[xubuntu-users] The Devil's Advocate -- TANSTAAFL AKA "FOSS vs Proprietary"

David Walland davidwalland at googlemail.com
Thu Jul 13 09:54:16 UTC 2017


I'd love to get stuck in to writing/proof-reading good docs for the Linux
community.  I've done this professionally for University Radiation
Protection.  This the point; the writer/proof-reader needs to have an
encyclopaedic knowledge of the subject and/or experts to correct
misapprehensions and rookies to feed back on ease of use.  When I wrote my
employer's Radiation Safety "Code of Practice" I had nearly 30 years of
experience, starting as a technician and ending as Radiation Protection
Adviser.  It still took 2 years to get it checked and double checked.  Even
then *one* important issue was overlooked.

This sort of thing is just not trivial, I'm afraid.

Now I'm, like Joao, a newbie.  I manage to work my way through setting my
(old) computers up, often simply following a list of commands, because the
discussion as to why you should what is simply above my head!  And of
course, right now, following the death of my wife I'm snowed under with
work and stressed out of my mind, so trying to read it all up isn't easy
even if I can make myself sit down and try to do it.

I know a lot of the guys who write the OS and apps feel that we should work
to make our own way.  The problem is that many of us just don't have enough
knowledge to even ask sensible questions.  We ask what we think are the
right questions and then find that there isn't an answer or that it's
answering the wrong question.

How do we write material that helps newbies to learn enough to take off on
their own?  Writing that sort of material should be very good for *my*
understanding.

David

On 13 July 2017 at 00:55, Guang Chao <guang.chao.1974 at gmail.com> wrote:

>
>
> On Wed, Jul 12, 2017 at 10:26 PM, Richard Owlett <rowlett at cloud85.net>
> wrote:
>
>> TANSTAAFL == "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch"
>> q.v. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TANSTAAFL>
>>
>> Disclaimer: Though I use Debian rather than Ubuntu, I often find this
>> forum useful.
>>
>
> Same to me.  I mean I find useful.  But I guess many Linux user don't use
> just one particular distro.  For me, Debian for servers and Ubuntu on my
> desktop.
>
>
>>
>> On 07/12/2017 02:01 AM, Joao Monteiro wrote:
>>
>>> Hi all,
>>>
>>> For those who may not have read it in the thread where I mentioned
>>> it, the purpose of this thread is simple:
>>>
>>> My humble way of giving a contribution to the community within my
>>> rookie means, in a threefold manner...
>>>
>>
>> Don't knock it. Not only do you recognize (perhaps unconsciously)
>> TANSTAAFL, but you saw a means to contribute by means other than
>> programming. Other ways include proof reading &/or writing documentation
>> and filing good bug reports.
>>
>
> Good docs are really hard to do, but is super useful.  Very few open
> source projects can boast of great docs.
>
>
>>
>>
>>> 1) The original subject of a thread usually gets lost in the twists
>>> and turns that the replies take, often going astray into subjects
>>> that have nothing to do with their original subject.
>>>
>>
>> I assume you are referring to
>> <https://lists.ubuntu.com/archives/xubuntu-users/2017-July/010229.html>.
>>
>>
>> When that deviation from the original sibject happens, people are
>>> welcome to bring that deviation into here. That way the threads can
>>> remain as useful references to their titled subjects and with
>>> valuable info pertaining to that subject alone
>>>
>>
>> You have chosen one of the possible solutions, one appropriate to your
>> apparent goals.
>> In this post I chose a different method to achieve two goals:
>>   A. maintain close relationship to original thread.
>>   B. identify aspect of interest.
>>
>>
>>> 2) To bring forth insights into pros and cons of one too many things
>>> linux related and
>>>
>>> 3) To gather as many and varied views and opinions - preferably with
>>> sensible explanations as to "why" - as possible, which can bring
>>> precious insights into the needs and expectations that users have
>>> from their particular linux distro (in this case xubuntu xfce);
>>> a graphical or musical user will have different needs and
>>> expectations than a math teacher, an
>>> average user, a programmer, a forensic analyst, etc...
>>>
>>> This can in due course offer a substantial picture, map, of what is
>>> lacking, what can be improved and how, etc...
>>>
>>> I have asked Ralph to please be the Prosecutor beating the crap out
>>> of me, who will be the horned bugger's advocate :) .... I hope he
>>> accepts, as he has very good views and strong opinions well
>>> reasoned...
>>>
>>> So... I'll open it with a subject that is pertinent enough to have
>>> some buying me a coffee and others hanging me by my balls :)
>>>
>>> Give me a few minutes to dawn a pair of kevlar undies and I'll kick
>>> start the fuss :)
>>>
>>>
>> I classify software differently than some people. I have a strong
>> preference for FOSS for its emphasis on "free/libre" as in "free" speech.
>> This is in contrast to "free/gratis". NOTE BENE: there there are many cases
>> where proprietary software is available gratis - e.g. proprietary device
>> drivers.
>>
>> I've been a computer *USER* since taking a required programming course as
>> an E.E. student in the early 60's. My PC's have ranged from a Kim with 1k
>> RAM, through some CPM-80 systems with 16-64k to my my current 3GB Debian
>> Stretch systems [with long detour using MS DOS -> WinXP].
>>
>> I abandoned MS when they drifted from being a useful tool to requiring me
>> to think in line with "the ONE true path" The final break was they
>> effectively wanted me to rent new software that didn't meet my
>> needs/desires any better than nominally obsolete product.
>>
>> It is often not recognized that Microsoft, Apple, Canonical, Red Hat,
>> Debian, and Ubuntu have something very much in common. They have one
>> purpose in mind - providing product that matches their specific view of
>> what the customer needs. I tried multiple distros - Debian was the best fit
>> for _me_ [sometimes in hard to explicitly define ways].
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
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>> an/listinfo/xubuntu-users
>>
>
>
>
> --
> Guang <http://javadevnotes.com/java-array-to-string/>
>
> --
> xubuntu-users mailing list
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>
>


-- 

*A race is won by ability, not skin colour*
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