Some observations

[jdodson]

Arnold Maestre Wrote: 
> 
> True enough. But at the end of the day, this is not what matters.
> People *do* have huge collections of mp3s that they have been
> gathering for years, and they're not going to throw it all away just
> because it's patent encumbered or not free or martian diseased or
> whatever.

you are right in that people do not want to get rid of the 40 gigs of
music the currently posses.  however as far as i understand the ubuntu
philosophy of creating a free OS as in freedom, then adding mp3
playback is not an option(i could be interpreting that wrong, but i
dont think i am).  check this site for information on mp3 patent and
licensing issues:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mp3#Licensing_and_patent_issues

in the end i want people lives to be easy, however freedom is not
always easy.  sometimes i dont understand why people would want an OS
that does everything windows does, why not just use windows?  if a
person does not care about being free the what is the point of
switching?  i used to spend my time attempting to convert everyone to
gnu/linux and then i stopped because of the futility.  i can describe
to people my reality of using gnu/linux, but in the end they have to
make the choice for themselves and take ownership of that choice. 
switching to gnu/linux is not a knee jerk reaction, nor should it be
forced.  i have seen both end in a reinstall of windows.  i think
switching to a free OS starts with a change of browser and then a
gradual migration of all non-free software to free windows/mac
alternatives that are cross platform.  its much easier to make a
gnu/linux transition if you are already used to the software.  plus
understanding what you are doing, and what you are signing up for is
good too(licensing issues, etc).  simply installing gnu/linux on
someones machine for them and giving them "to the wolves" is not a very
smart option..... i am going to stop now because i am writing too much:)


-- 
jdodson