|=:tongue:

[Delever]

I had to laugh when reading this thread. Why do folks feel the need to act like Jehovah Witnesses and "convert" everyone in sight? Don't you just hate it when then come knocking on your door and telling you they have the "one true way"!

If your family likes using Windows or Macs or Atari 800s or whatever leave them alone. No one wants to be hounded by religious zealots trying to "save" them from all their earthly "problems."

We are talking about an OS -- not some life-saving cure for cancer. People use what the like even if you cannot believe that. Leave them alone!


I am fixing computers for them.

[MONODA]

I know exactly how yo feel, it can get REALLY frustrating. (not b/c people wont use linux but b/c people say it sucks for in-valid reasons.

[markp1989]

today, my older sister saw me editing a theme on my computer, and asked me to install ubuntu on her computer, she mostly uses her pc for Internet browsing, she already used firefox in windows, so she is familiar with that

i gave her a dual boot setup with windows xp and ubuntu hardy 64bit

[schmidtbag]

Its always one thing for someone to be afraid of something because of factual proof of it being harmful and logical reasons as to why it is harmful. But when people say things "its bad because its free" is nonsensical. Linux has been used for a dozen years now and has expanded to be worthy of commercial use. Ubuntu alone has over 4 million members, and has developers around the world. Linux is made from Unix which is one of the oldest and most efficient OSes created. How do you make a nearly virus-proof OS become a complete virus? And even if Linux was a virus, so what? At least it works better than a Windows computer proven to have several viruses on it.

Also, Dell uses Linux now, the company that millions more trust. What does that tell your scared friends and family? Who do they think is right now - their rumors about how Linux sucks or the company they get their stuff from?

Personally, I feel Linux users are better off not having these kinds of people in our community.

[yamfox]

Amen.

[gordiemac]

Well since i have become a linix user i have no trouble download and letting stay on i have had not one bit of spyware or anything like that since ..this OS is fantastic..i only use windows on another pc for high end gaming .,,linix is the best if u want too be on the net and not get scammed :lolflag:

[the_hardy_kid]

Its always one thing for someone to be afraid of something because of factual proof of it being harmful and logical reasons as to why it is harmful. But when people say things "its bad because its free" is nonsensical. Linux has been used for a dozen years now and has expanded to be worthy of commercial use. Ubuntu alone has over 4 million members, and has developers around the world. Linux is made from Unix which is one of the oldest and most efficient OSes created. How do you make a nearly virus-proof OS become a complete virus? And even if Linux was a virus, so what? At least it works better than a Windows computer proven to have several viruses on it.

Also, Dell uses Linux now, the company that millions more trust. What does that tell your scared friends and family? Who do they think is right now - their rumors about how Linux sucks or the company they get their stuff from?

Personally, I feel Linux users are better off not having these kinds of people in our community.

That, sir, is some real stuff. I personally don't see why they would... although, Windows is probably better is you are scared of an OS.

People are funny, aren't they? ](*,)

[frup]

It amazes me how retarded some people can be.

My mother won't try Linux, she's happy with XP and never gets viruses because she doesn't use her laptop in a bad manner. My brother and I both use Ubuntu and initially we did try to "convert" her. When she said no (resistance to change) I decided to leave it alone, I think my brother does too.

The side effect is that we have decided to not answer any support calls from any family members, we used to get a bit of the can you help with this or that and now they just get "if you're not using what I'm using I can't help you"

My grandmother has since switched to Ubuntu, she only uses Evolution and Firefox (occasionally). She probably turns on the computer once a week though.

I'm guessing the majority of the "My parents aren't using Linux" posts are coming from teenagers, what I must say is looking back on how I used to talk to my parents, even if I thought I was being polite I can fully understand why they wouldn't take my opinion seriously. I watch other teenagers and their kind of arrogance/confidence in their own abilities and see how it is good (and excellent for exploring new technology) but also see how it comes of as very stand offish when trying to help other people.

Best advice, don't be demanding, give subtle hints, be patient and take your time. Make them feel they are discovering things not being told to switch. Don't help with windows or if you do make comments like "I've forgotten how difficult this is with windows"... only tell the truth, don't tell lies about Linux OR XP, avoid making a hype because it only leads to disappointment.

If the computer is your parents and they have actually allowed you to install Linux, in some ways you should consider yourself very very lucky. I remember I monopolised the computer in my teens and thought of it as mine. The result, mum decided not to upgrade. I was stuck with a Pentium 2 with win95 until late 2002 when I finally built my own computer (after having contributed to the death of the p2 system). I would have begun using Linux at that stage but we didn't have broadband :(

[paulderol]

stop helping them with Windows-related problems...

"oh, sorry, i'm so out of date with M$ stuff that i don't know what i can do for you, really."

and as far as "free is dangerous", use the examples in the Home folder as marketing. just print them out and leave them lying around, as though you were reading them. Further, using the term "software libre" nixes a lot of the freeware concerns.

otherwise, let people do what they want, if they aren't able to adapt to new things, they will be left in the dust by those of us that are. in a short enough time their misinformed opinions will not be something you have to concern yourself with. better to show it to people younger, rather than older than yourself, in the hopes that the next few cycles will be more informed.

