firefox/thunderbird

[Tommy Trussell]

On 4/7/06, DavidFourer <ulist at gs1.ubuntuforums.org> wrote:
> I wonder, Is it possible to make a list of things a Windows
> or Mac user wants to know first, so as not to waste a lot of time?

I've been thinking about this question over the last few days, and it
is a hard thing. You might make a bunch of lists...

For example, you said you were unaware of hidden files in Ubuntu, so
are you aware of hidden files in:

 -- classic Mac OS (set using a "hidden" flag, though there are some
device drivers that also have a Unix-style dot), or

-- Windows (set using a DOS "hidden" flag, not to mention entire
directories that are hidden even from the command line under Windows),
or

-- Mac OS X (deep down using hidden dot files PLUS classic MacOS flags
PLUS hidden files and directories that are easily visible from the
Terminal).

SO the concept of hidden files may be new to you even in an OS that
you have used for years.

And to me, the whole idea of dot files being "hidden" is strange,
because it's not like you have to use a special utility to see them,
like you do in the Classic Mac OS. And if you accidentally renamed a
file with a dot at the beginning I guess it might mystify you when it
just disappeared, whereas if you had to set a hidden flag like in DOS
it would be much more intentional (though very problematic if someone
weren't expecting it).

I supervised a writing department converting from Macs to PCs back in
the early '90s, and one thing that troubled them in Windows was that
the directories HAD to be in a certain place, as opposed to the
(classic) Mac OS where you could move the applications and system
folder and whatever just about any place you wanted and the system
keeps working just fine. After a person disabled her PC by moving the
Windows directory (it had nothing of interest in it, she figured) I
set the hidden flag on it and other directories that shouldn't be
moved. Windows 3.11 had no trouble handling that, but the technician
who came in to work on her hard drive was upset when his backup
utility totally missed backing up and restoring the hidden directories
so he had to reinstall everything from scratch.

So here's the situation -- maybe you have used a Mac or a PC for 20+
years, happily oblivious to some of the internal hand-waving that goes
on in your system. When you sit in front of an Ubuntu (or other linux)
system, how likely are you to sit through a tutorial or even read
anything directed to a new computer user?