My brother won't even try Ubuntu or even any linux...

[Lord Xeb]

He says it is too hard e_e and right now he is rebuilding is windows machine since he screwed it up...

[kinematic]

So he doesn't want to try it and you care why exactly ?

[Kernel Sanders]

That's his decision. Leave him be, and if he wants to try it at a later date through his own decision, help him! :KS

Forcing linux on people causes more problems than it solves. Just think, he'll try it grudgingly, won't give it a chance, hate it, and then tell others of how crappy it is, thus polluting potential linux users in the future. Just think of all the people who could be put off even trying it through word of mouth alone. So, DONT DO IT! :)

[shad0w_walker]

Just leave him to his reinstalling and hours of tweaking/installing drivers and play a game on your still working system.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

A lot of people won't try Linux until they have a reason of their own for doing so. Because of you, he knows Linux is an alternative to Windows. Let him decide when or if he is ready to try it. My 25 year old baby daughter (youngest child) has decided she wants me to install Linux for her; however, I will only help her do it herself when she comes by to visit next. Vista patches disabled her ability to play DVDs, and in only 2 months of buying the laptop it has gotten extremely slow. That was all she could stand. Hasta la Vesta.

She was about 2 years old when I got my first home computer. That was before Windows was invented. By the time she was 5 years old she could load a Basic program from tape. The point is, even though she may not remember it, she doesn't really need Windows.

[gameryoshi600]

That's his decision. Leave him be, and if he wants to try it at a later date through his own decision, help him! :KS

Forcing linux on people causes more problems than it solves. Just think, he'll try it grudgingly, won't give it a chance, hate it, and then tell others of how crappy it is, thus polluting potential linux users in the future. Just think of all the people who could be put off even trying it through word of mouth alone. So, DONT DO IT! :)

+1:popcorn:

[madjr]

He says it is too hard e_e and right now he is rebuilding is windows machine since he screwed it up...

get him linuxmint

am sure he won't find it so alien.

i've seen some people get scared of "plain vanilla" ubuntu...:(

but linuxmint seems to "feel" a bit familiar

if he doesn't like it, at least he won't have the excuse that is "difficult"

[cardinals_fan]

I'm not sure why you care. Leave him alone!

[dasunst3r]

The best way to spread an alternative is to just raise awareness of it. When he sees you on your still-working computer while his computer is down again enough times, he'll wonder "how you do it," if you will.

@Old_Gray_Wolf: "hastalavista" happens to be the name of my computer.

[brett123]

Never try to give advice to adults who haven't asked for it - you'll fail everytime.

My partner, who has his own laptop with Windows, has taken no interest whatsoever in my recent Ubuntu install on my own laptop. Last night, I made sure I was spinning the cube, and flashing the dock conviently in front of him - it started a whole conversation about what Linux is, and why people use it etc. The point is HE started it, not me.

He's now considering installing Ubuntu himself. It was "his idea" - just prompted a little bit. :D

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

@Old_Gray_Wolf: "hastalavista" happens to be the name of my computer.

Microsoft should have seen that joke coming. Every release of a new OS, be it Microsoft, MAC, or a Linux distro, has complaints about it not being ready or not being as good as the previous release.

Oops!...Off topic again, darn.

[sharkinfested]

Microsoft should have seen that joke coming. Every release of a new OS, be it Microsoft, MAC, or a Linux distro, has complaints about it not being ready or not being as good as the previous release.

Oops!...Off topic again, darn.


True.
I’ve seen lots of complaints about the latest release of Ubuntu on this site and there are similar posts about Leopard on Apple’s forums. That’s why I always try to hold off on upgrading the OS – let’em fix the bugs first! I still run XP and Tiger, Ubuntu well, I didn’t try it out until this latest version was released – but it seems to work well.

To the original poster: Try NOT to bash your brother’s choice! If you want someone to dig their heels in and refuse to change then start telling them their choices are terrible. Besides the sure sign of a weak argument is the person that resorts to name calling.
Every time my nephews visited me a work they saw me using Ubuntu. They started asking questions and a week later they each dual booted their laptops.
Curiosity will get your brother looking over your shoulder.

[original_jamingrit]

get him linuxmint

am sure he won't find it so alien.

i've seen some people get scared of "plain vanilla" ubuntu...:(

but linuxmint seems to "feel" a bit familiar

if he doesn't like it, at least he won't have the excuse that is "difficult"

Peanut butter is way better than vanilla or mint. ;-)

[mthei]

Never try to give advice to adults who haven't asked for it - you'll fail everytime.

Or anyone who doesn't ask for it. This is very good advice.

Whether it's "easy" or not, making a switch from one OS to another is a major step for someone, especially someone who uses their computer often.
If people are comfortable with what they have, leave them be. What if what they use in Windows doesn't have decent alternatives in Linux.
And besides, who can say that Ubuntu, or any other distro would work well on his computer? Some things may not work as well as they do on your computer. My partner (who had recommended Linux to me, as it suited my needs) uses Ubuntu on her laptop, and has no problems at all, while I've had major sound issues and the old suspend/resume problem (only since Gutsy, though).

