Ubuntu Drive Visible to OS X?

[Brett Kirksey]

On Tuesday 21 September 2004 at 02:45-0300, Fábio Mendes wrote:

> Don't worry! Be happy! :)

On Tuesday 21 September 2004 at 02:29-0700, landminetao at gmail.com wrote:

> If you haven't yet, I highly recommend reading Neal Stephenson's
> monograph "In the Beginning Was the Command Line."

Thank you both for taking the time to encourage me in my frustration.

I have read excerpts of the book you mention. My brother has told me all about it. He has degrees in computer engineering and is somewhat of a usability guru. He pretty much uses it as a manifesto of what is wrong with Linux/Free Software. His saying is always, "You should make an OS or software so that the average person can get work done _with_ there computer not _on_ there computer." And I agree.

Now, I'm not the average person. I work with and _on_ computers for a living (Web Developer/IT). But I do champion the cause of usability and computing for the masses. Ideally, the perfect system would be totally intuitive and easily configurable by the most technologically unsophisticated.

I believe that true genius will take the most complex ideas or tasks and make them understandable and doable to the totally uninitiated. It is a lower level of of technological acumen that says, "This is how hard it is now you must come to my level of knowledge to make it work." Sometimes I think the average Linux user actually likes that about Linux. Sadly, as long as it is that way, Linux will be a niche operating system (except maybe servers) for the computer elite.

My hope is that one day, with work like that which is being done with Ubuntu and User Linux, free software/Linux will be accessible to the average person. Maybe even to the point (and this will be heresy to many Linux elitists) that Linux is seen as _more_ user friendly and accessible than a Mac! I can dream can't I. :-)

Thank you again for taking the time to encourage me. I will continue to work on Linux (but usually not _with_ Linux). I enjoy learning new things and increasing my skills and one of the reasons is so that others won't _have_ to.

Thank you
Brett