[SC.LUG] RE: SC Digest, Vol 107, Issue 2: Switch 2 Linux

[Andrew Hutchings]

On Wednesday 18 January 2006 16:56, Russ Phillips wrote:
>
> However, I don't think the average user would find it easy to install,
> simply because the text installer would frighten a lot of people. You
> could argue that it's easier for a power user, because it asks all the
> questions at the start, then gets on with it. Windows, on the other
> hand, keeps asking questions all the way through.

But 90% of the time XP gives you a text based installer for stage 1, and I 
have known its partitioner to frighten small children.  I also know a lot of 
English users stuff up at the keyboard / language selections.
Is (K)Ubuntu bringing in a GUI install by April?  I know it is on the cards, 
as is a combined Live / Install CD (rather than a combined DVD).  Fedora's 
Anaconda is good but it has bugs that haven't been fixed since Fedora Core 1 
(and possibly before).
At the end of the day most Windows users never see the installer as it comes 
pre-installed and usually comes with an automated reinstall (usually 
involving an image of the installed HDD).  Back when I used to sell Linux 
desktops the same was true for that.
It would be interesting to compare a Linspire install with XP.

> One thing that did irritate me was this statement:
> "I will even go out on a limb and say that Windows Vista will be
> easier to install than any Linux distribution available today."
> It seems to be quite common to claim that the *next* version of
> Windows will be better than the *current* versions of Linux, and I
> think it's all too easy for Linux people to be drawn into the
> comparison. Back when the next version of Windows was called Longhorn,

You are right here, if you compare with KDE4 for example (gnome fans flame 
here) you could probably argue that Linux's GUI is better.  Do bear in mind 
that KDE and Gnome are a lot younger than Windows, but feel 06/07 is the time 
where you see them catch up and even exceed to Windows in layman useability 
and look&feel.

> Rant over.
>
> Russ
>

Regards
Andrew
-- 
Andrew Hutchings (A-Wing) - Linux Guru
Linux CDs and DVDs - http://www.linuxiso.co.uk/
Linux quote 47/232: "The best way to accelerate a computer running Windows is 
at 9.81 m/s²." - Anon.
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