OT whatever happened to:

[KeithS]

have a look here for your modem:
http://linux-usb.sourceforge.net/SpeedTouch/

Wow! Many thanks again!
KeithS

 

[Bob Adkins]

HELL does a frigging KEYBOARD PROGRAM have to call home for??????

(pant, choke, gasp.....)

Know what you mean. I had to block Intellitype with the firewall. Sheesh!

Bob

 

[techie]

There are ways to defeat all the "mandatory" crapola. I used to fight
it, but not any more. Every time I upgraded my motherboard and CPU, I
had to re-activate it. I got tired of that pretty quick.

Yeah, but I shouldn't have to break a federal law just to exercise fair
use of the software I've paid for.

Drivers? No problem. All the negative talk about drivers is overblown
from what I've seen. I have never had a single driver problem in XP
since day 1. Remember, it's the HARDWARE vendor's responsibility to
develop drivers. Don't blame Windows.

And while Microsoft and the hardware vendors pass the buck back and
forth, the consumer gets screwed and has to replace perfectly good
hardware so they can use the new OS they bought to fix the problems of
their old OS that never should have had those problems in the first
place but since it did it should have been replaced for free instead of
making them buy a new one that doesn't work with their hardware.

Privacy? Unless you work for the CIA or you are a criminal, you have
nothing to worry about. I think the XP privacy issues are overblown. For
1 thing, never put anything on your computer you don't want the world to
know about.

Well, there goes most of the utility of having a desktop computer. Might
as well throw the thing out and go buy a Nintendo.

Bloat? I agree with you wholeheartedly. Although I find XP very fast,
the size on disk and memory requirements are a scandal. I think the next
release of XP should not add features, but reduce bloat. For what it
does, however, XP is no more bloated than any other version of Windows.
They are all bloated.

A linux installation can be made is bloated as Windows if you load as
many bells and whistles. But that's the point - you have the freedom to
decide for yourself how much computing power you're willing to give up
and for which features. With Linux you can run KDE and have all the
glitz and slowness of Windows, you can run Blackbox and have a more
limited but small-lean-and-fast GUI, you can run about a dozen other
in-between window managers with differing feature sets, you can run a
super-lean text-only version of a "GUI", you can forget windowing
entirely and still do some amazing things using command-line
applications, or you can strip the command-line environment down and
build, say, a bootable router/firewall that fits on a floppy disk.

 

[techie]

They could, of course, take those questions as a reason to change the
documentation so newbies would not have to ask the same questions again
and again.

Write the answers to the most common questions on the first information
page of the Linux documentation.

The questions, let alone the answers, don't all fit on one page, or even
100 pages. If we stuck it all in one FAQ it would be so huge that it
would take forever to load and be impossible to find a specific topic
in all the text. That's why we have a documentation system.

Or, even better, change the operative system so the users do not have to
know those things.

General-purpose operating systems are inherently complex because they
have to meet so many different needs. You can have ease of use only if
you're willing to live with greatly-limited power and choices. Some
Linux distributions (SuSE and Mandrake) do just that.

 

[Roger Johansson]

General-purpose operating systems are inherently complex because they
have to meet so many different needs. You can have ease of use only if
you're willing to live with greatly-limited power and choices. Some
Linux distributions (SuSE and Mandrake) do just that.

Ideally there should be an easy interface for the beginners and people
who do not have time for fiddling with the technical stuff.

But there should also be other levels for people who want to go deeper
into the workings of the computer, to customize or create new macros,
create new programs, etc..

Linux obviously lacks some at the top level, the simple interface for
non-techies who start using it.

Linux also lacks the many thousands of programs which are available
for windows, with simple point-and-click interfaces, for all kinds of
purposes.

 

[John Corliss]

Ideally there should be an easy interface for the beginners and people
who do not have time for fiddling with the technical stuff.

I immediately was able to figure out Knoppix and without refering even
once to any help file. In fact, I thought it was almost identical to
Windows ME.

But there should also be other levels for people who want to go deeper
into the workings of the computer, to customize or create new macros,
create new programs, etc..

Linux obviously lacks some at the top level, the simple interface for
non-techies who start using it.

I disagree.

Linux also lacks the many thousands of programs which are available
for windows, with simple point-and-click interfaces, for all kinds of
purposes.

I also disagree with this. There is PLENTY of Linux software out
there, and the Knoppix image comes complete with a carefully chosen
selection of it.

 

[Joachim Ziebs]

Hi John!

I immediately was able to figure out Knoppix and without refering even
once to any help file. In fact, I thought it was almost identical to
Windows ME.

This is because Knoppix uses KDE as desktop.


And it was a good choice, just for this obvious reason.

I disagree.

I agree with that disagreement.


Greetings,

Joachim

 

[John]

SuSe 9.0 Personal. It installed OK, seems to recognise my HP scanner
(USB), but won't operate it. the USB ADSL modem (Speedtouch330) isn't
supported, nor is the Canon i550 USB printer




Got to agree with a previous poster somewhere, unlike this ng,
residents on the Linux ng's seem somewhat arrogant. Mind you I can
understand it, must be pretty depressing seeing the same queries from
newbies again and again.

KeithS

For some of the best help with Linux, go to
http://justlinux.com

John

 

[KeithS]

Thanks John

KeithS

 

[Offbreed]

The learning curve is extremely steep. As none of my USB components
seem to be recognised, including my ADSL modem,

LOL, that's why I resurected an old laptop with a SLOWWWWWW modem, and
have it sitting next to this one. (Playing hooky from looking up
stuff). Most of the blasted documentation is on line or on CD, so you
*have* to have a computer to read it, and you're SOL if you have to
switch back and forth, and forget what the heck you were looking for. <G>

 

[Offbreed]

I think that inside they value their exclusivity more than rescuing the
rest of us from Bill

Nah. Quite a few have Aspergers Syndrome.

 

[Offbreed]

Then there should be one.

Don't you understand that questions that come again and again can be
taken in a constructive way?

Then go ahead and write it up.

You realize that most of the work done on Linux (and *BSD) is done by
volunteers? Hobbyists?

Don't like the results? Do something about it, or go back to Windows.

 

[Roger Johansson]

Then go ahead and write it up.

I do that in areas where I have expert knowledge.
Linux is not one of them.
But general developing strategies like that advice is.

You realize that most of the work done on Linux (and *BSD) is done by
volunteers? Hobbyists?

Yes, that is why I gave them a constructive advice.

Don't like the results? Do something about it, or go back to Windows.

I never left.

But I have actually downloaded some small Linux distributions now and
might start exploring it soon.