[Fenris_rising]

I have got win XP as a virtual machine on my ubuntu so i can help my dad when he screws things up.........again. Hes 188 miles away. If only he'd stop tampering with stuff he doesnt understand! ive tried to break him away from the AOL installed browser system as that seems to bugger up more than anything else. I did manage to swap him from windows ME to XP (before i got converted) which solved a lot of his problems. The most annoying thing is although he's had a pc for about 10 years he doesn't seem to have developed the realisation that that, say, drag and drop works the same regardless of what folders he has open and there are common ways of doing things across all the apps he uses. he's got reams of notes to help him but even then he has trouble. *sigh* still there are fewer technical calls since he got XP. i keep telling him about my swanky linux in terms of ease of use and stability but i fear he will never change. he wont even use the IE browser because he has the AOL setup. ok i guess thats a plus lolol but at least if he did he would be able to save his favorites of to a usb stick instead of losing them everytime AOL throws a wobbley.

[linuxsudo]

At my house they use whatever is available. They are currently using Windows XP and Firefox however this will soon be changing to Ubuntu as all of the applications that they run on Windows work on Ubuntu and as XP ends mainstream support soon why not.

[paulwagner]

All the errors we get on the 5 computers in our house are the fault of my ubuntu distro:)

[Canis familiaris]

Well I introduced my mother to world of computers by Ubuntu and she finds it easy. She knew nothing about computers before and I guess educating her was easy. She can now easily surf net, type documents using Ubuntu.
On the other hand my dad who works daily with XP at work gets confused by firefox and wants IE and the Windows desktop. And he ends up always asking me for help.
My sister who owns a notebook, struggles with viruses, spyware and other crap in her laptop but does not permit me to install Linux. She thinks it is too hard. She admires Linux but still sticks with Windows.
So I guess experience with Windows is a hindrance rather than help.

[Pogeymanz]

I HATE playing tech support over the phone.

ME: Okay Dad, right-click on this and a menu should pop up.
DAD: Now what?
ME: I don't know. I'm not looking at it. Tell me what your options are.
DAD: *list options*
ME: Okay, click the first one.
DAD: What's it doing now?
ME: I DON'T KNOW. What IS it doing?

And it goes on like that for about an hour.

If I still lived with my family, I would force them to install Ubuntu. I don't care if it's disrespectful or not. They don't know how to take care of computers and they don't know how to solve any of their own problems. So instead of bothering me, or spending $50 and hour for some jerk to come and just end up reinstalling XP, I'd rather they just didn't get viruses. The only thing my Dad does is use Firefox, and only because the tech support guys started begging him to.

[freebeer]

And it goes on like that for about an hour.


Yep. That's why I can access his computer remotely. I can see what's going on and fix/tweak/whatever without relying on his interpretation of what he sees on the screen.

(btw... I put Ubuntu on his machine :D)

[Frak]

Linux is made from Unix which is one of the oldest and most efficient OSes created.

It (the Linux kernel) was inspired by Minix and used its userspace for some time. It has very little ties to Unix if any at all.


How do you make a nearly virus-proof OS become a complete virus?

GNU/Linux has viruses. There are even rootkits that embed into the Linux kernel.


And even if Linux was a virus, so what? At least it works better than a Windows computer proven to have several viruses on it.

Linux has been proven to have several (though not many) virii on it.


Also, Dell uses Linux now, the company that millions more trust. What does that tell your scared friends and family? Who do they think is right now - their rumors about how Linux sucks or the company they get their stuff from?

One better, that they don't advertise that they have desktop computers with Linux. That is so they can keep the trust they have gained from their customers. I'm serious.


Personally, I feel Linux users are better off not having these kinds of people in our community.

They can use Linux and "not be in our community". That's a little elitist isn't it?

[OutOfReach]

My dad used to actually be a Linux user, which I never knew until just recently, he said he used Red Hat Linux back in the 1990's, but now he uses Windows, he was amazed when I showed him how much Linux revolutionized from the 1990's, he even let me show him how fast Puppy Linux could make his old computer :). My mom doesn't really care about Linux, she never really uses the computer, only for checking her e-mail. And my little sister is smart enough that she could find the Firefox icon under Applications > Internet and surf the web.

[Lem]

It's easier when you're a bit older..

'Mum - I've bought you a new computer - just one small caveat though.'

She likes the fact that it doesn't get viruses, or break down like her friends computers do. A year or so in and she's become quite a linux evangelist!

[bufsabre666]

It's easier when you're a bit older..

'Mum - I've bought you a new computer - just one small caveat though.'

She likes the fact that it doesn't get viruses, or break down like her friends computers do. A year or so in and she's become quite a linux evangelist!

this acctually happened with me and my dad, hes talked to his friends and ive installed linux on 3 computer for them ((at 20$ a piece, im not charging for the software just my time, the linux install isnt exactly a hands on process

[Jojan]

My mother loves Mozilla Thunderbird and Firefox. But my father get's pissed even when Windows changes things in their software. My father is too conservative to change OS, so don't even bother. I often have to boot their copmuter with a Live CD to fix stuff. He learned ALGOL when he was my age, by the way.

[Extreme Coder]

Heh, this reminds me of last year when I stayed 3 months at my relatives house.
They haven't seen me for about 2-3 years(before I got into Linux), but I was still a computer guy then, and they remembered that about me.
They have 2 computers and a laptop in the house, of course all running heavily virused Windows XP.
At the beginning, I helped them a bit when they got some trouble.
After that, it became tedious, so I just told them, you have to find yourself a solution. It's my way, or the high way: Either install Linux, in which I will gladly support(because I know it will have less trouble), or find yourself some tech support. I know it sounds rude, but I was in no way forced to help them.