[speedwell68]

My Father was a complete anti Linux. But after him using my laptop a few times he has kinda warmed to it, the speed and smoothness impressed him. I then slowly converted him to the idea of open source and free software. Now he uses Firefox and Thunderbird exclusively. He was moaning that he couldn't publish PDFs and the Adobe software was going to cost a fortune. He was also complaining that his 8 year old version of MS Office was going to cost a fortune to upgrade. So I now have him using OpenOffice, he is publishing his PDFs and is grinning from ear to ear because he has an up to date Office suite that cost him nothing. When Windows Media Player was causing his PC to crawl, I introduced him to VLC. So I have slowly converted him to a new way of thinking. Today I have noticed that a CDR with Ubuntu 8.04 i686 written on it has appeared on his desk, he has decided to dual boot and give it a try. Linux is about changing peoples thinking.

[steveneddy]

My Father was a complete anti Linux. But after him using my laptop a few times he has kinda warmed to it, the speed and smoothness impressed him. I then slowly converted him to the idea of open source and free software. Now he uses Firefox and Thunderbird exclusively. He was moaning that he couldn't publish PDFs and the Adobe software was going to cost a fortune. He was also complaining that his 8 year old version of MS Office was going to cost a fortune to upgrade. So I now have him using OpenOffice, he is publishing his PDFs and is grinning from ear to ear because he has an up to date Office suite that cost him nothing. When Windows Media Player was causing his PC to crawl, I introduced him to VLC. So I have slowly converted him to a new way of thinking. Today I have noticed that a CDR with Ubuntu 8.04 i686 written on it has appeared on his desk, he has decided to dual boot and give it a try. Linux is about changing peoples thinking.

very cool

[madjr]

That's his decision. Leave him be, and if he wants to try it at a later date through his own decision, help him! :KS

Forcing linux on people causes more problems than it solves. Just think, he'll try it grudgingly, won't give it a chance, hate it, and then tell others of how crappy it is, thus polluting potential linux users in the future. Just think of all the people who could be put off even trying it through word of mouth alone. So, DONT DO IT! :)

i disagree,

his brother has already been infected with F.U.D (the fear, the uncertainty and the doubt) that linux is way more difficult then windows.

His brother's fears and misconceptions will just spread to others anyway.

the best way is to capture his interest slowly like brett123 says:


Never try to give advice to adults who haven't asked for it - you'll fail everytime.

My partner, who has his own laptop with Windows, has taken no interest whatsoever in my recent Ubuntu install on my own laptop. Last night, I made sure I was spinning the cube, and flashing the dock conviently in front of him - it started a whole conversation about what Linux is, and why people use it etc. The point is HE started it, not me.

He's now considering installing Ubuntu himself. It was "his idea" - just prompted a little bit. :D

[Lord Xeb]

I got a big problem though... He decided to install linux but now It will only operate in graphics safe mode... The ATI restricted drivers do no even show up in the restricted drivers manager. Also, he like Compiz a lot :D Now I need to get his graphics working and he will like it.

[MONODA]

I dont care what other people choose to use as an OS but many times people just say that linux is hard/sucks without even knowing or trying it. This ignorance is quite frustrating...

[Canis familiaris]

Let him use Windows. That is HIS DESCISION. But show him glimpses of Linux occassionally and make fun of him when he struggles with virii and spyware.
But DO NOT FORCE LINUX ON HIM!

[Canis familiaris]

I dont care what other people choose to use as an OS but many times people just say that linux is hard/sucks without even knowing or trying it. This ignorance is quite frustrating...

Sadly, Most people are like that!

[kernelhaxor]

You could suggest him a dual boot and ask him to try ubuntu once in a while .. if he likes it, he'll switch by himself ..

[kernelhaxor]

My Father was a complete anti Linux. But after him using my laptop a few times he has kinda warmed to it, the speed and smoothness impressed him. I then slowly converted him to the idea of open source and free software. Now he uses Firefox and Thunderbird exclusively. He was moaning that he couldn't publish PDFs and the Adobe software was going to cost a fortune. He was also complaining that his 8 year old version of MS Office was going to cost a fortune to upgrade. So I now have him using OpenOffice, he is publishing his PDFs and is grinning from ear to ear because he has an up to date Office suite that cost him nothing. When Windows Media Player was causing his PC to crawl, I introduced him to VLC. So I have slowly converted him to a new way of thinking. Today I have noticed that a CDR with Ubuntu 8.04 i686 written on it has appeared on his desk, he has decided to dual boot and give it a try. Linux is about changing peoples thinking.
thts awesome!

[brett123]

I dont care what other people choose to use as an OS but many times people just say that linux is hard/sucks without even knowing or trying it. This ignorance is quite frustrating...

But, it is! Linux has come a long way in recent years though*, and Ubuntu is on the right track IMHO, but you still need a certain level of computing knowledge to get it to do what you want.

Ahhh, I had a point in there somewhere, but lost it... :D


* I was in awe at the Ubuntu installer - the **biggest** decision I had to make was what time zone I was in. Far cry from years ago, when I couldn't even get a display on my monitor!!

[Phixion]

Nice to see so many new faces on here!

You should never force an OS upon someone, let them decide for themself. I've been using Ubuntu from the beginning in one way or another and I have it running on my laptop atm, however my main desktop PC still runs on Windows XP. I haven't experienced any of the crashing/sluggishness/viruses that people talk about.

There's a place for both Windows and Linux, I think it comes down to how clued up you are, personally I haven't run a live anti virus/anti spyware program in years, I'm behind a hardware firewall and that + my common sense has kept me out of trouble.

Linux isn't as bad as some people make out and neither is Windows!

[brett123]

I agree, does it have to be one **or** the other? Can't we all just, err, hold hands and sing kumbaya or something, and just co-exist? :D:D:D