[Sussex] What planet are they on ?

[johnsemailaccount at gmail.com]

Wotcha List,

Damn I must be going mad eh ? 2 posts to the list in less than a  
month.......

So here I am, trying to fine tune a few things with this new, all singing,  
all dancing version of Ubuntu ie 11.10 (I forget what idiot name they've  
given it.....)

All I'm trying to do, is to install the windows fonts (and yes, I do have a  
licence and install on a different partition). So, rather than bother you  
good people, I just google it.

Which is fine as there seem to be some rather nice, helpful instructions,  
great! The advice followed and yes, it seems that I've managed to install  
the fonts, but when opening an application that might have some listing of  
fonts to choose from (like firefox), there's no sign of them.

Ok, so I hit google again, as there seems to be no way of changing any of  
the system fonts etc and google gives me a different place to look, which I  
find and try to follow.

The instructions say about installing a package called something like gnome  
tweeks, so that's ok, I can manage something as basic as that. Job done.

Obviously not, as it doesn't matter whether I just log out and back in or  
do a full restart, there's no sign of how to open this facility (nothing in  
the menu etc), so Ok, next step is to

look in the "Ubuntu software centre", and all I can find is "Gnome desktop  
environment with added components".

It's all well and good being able to install all sorts of packages but  
absolutely no good if there's no obvious way of running said packages.

It does seem a bit weird, as I've done this a number of times before, more  
often than not, just clicking a few facilities and bingo, fonts installed  
and available. Yet with this latest version of Ubuntu, they seem to have  
left out or removed some of the things like this, that we "non-techie"  
types rely on.

I mean, what good is it them producing newer versions of things if they  
leave out some of those kind of facilities ? Are they still aiming the  
*buntu's at people in the hope that they'll change from another OS ? or are  
have they given up on increasing market share, and just aiming it at techie  
types who can do all of the more basic things blindfolded ?

"They" seem to make these kind of changes, apparently making things easier,  
but seemingly only from their own point of view - which IMO is a complete  
waste of time, as non-techie types don't understand or know how to do stuff  
from their point of view do they ! Hell, there's not even an option to view  
or change fonts in either the "Accessories" or "System tools". How is the  
less technically adept person gonna work out how to do stuff.

Even the bits of advice and guidance that google kicks up seems to be  
written from a semi-tech approach. That seems to leave stuff out  
as "they'll know how to do that".....

Right, sorry if that sounds a bit like a rant, well it is, but it's not  
supposed to. Just me venting a bit of frustration about something that  
should be reasonably straight forward, that "they" have made hard work!

Keep up your excellent posts, as they do make excellent reading, even if I  
don't follow exactly what it is that you may be trying to do. Like "British  
Rail", I'll get there, eventually.

regards

John D.
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