28 Dec
2003
28 Dec
'03
6:59 p.m.
On Thursday 11 December 2003 11:44 am, Daniel James wrote:
Microsoft's and Apple's OSes quality of the previous decade has made most
casual computer users very errrr... scared of trying anything out.
They are also used not to be able to use their own material created with one
application with another application. So they stick with the one application
they started with.
So it will take a lot of TV advertising before average users give it a go.
Curious people are already really trying open source stuff in large numbers.
So keep writing !
Daniel, just
out of interest, how much mail do you get as a result
of your linux and linux-flavoured articles you've written
Not a great deal, but my experience from writing for LinuxUser is that
out of every 10,000 readers maybe only one will ever write to say how
much they enjoyed the article. And yet when you actually meet the
readers at Expo events they are much more forthcoming. So low
feedback isn't necessarily an indication that people aren't reading
or appreciating the articles.
is there
much interest outside of the existing linux community?
I think it's very early days for awareness. I think the SoS staff were
impressed by the embedded Linux VST instrument host, and it's the
first such system that they've actually got their hands on. That's
why I was thinking about putting together a stand for the Sounds
Expo, to actually put the software in front of the target audience.
I think most people who have never used Linux think that it is too
good to be true - how could a high quality operating system and a
raft of applications be free as in beer? Maybe if Red Hat had been
£2,000 per seat from the beginning then this perception wouldn't
exist, but then I suspect most of us wouldn't be on this list today
either.
Public perception is a stange beast - I've had a number of people
comment that they'd seen the IBM adverts for Linux on TV, as if that
if you didn't see a TV advert for something then it didn't really
exist.
Cheers
Daniel