Believe me, it isn't that nice to be known as the computer guy between your friends and family. When they get a problem, they immediately think of you == Free Tech Support (TM).

[powerpleb]

It's my way, or the high way: Either install Linux, in which I will gladly support(because I know it will have less trouble), or find yourself some tech support. I know it sounds rude, but I was in no way forced to help them.

Fair enough. You are offering them the best solution in your opinion. If they don't want to take your advice that's fine. What's rude is appealing for free support, ignoring good advice then demanding more support when problems arise because the advise was ignored.

[fedex1993]

Funny thing is i would actually force them to try it for once not let you how them get your hard drive otu of your machine and put it in theres and boot it up and make it load ubuntu and see what happens.

[regomodo]

I HATE playing tech support over the phone.

ME: Okay Dad, right-click on this and a menu should pop up.
DAD: Now what?
ME: I don't know. I'm not looking at it. Tell me what your options are.
DAD: *list options*
ME: Okay, click the first one.
DAD: What's it doing now?
ME: I DON'T KNOW. What IS it doing?

And it goes on like that for about an hour.

God, that was exactly what happened to me last week with my parents, for a bloody mouse!
Then, for a customer at work who couldn't get their printer they bought from the shop, ignored the step to restart their computer. Took 20minutes to get a test-print. A 5min bootup didn't help either.

[barbedsaber]

This is generally true in my family as well,but my uncle did bring his vista laptop here, and ask me to install "that mozilla thing" (Fire fox) because he was sick of "the blue e"

[fredbird67]

Whenever I go visit my parents, I'll inevitably get on the computer at some point -- and my mom will claim I've messed up her computer when I haven't done any such thing at all. And yes, they're running Windows XP. And that's only the tip of the iceberg...

They use Internet Explorer and Outlook Express to surf the web and read and send E-mail and won't use anything else -- never mind the fact that when they close Outlook Express, they get a popup message asking them if they'd like to "compact their mailbox". They clicked "yes" on that once and then they had no idea where their previous E-mails went, so they now click "no" and have told me to do so, which I naturally obey.

I told them that if they'd use Mozilla Thunderbird instead, that they wouldn't have to deal with that nonsense, and not only did they say no, they said NO!!! And I wasn't even trying to push 'em into installing Linux -- sheeshamoli! Likewise when recommending Firefox over Internet Explorer, although I do have Firefox installed on there, but they never use it. I guess I'll just leave 'em to their own ignorance...

Therefore, anytime I'm down there, since I refuse to deal with Windows and its numerous headaches, I now take a copy of Puppy Linux with me to use their computer. Like I said, their computer only has 192MB of RAM on it, plus Puppy feels FAST for a live CD, even though that's not enough memory for it to load itself entirely into RAM (I think you have to have at least 256MB for Puppy to do that).

At my place, though, I'm running Ubuntu Hardy Heron and loving it! :guitar: Their loss, I say.

[magmon]

Sorry, I had to laugh.

But seriously, this is evidence of a need for computer literacy education.

Lol, my school has microsoft office applications xD.

[linuxguymarshall]

Make a big *** firefox icon in the center of the desktop and give it an Internet Exploder icon. That should be easy enough

[magmon]

Internet exploder... HAHA. Ive had sooo many issues with that crap xD

[Hellfirept]

My mom is scared of ubuntu too! :P She uses firefox, though. Thought that was only my relatives, but I'm seeing it's pretty common! :P People usually have hard time with change.

[init1]

My mom is scared of ubuntu too! :P She uses firefox, though. Thought that was only my relatives, but I'm seeing it's pretty common! :P People usually have hard time with change.
Yeah same here. She has no problems with Firefox, but she got really confused when I let her borrow my Ubuntu laptop for typing something.

[Dr Small]

My parents are afraid of Linux too, to an extent. They don't understand how I do things, and get things accomplished, so they think that it's some weird free OS that is difficult to understand and use.

[Rhapsody]

The generally understood system of technology in this household is one 'enlightened despotism'. I'm the only one who understands how it all works, so I take on the roles of technical support, system administrator, and (since the new router) network administrator.

We've ended up in the situation of being a two PC household now, and I switched to Linux a while back. I weighed up the pros and cons, and determined that the pros of making my parents' PC an Ubuntu box were numerous and the cons were practically non-existent.

At first it worked decently, but not too well. Resolution was stuck at 800x600 for no reason I could find, but everything else worked fine. The addition of a printer highlighted the differences in thinking. My mum said there were no Linux drivers, but there may be some on the website. I thought differently, but went anyway, not being surprised to find only Windows and Mac OS X drivers. I then did what I would have in the first place. Plug it in and see if Ubuntu recognized it. It did, and the printer immediately started working.

The upgrade to 8.10 was a bit bumpy for some reason. It booted, but the printer stopped working for no apparent reason. All it would say was 'invalid colorspace', everything else being in form of an incomprehensible error log. This persisted, until I performed a big system update. This updated CUPS, so I tried the printer again. To my amazement, it suddenly decided it was working again.

