[LAU] [OT] of experts and ex-spurts

[Dave Phillips]

Greetings,

After reading the latest fanboy anti-Linux tirades on another site I 
decided to relate a little story here on LAU.

One of my students has a 12-year old boy who wanted to build his own 
computer. Even cooler, he wanted to install Linux on it. I gave him some 
installation discs and spare parts, he ordered the rest of what he 
needed, he assembled the machine himself after referencing various 
articles on the net, and he just sent me a message to announce that he 
had completed the work and was happily running Kubuntu Jaunty. He even 
updated the mobo BIOS on his own, just to get the soundchip working 
correctly. He's  also installed and configured the nVidia proprietary 
binary driver and is very happy with Compiz on his desktop.

So I have to ask, when I read comments from soi-disant "Linux-savvy" 
folks who somehow can't seem to get their audio working (or even install 
the system without aches & pains) and thus declare Linux dead in the 
water re: audio work, are these people simply too impressed with what's 
really just a little knowledge ? Is it possible that they're really not 
so smart after all, and they just like to think they are ? I ask, 
because a 12-year old boy with no special background in computers just 
kicked their whingeing asses all the way from alpha to omega.

Adding to his achievement he has convinced his parents to switch the 
family machines to Linux. He's now the only 12-year old I know whose 
chores include Linux system administration. :)

Okay, that's all, and I feel better now. Sorry for the OT noise. EOF.

Best,

dp