Does Ubuntu need a "Getting Started" page?

[Gabriel M Dragffy]

I'd think more consolidated newbie information would be a benefit. I'm
trying to get my brother to install Ubuntu on his laptop but since he's
on the other side of the world I am writing him emails with links to
inforamtion. So far I have given him about 8 links to different areas of
Ubuntu websites. So far the best I found was
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ which, if you read in series, is
pretty good.


On Sat, 2006-07-29 at 20:47 -0400, John Richard Moser wrote:

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> Need a second opinion on a bug, before there's a holy war on the bugzilla.
> 
> https://launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/+source/ubuntu-docs/+bug/54501
> 
> Does anyone else feel that a new user to Linux might be kind of lost
> getting the system working entirely?  MP3s, fonts, media playing in
> Firefox.. the like.  I just feel a total newbie is going to not have the
> attention span to work through help.ubuntu.com and find their answers.
> 
> To find the answers needed, the progression goes like this right now:
> 
>  - Open Firefox
>  - "You can also find help from the official Ubuntu documentation
>     website"
>  - https://help.ubuntu.com/
>  - Figure out what all these different links are for (Ubuntu, Kubuntu,
>    Xubuntu...)
>  - https://help.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/desktopguide/C/index.html
>  - Make your way to Common Tasks
>  - https://help.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/desktopguide/C/common-tasks-chap.html
>  - YOU WANT MP3 SUPPORT.
>    - Figure out what 'codec' means.
>    - https://help.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/desktopguide/C/codecs.html
>  - Go away now.
>  - Not even think about this later really.
>  - https://help.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/desktopguide/C/internet.html if you're
>    persistent but now we're asking you to chose between two things you
>    don't already know about.
> 
> I was thinking more that the front page would have a section called
> "Getting Started" that rolled like this:
> 
> << EOF
> GETTING STARTED
> 
> You can start using Ubuntu right now; but most users may find that they
> want to add key features to the system first.  The Ubuntu community has
> prepared a _guide for new users_ giving step-by-step, visually aided
> instructions for carrying out common customizations.
> EOF
> 
> This would link to a page that followed a simple progression, perhaps:
> 
> << EOF
> <Introduction>
> 
> In some cases, Ubuntu cannot ship certain features by default because
> <Legal Explanation>.
> 
> In cases involving closed or commercial software, <Philosophy>.
> 
> TABLE OF CONTENTS
> 
>  - MP3 support
>  - msttcorefonts
>  - Skype
>  - .....
> 
> <Page follows, explains reason why each feature isn't included;
> alternatives; and how to install>
> EOF
> 
> Any comments?  Good idea, bad idea, stupid idea?
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> Public Domain, unless otherwise explicitly stated.
> 
>     Creative brains are a valuable, limited resource. They shouldn't be
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>     new problems waiting out there.
>                                                  -- Eric Steven Raymond
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