I pushed further though, and installed the restricted nvidia drivers to see if it would make the video work better. Previously this had always screwed things up even more on the same hardware, but it actually fixed everything on that occasion! I even managed to get desktop effects working. The system now has desktop wall, wobbly windows, and a few other effects enabled with no visible slowdown whatsoever. Try to get Vista doing that on an integrated GeForce 6.

Since that points, I've heard no complains. My mum can use the computer perfectly well for Facebook, email, and internet banking. It's fortunate that all the banks we've encountered have been very well-behaved, with their sites working just as well under Firefox as they do under IE. She even uses OpenOffice.org to do some documents for work, which she then emails to herself in MS Office formats. Seems to work fine so far.

My dad doesn't use it, but then he's never used computers. I've left the whole project of getting him familiarized with technology to my mum. She knows enough about Ubuntu to get him started and seems a better teacher than me. The rest is up to him.

It's good for me that I have an air of trustworthiness and authority when it comes to technology. I told them Linux would work fine, and it does. Score one for Linux and my reputation with technology.

[cmay]

Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?
yes.
i think its what i may call annoying when my uncle has a windows ME and start order internet today the year 2008 and he thinks he can go blazing around the great big old internet with out getting a virus. and he wont use damn small linux on the machine which has about 100 mhz proccesor and 35 mb ram. so when this annoy me so much that i had fixed up a older but far more usable computer for him but he wont even have it. reason .there is not the games he likes to play on it.

this is a true story and i am not kidding. some people just wont let go of the things they already knows. :)

[DOS4dinner]

When firfox 3 had its launch day, I said "I need to help them make a guiness record!!!" So I installed it in every computer in the house. I now have a family of happy Firefox users :P

I have Ubuntu, and my mom likes what she has seen of it, but my her/my dads computer is extremely important and too dangerous to risk losing anything. (He's a engineer)

[kaldor]

I see my old topic has been revived :D


I have another update to my original post. I got a laptop about 15 days after my original post. It came with Vista. After a short time of getting angry at the way it was, I uninstalled it and made it purely Ubuntu. Upon hearing this, my dad almost had a heart attack.

"My god! You can't delete Windows, you will not be able to use your computer! You need internet explorer! Linux is good for little tweaking and fooling around, but not for real use! This is going to cause you to fail school! You can't access certain sites! You can't use programs! You NEEEEED your Windows! I am bringing it back and making them install Windows on it again!"

After hearing that, I made sure that he never used my laptop again.

[magmon]

Lol yeah, my dad would prolly do the same thing. Which is why he hasnt touched it in over a year xD

[zmjjmz]

After hearing these horrible displays of utter stupidity, I'm glad my parents are open to using Chrome/Firefox/Thunderbird.
My dad has really embraced OSS lately. He's using Thunderbird and FF on all of his computers now, and he uses FileZilla for FTP transfers and VLC for media playback.
My mom uses VLC, UltraDefrag, and Chrome now. She tried SumatraPDF but some things are a bit weird with it. Can anyone recommend a good OSS PDF reader for Windows?

[wolfen69]

Can anyone recommend a good OSS PDF reader for Windows?

FoxitReader (http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php) is a good free pdf reader that i give to most of my customers. is fast and lightweight.

[MarblePanther]

cutepdf and foxit are good free alternatives that are not opensource unfortunately

As for opensource, i haven't seen any notable ones beside sumatra that you already mentioned

[etnlIcarus]

I'm tempted to convert my sister, if only because I'm sick of having to fix the dumb **** she does and the even dumber **** XP allows her to do, while she wastes my bandwidh several times a week because an email attachment killed her net connection and she wants to use facebook (side-note: how the hell do the barely computer literate always manage to cotton-on to every fad like facebook, myspace, etc?).

However, I have my concerns:

- The only really fuss-free (by which I mean, sane defaults and a minimum of, "what do I need to install to prevent her from ringing for help a day from now?" distro I've encountered is (x/k)ubuntu but I fear it'll chug along on her very dated system. Hell, Xubuntu chugs along on my Athlon 2800+ w/ 512mb of RAM and my PC is at least twice as capable as her's.

- If I use anything more minimal, I'll enevitably forget to change one policykit setting and she'll be ringing to ask why this or that refuses to work. Whereas with ubuntu, I'd just have to make the desktop look like Windows and add codec support.

- I'm not the only one who does tech support for her but I am the only one who knows linux, potentially creating conflict and increasing my workload. I also know full-well my brother (who is one of the other volunteers) will oppose any suggestions I make.

- She mostly just surfs and uses office but if I tell her that, in most cases, Windows software won't work, she'll likely shut-down to the whole idea. Worse yet, if she buys a piece of hardware or software on the spur of the moment, I'll be held responsible for the lack of compatibility.

- In the past, getting her to use the right software (firefox, tbird) or the right services (gmail) has been a whole lot of hassle. The scope of getting her to change OS is enevitably going to prove futile.

[WaeV]

My god! You can't delete Windows, you will not be able to use your computer! You need internet explorer! Linux is good for little tweaking and fooling around, but not for real use! This is going to cause you to fail school! You can't access certain sites! You can't use programs! You NEEEEED your Windows! I am bringing it back and making them install Windows on it again!

I can't imagine how annoying that would be.

[dannytatom]

Other than my grandma, who uses Firefox and Open Office (she likes the looks of ubuntu, but doesn't want to have to back up the million pictures she's collected over the years), my family is pretty computer illiterate.

