Over on slash.dot they're discussing PC Magazine's 1.5 rating of a Linux desktop computer being sold by Wal-mart.
One person commented that Linux is difficult for neophytes to learn. Another responded that Windows is just as hard to learn. I'd have to agree. After ten years of using computers that run Windows, my wife still cannot fathom the following:
-- The Taskbar. She does not understand that the buttons on the Taskbar allow her to switch between application. Or, to use her language, "how do I get back to FireFox that you made disappear."
-- Dialog Boxes. The choices (yes, no, cancel, ok) make no sense to her. Nor does she understand why dialog boxes have to appear. To her, they just get in the way.
-- Copy and Paste. Nothing visual happens when selected text is copied, so she cannot understand where the text goes (Clipboard memory). Similarly, pasting is a puzzle to her. Forget about her memorizing the Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V shortcut keystrokes.
So, it wouldn't really matter if Linux or Windows were running on her computer. Both would continue to frustrate her with their mysterious ways. She is visual; when computers do things invisibly or in the background, then the operations don't exist for her.
(It's too bad that concepts behind the PalmOS didn't become mainstream, such as removing the need to save or open files; a single task operating at a time; and very efficient access to options.)
As a side note, I again was fixing my dad's new Toshiba notebook computer for him. Or, more accurately, tweaking apps and shortcuts so that things work the way he wants. He pays me $20 each time.
After the last tweaking session on Christmas Eve, he groaned: "The more I use Vista, the less I like it."
Speaking of Toshiba notebook computers, their keyboards are a mess here in officially bilingual Canada. In order to save money, the Japanese corporation decided to place both English and French labels on keys. That way, one model serves both language markets.
With some notebook computer keys already doing quadruple duty (eg: &, 7, numeric Home, and numeric 7), the added burden of the second language in a third color is overwhelmingly complex. My dad has resorted to using Whiteout to label certain often-used keys to make them standout from the clutter.
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