On Mon, May 20, 2013 at 11:02 PM, Binand Sethumadhavan binand@gmail.comwrote:
On 21 May 2013 06:14, Ashwin Dixit ganeshacomputes@gmail.com wrote:
Where is the confusion here? If I am running Fedora I download the Fedora version. If I am running Debian, I download the Debian version.
It is a pain for a Linux developer to bundle their application for maximum adoption. Sooner or later, even a Debian user encounters a package they need but which is only available in RPM format. To get around this difficulty, you just install rpm on Debian, and then install the .RPM package. This is too confusing for the average user!
The user should be removed from the loops of most decisions.
That is the line of thinking Microsoft adopted, and the larger FOSS community wisely rejected. Why do you think the software is more intelligent than the human and can take better decisions?
Software is not more intelligent than the human, just more accurate at some kinds of tasks. We already trust machines with our very lives when we fly on modern aircraft, for example. AI has made significant advances, but has not yet been fully applied to practical uses.
The OS should shield the common user from decisions such as: "Software updates available. Install now?" "Do you want to trust this site?"
Why do you think the computer is better poised to answer either of these questions?
I don't want Linux bothering my old mother, with technical questions. Software should talk to web services, and use some intelligence, and figure out how/when to handle its own internal functions. For example, the OS can figure out when the user has been typing steadily for the last few minutes, and prevent a pop-up dialog from stealing keyboard focus.
Extending this line of thought, will you let the computer order stuff from Flipkart for you on its own (and charge your credit card)?
That is a silly example. Use some common sense. Trading algorithms buy and sell on our behalf already.
GNU/Linux is a manual gearshift car, in the age of self-driving vehicles. There is much potential to make Linux easier to use. Linux won't be adopted widely until we shed our Tech machismo, and become sympathetic towards the average user.
Cheers,
- Ashwin.
================================================= Subvert the dominant paradigm. Repeat as desired. http://ownlifeful.com/