My dad doesn't own a computer, and doesn't get the concept of an Operating System. :/

[MikeTheC]

@O.P.:

And that would be a good example of why Windows performs a beneficial community service to the Linux population.

[perlluver]

I am pretty sure my Mom is afraid of Linux, but I did get her using Firefox. My Father-in-Law, is loving Linux though. He said this is fantastic. I guess it all depends on what they want, and if they are willing to accept change.

[WaeV]

Good point.

[MarblePanther]

I can't imagine how annoying that would be.


Before I left for college years ago, my dad said the almost exact same thing to me....just about word for word!

Suffice to say he still wont budge on his windows addiction (I set up online armor firewall, firefox, and avira on his computer, not to mention scanning with malwarebytes scanner (highly-recommended) along with defragging his aging disk.

The only reason he wont switch now that I've semi-enlightened him is that he has gps-software he uses along with various other programs.

[Yownanymous]

Wow.

It annoys me that in IT at school we only learned to use Microsoft Windows products or went on typing tutors.

People really need to be made more aware of computers, and ideally Microsoft need to be legally pursued for deliberate misguidance.

[lykwydchykyn]

I think the OP now has a moral obligation to go to college for CS and get a job as a kernel hacker at a major tech company. Then you can remind mom and dad how they tried to hold you back from a life of fame and fortune.

[Epilonsama]

Thank god im the computer administrator at my house, when my dad ask me to create an account on the family pc I created a Linux account more simple that any Windows desktop I seen, and guess what, he didn't complain, the only trouble was when my father bought a Lexmark Printer :mad:, but I convinced him that lexmark sucks and should buy a HP printer.

He prefers Linux, but in order to make them change you gotta be strong about your knowledge and show them you know more that them, remember parents love to think they know more than you, thank god im the tech guy of my house. :guitar:

[NintendoTogepi]

I know the feeling. My family is terrified of Linux too.

They were also terrified of Firefox. It took a long time and gradual convincing (for example, opening up an interesting web page in Firefox on their computers), but now they love it. Well, some of them at least. My Mom and Grandma use FF, but as for the rest:

Dad: Doesn't use computer enough at home in order for OS to matter, has to use Windows at work
Cousin (he's like a brother): Afraid of it
Grandpa: Afraid of it
Cousin (she's like a sister): Uses a Mac and thus Safari

[RATM_Owns]

If anybody ever asks me to fix their Windows computer, I either reply, "Windows? Sorry, I only know Linux." or "Ten dollars up front."
:P

[richg]

Thanks for telling us. Stuff happens.

Rich

[zmjjmz]

"Ten dollars up front."
:P

I would do that if most of the people who came to me for tech support weren't friends or family. Then I'd just feel like a jackass.

[Dr Small]

I would do that if most of the people who came to me for tech support weren't friends or family. Then I'd just feel like a jackass.
+1
The only people who ask for technical support on Windows are family and friends.

[doorknob60]

My parents used Linux for quite a while, and were okay with it. Then Intrepid broke Nvidia, so I put on Arch, and it shut off randomly, so they made me install Windows. Funny thing is when I think back, I didn't set up any power management like ACPI....maybe that's why XD. Oh well, they use Firefox for web browsing, Gmail for email, Picasa for photos, Pidgin for IM, and VLC for the occasional media, oh yeah and Mediamonkey for the music player. It's the best Windows one I could find with iPod support. So they're pretty open to Open Source, but not in love with it like me. As long as it works the way they're used to then they're fine.

[Delever]

Complaining about Firefox? I just tell that Internet is under new icon :)

[doorknob60]

Complaining about Firefox? I just tell that Internet is under new icon :)

Or install an IE7 theme and rename the icon to Internet Explorer (that is what it does) and maybe even change the icon it uses :P That'd fool most people TBH.

[lykwydchykyn]

I would do that if most of the people who came to me for tech support weren't friends or family. Then I'd just feel like a jackass.

I tried to work out an arrangement with one of the other techs at work so that if one of us had family/friends trying to get free tech support, we'd say something like "That's not really something I can fix, but there's a guy at work who would probably fix that for like $40/hr." And then he'd recommend me or I'd recommend him, respectively.

He wouldn't go for it, unfortunately. Too scrupulous.

[0per4t0r]

Show them all the Ubuntu adoption cases in the examples folder.
If that fails, they must really be narrow-minded.

[Kareeser]

My parents wouldn't switch unless the local newspaper told them to. *sigh*

In any case, I prefer injecting a little magic in my presentations of Linux. It also involves being patient. I wait until their computers break, and while they're wringing their hands in frustration, I slide in, pop a live CD in, and they get to watch as their computer magically comes back to life.

[malspa]

Almost nobody in my family will touch Linux or Firefox. Dad's a penny-pincher, former college math instructor, but won't touch Linux. Of all people, I'd think he'd warm up to a "free" OS. Brothers are teachers, won't touch it. Nephews, nieces won't touch it. Astounds me.

The only one who uses it is my 15 year-old son, who was with me when I first decided to try Linux several years ago, and who took to it right away.

[kevpan815]

You are not alone Kaldor, my mom and dad do not allow me 2 use my Ubuntu 9.10 Alpha 1 PC's Online. I always keep 1 PC running W7RC so that I can get Online.

[malspa]

You are not alone Kaldor, my mom and dad do not allow me 2 use my Ubuntu 9.10 Alpha 1 PC's Online. I always keep 1 PC running W7RC so that I can get Online.

That's crazy. I have a Windows computer that I don't allow my son to use online! Fine if he plays games and organizes his music on it, but we use only Linux online.

[t0p]

Linux is made from Unix

Just a little quibble: Linux may be like Unix, but that's as far as it goes. Remember that GNU stands for "Gnu's Not Unix". Remember that Linus Torwalds wanted Linux to be like Minix.

There might be a bit of Open/Net/FreeBSD source code in there somewhere, but they are Free software. Unix is certainly not Free... which is why Richard Stallman started the Gnu project.

[MaxIBoy]

I got my parents on Firefox and AVG instead of IE7 and Norton, because IE and Norton are both suicide. Those two transitions went smoothly.

Tried them out on Wubi got myself yelled at. Tried them out on OOo instead of MS Office, got myself yelled at. I spent weeks carefully explaining to my dad that they were not going to be identical, and that there would be some slight change.Five minutes after I'd installed OOo, my dad was already shouting, "But you told me it would be the exact same!" This was because I told him they were compatible. Compatible != identical, but he didn't seem to understand the distinction.


However, they don't care at all about what I run on my own computers (which outnumber theirs four to one.) One time, I got a snide remark about how I should really accept the fact that Linux is causing my laptop's backlight to break all the time, and the next time I have to send it to the repair depot, I should stick with vista. I pointed out that it was a hardware problem (crumpled up tinfoil and chewing gum instead of solder, maybe?) and I haven't heard the remark since then.

[Dj Melik]

My entire family uses Linux except my dad (on his laptop), because he needs Windows for his Forex Trading Software; but he really loves Linux and finds it A LOT easier than Windows. Although when he isn't on his laptop, he is on our Family Desktop (Linux).

Both sister and mom, have Linux on their netbooks.

[dspari1]

I don't care what my family uses on their computers, but when using my computer, Linux is the only OS installed. ):P

I'm not here to change the world, and I don't want to convert anyone. I find Mac people to be the most annoying type of people in the world, and the last thing I want to do is be like them. If people see me using Linux, and they ask me about it, I'll let them know about it, but I always warn them that it can't do everything that Windows can do but at the same time explain that Linux can do many things that Windows can't.

I tell them that the main reason I like Linux better than Windows is because I'm a security freak, and Linux is a secured OS that addresses many security risks that Windows has such as a virus key logging all of my credit card information when I'm buying something online.

After that, I show them VirtualBox to show that they do indeed have a safety net if they really want to try Linux.

On a different note, I installed Windows 7 a while back (now deleted), and they hated Windows 7 also because it was too different from XP. They asked, "why don't they(Microsoft) just add the 3d stuff to XP and call it day?".

My conclusion is that people don't want to relearn what they already know, and it has nothing to do with liking or disliking Linux.




"My god! You can't delete Windows, you will not be able to use your computer! You need internet explorer! Linux is good for little tweaking and fooling around, but not for real use! This is going to cause you to fail school! You can't access certain sites! You can't use programs! You NEEEEED your Windows! I am bringing it back and making them install Windows on it again!"


Your dad isn't completely wrong, and it can cause you to fail school if your major depends on Microsoft Office, or if you run into classes that requires you to use the software that comes with your textbook. For that reason, VirtualBox is a lifesaver. (This semester I ran into a required textbook software that wouldn't work in Windows 7 either.)

[joe26]

if the system has vista, go get vixta looks just like vista, and yes it is spelled :KSVIXTA:KS

[xavierp94]

My parents and sister don't care at all about Ubuntu. My sister even has Ubuntu on her laptop and knows how to use it pretty well! :D

[Dimitriid]

My family uses windows still but that is because I have no desire to convince them to try something else at this point. The way I figure is if I start telling them to use linux pretty soon they will be calling me for support...that never goes well, they never seem to understand that being able to understand computers doesn't gives me magical powers to buy ISA modems and SD ram modules and they end up paying some douchebag who charges them $100 bucks to "upgrade" by doing running a defrag tool.

[tcoffeep]

I'll simply quote Lovecraft here, and move on :

"The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown."

[wilkinlp01]

My brother hates linux,he keeps changing his mind why its crap
at first he said it couldnt run windows programs then he changed it to cant run windows programs properly, i think linux runs windows programs better than windows lol

[Jackelope]

There's always hope. My sister wants Linux on her laptop after she saw me playing with Compiz.

And my dad finds windows hard to use, so I'm building him a custom Ubuntu box that's insanely simple so he'll be able to actually get on the web without antivirus warnings popping up every 5 minutes.

[Jackelope]

My brother hates linux,he keeps changing his mind why its crap
at first he said it couldnt run windows programs then he changed it to cant run windows programs properly, i think linux runs windows programs better than windows lol

Ha ha, my brother doesn't trust it either. Windows only gives him trouble, but he won't try the alternative.

[starcannon]

My parents are absolutely refusing to use Linux. They just won't touch it. Since I got Ubuntu installed, told them about it, they just went out and bought a new virus firewall.

If I try to leave the computer on overnight in a transfer, they shut it off and boot up windows.. but for really idiotic reasons. "I wanted to check facebook" is what my mom says. I ask her why she can't do the same on Linux, and she'll respond " Linux is too hard to figure out"

An old computer in the house won't even work, but my mom claimed it as her's. I told her I could probably load on a Linux distro to make it work, but she says it wouldn't work for what she needs it for (typing)

Another thing is my uncle. He's a bank manager. He was talking to me one day about how he went through two laptops over the last year that had XP and vista on them because of viruses killing the system. I showed him Linux, but he refuses to touch it. He thinks it'll break his system because it's free. And I think that's quite funny considering he goes through about 2 or 3 laptops every year or so.

Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?

Wow, and that explains the state of the banking industry.

[jamieh]

I recently took over the IT job of a computer lab for a school. The computers all had WinXP and it was nothing but problems. I brought up the topic of Linux to the admins, and they said absolutely not.

One day, I was in the lab alone, performing some updates for Adobe CS3. It looked like it would take awhile, so I went out to the gas station to grab a pepsi. I came back. EVERY. SINGLE. COMPUTER. had a blue screen. I decided that was it. I whipped out the Ubuntu CD I strangely always keep in my backpack, wiped everything, and left.

I get a call on my phone the next day, the caller ID said the name of the school. Because I was in fear of being yelled at, I just let it go to voicemail. What did he say? "I love it!". I went down there. The 50 year old school admin was screwing around with Compiz as if he had just discovered a new gold mine. "Everything WORKS!" he would keep saying.

Lesson here, if someone doesn't want linux, install it anyway ;)

[mancha]

Mum prefers Ubuntu to Vista, Dad does'nt know what a computer is.

[tubezninja]

Lesson here, if someone doesn't want linux, install it anyway ;)

Heh, no I would never recommend that. You lucked out. Not everyone would be so lucky, and would be looking for other jobs shortly after going about things exactly the way you did.

Count your blessings!

[chris200x9]

I see this all the time.

MCSE and the like are all brain washed into thinking that Microsoft is the only OS on the planet and anything else is just rubbish.

Actually we have an MS tech in my local LUG :)

[Jpenguin]

I think you're all crazy and the OP's parents are right. Don't you all know that Lunix is an evil hacking tool? Here's the evidence:

http://www.adequacy.org/stories/2001.12.2.42056.2147.html


LOLZ

Hope noones dumb enough to take that seriously

[racerraul]

Its the other way around with me...

I am scared of my family calling me to fix windows...

[steveneddy]

It's their PC. They get to choose what OS to put on it.

Just keep plugging away at Ubuntu and when they have to send the PC to the shop a few time because of Virus/trojan/spyware issues and you don't, they may finally see the big picture.

[MaxIBoy]

I recently took over the IT job of a computer lab for a school. The computers all had WinXP and it was nothing but problems. I brought up the topic of Linux to the admins, and they said absolutely not.

One day, I was in the lab alone, performing some updates for Adobe CS3. It looked like it would take awhile, so I went out to the gas station to grab a pepsi. I came back. EVERY. SINGLE. COMPUTER. had a blue screen. I decided that was it. I whipped out the Ubuntu CD I strangely always keep in my backpack, wiped everything, and left.

I get a call on my phone the next day, the caller ID said the name of the school. Because I was in fear of being yelled at, I just let it go to voicemail. What did he say? "I love it!". I went down there. The 50 year old school admin was screwing around with Compiz as if he had just discovered a new gold mine. "Everything WORKS!" he would keep saying.

Lesson here, if someone doesn't want linux, install it anyway ;)That made my day.


So what about Adobe CS3? How did that work out?

[Giant Speck]

So what about Adobe CS3? How did that work out?

I was wondering the same thing. The story stopped making sense to me after he said all the computers blue-screened.

[pwnst*r]

I recently took over the IT job of a computer lab for a school. The computers all had WinXP and it was nothing but problems. I brought up the topic of Linux to the admins, and they said absolutely not.

One day, I was in the lab alone, performing some updates for Adobe CS3. It looked like it would take awhile, so I went out to the gas station to grab a pepsi. I came back. EVERY. SINGLE. COMPUTER. had a blue screen. I decided that was it. I whipped out the Ubuntu CD I strangely always keep in my backpack, wiped everything, and left.

I get a call on my phone the next day, the caller ID said the name of the school. Because I was in fear of being yelled at, I just let it go to voicemail. What did he say? "I love it!". I went down there. The 50 year old school admin was screwing around with Compiz as if he had just discovered a new gold mine. "Everything WORKS!" he would keep saying.

Lesson here, if someone doesn't want linux, install it anyway ;)

boy if anybody believed that post - lol on them.

[nekoteck]

I get you man... but my situation is not that similar to yours though... i installed linux Over windows and once i told my parents about it they flipped. They were like "put windows back!"

I couldn't cuz i only have 255 MB of ram (my comps very old) so i couldn't dual boot both windows and linux.

So when i told them i couldn't restore windows...........I was Kicked out of the house...no,i just got grounded and my free will was taken away:p

[MaxIBoy]

I couldn't cuz i only have 255 MB of ram (my comps very old) so i couldn't dual boot both windows and linux.Wut

[Giant Speck]

I couldn't cuz i only have 255 MB of ram (my comps very old) so i couldn't dual boot both windows and linux.

You do realize that when dual-booting Windows and Linux, the two operating systems aren't running at the same time, right?

[HappinessNow]

People in my family are scared of people who are scared of Linux and Firefox

[jamieh]

People in my family are scared of people who are scared of Linux and Firefox

Wuzzat?

[jamieh]

boy if anybody believed that post - lol on them.

How do you lol "on" someone?

[Frak]

boy if anybody believed that post - lol on them.
Thought the same sir. Didn't want to step on toes though.

[RiceMonster]

lol "I went out to the gas station to grab a pepsi. I came back. EVERY. SINGLE. COMPUTER. had a blue screen."

I'm sure.

[earthpigg]

i believe his story about all the BSODs as a result of purchasing pepsi.

once when i went to the gas station to get a pepsi, i came back to find that Bill Gates was at my computer installing viruses and downloading child porn.


i learned my lesson: i drink Coke now.

[Frak]

lol "I went out to the gas station to grab a pepsi. I came back. EVERY. SINGLE. COMPUTER. had a blue screen."

I'm sure.
Heh. Well, I do work at a school, and installing Linux on every workstation without higher approval will not only have your contract revoked, but there would also be some serious legal repercussions including, but not limited to, the cost of repairing all of the computers to their original state.

It's in my contract. I don't doubt there's roughly the same in others.

[Polaris96]

Many of my friends and family are now Linux'ish to some degree (dual booters, to a one - good for them!). My father doesn't understand the difference between a computer and a typewriter - lost cause, there. My mother worked on UNIX workstations for years in the 70s and 80s. She thought she knew what Linux was and didn't want any part of.

I waited until she suffered a spectacular XP meltdown. To Be Fair, she ONLY had a P3 with 1G RAM and a 60G HDD ... Hardly sufficient for the King of OS leprosy. Anyway, I threw her a Kubuntu Hardy Live Install CD as a lifering and she stuck to it like a limpet. Funny how that works.

My friends were tougher but they came online when I showed them how I could tweak their problems with ssh from across the country. They claim to be annoyed when I also change their wallpaper and leave links to unsavoury websites b4 I go. Nobody's changed their password, yet, though. Free sysadmin is worth practical jokes, I guess.

I think, sooner or later, any Win user wil be in a frame of mind to try Linux. Just wait until a big crash takes down their box or a nifty new version of vista comes out and their clunky old AMD Phenom 9700 just can't handle to load.

[RiceMonster]

Heh. Well, I do work at a school, and installing Linux on every workstation without higher approval will not only have your contract revoked, but there would also be some serious legal repercussions including, but not limited to, the cost of repairing all of the computers to their original state.

It's in my contract. I don't doubt there's roughly the same in others.

Yes, I was thinking that as well. I work on a mainframe at a bank, which I connect to using a terminal emulator on Windows XP. If I were to format this and install Linux, I'd get fired on the spot. Plus, this computer is not my property in the first place, so who am I to decide what operating system it should use?


i believe his story about all the BSODs as a result of purchasing pepsi.

once when i went to the gas station to get a pepsi, i came back to find that Bill Gates was at my computer installing viruses and downloading child porn.


i learned my lesson: i drink Coke now.

lol. Don't you mean that happened when you bought a coke, so now you drink Pepsi? XD

[lykwydchykyn]

Yes, I was thinking that as well. I work on a mainframe at a bank, which I connect to using a terminal emulator on Windows XP. If I were to format this and install Linux, I'd get fired on the spot. Plus, this computer is not my property in the first place, so who am I to decide what operating system it should use?


Well, I don't know that I buy the story either; but not every place is so strict. I work for a municipal government, and as long as the job gets done and the user is happy they don't care what OS I put on my machine or any other. Granted, I work in tech support, so it's not like anyone else would be put to any work if my system blew up.

[tcoffeep]

. Don't you mean that happened when you bought a coke, so now you drink Pepsi? XD

still your tongue, heathen.

[blazini]

........... I showed him Linux, but he refuses to touch it. He thinks it'll break his system because it's free.

I hope you don't mind, but this is pretty good so I had to make it my sig;)

[starcannon]

i believe his story about all the BSODs as a result of purchasing pepsi.

once when i went to the gas station to get a pepsi, i came back to find that Bill Gates was at my computer installing viruses and downloading child porn.


i learned my lesson: i drink Coke now.
I rawfulmow'ed all over my netbook.

[MaxIBoy]

still your tongue, heathen.
Arise, my Pepsi brethren! Tonight, we exorcise the evil from our mouths and throats! Tonight, we take what is OURS!
http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/6155/pepsibretheren.png
Original picture. (http://www.famemaster.com/Product/4D-Puzzle-Toys/great-warriors/Great-Warriors-Photos/4D-Puzzle-Great-Warriors-Toy-Norman-Knight-24030-1.jpg) Exploitable (insert-your-own-logo) version of this picture is available on request.

[tcoffeep]

Do not start a war you cannot win.

[BlazeFire247]

Does anyone else find it annoying to have people in the house/family that are afraid to touch anything besides Windows?

Yeah, my mom actually. She likes Yahoo! Messenger, and you can't make her use Pidgin. She likes the BUZZ!!, the Audibles... everything YM.

[dmizer]

Closed this for:

- Resurecting the dead
- A bit too far off topic (coke vs. pepsi ?!)
- Recurring discussion that is being discussed in other locations
- Inflamatory posts
- The OP hasn't posted in this thread anywhere other than the first post, so I assume the question has been answsered.

Thank you for participating.