Scary article for beginners.
I’ve been dealing with hardware and software since the mid 70’s and one thing is the gold standard: Standardization is king. End users want what worked yesterday to work today. Adding new functions is great and people will slowly learn to use the good ones.
The current standards are Windows or iOS, Microsoft Office and Outlook. Asking end users to move to something completely different, like Linux for Libre Office will not find much success.
What people want and expect trumps quality and security, whether we like it or not. Linux will remain for us geeks for the foreseeable future.
..and that is why we begin by asking them to try the Windows versions of the software. LibreOffice runs perfectly fine under Windows. Once they are comfortable with a new software package, then asking them to move to a different OS--using those same software packages--is pretty mild.
Dove headlong into the Unix world in the early 90’s being the sysop admin for a IBM Risc 6000 using AIX Unix. It was the perfect server for a 500 user, 12 remote city network and that machine was blazing fast compared to the other IBM mini’s I had used since the 70’s like the System-3, System-34, System-36 and System-38 before it.
Use it on all my PC’s and never use Windows unless I have an App that demands it so I keep a Win-7 bootable SSD just for those apps.
Best cord you could ever cut from the Microsoft cabal.
This line is the key. Move to.
For users with little to no previous experience with computers and operating systems, especially the elderly, who are just trying to use a computer to keep in touch with friends and family, and have relatively simple demands, Linux can be a wonderful solution.
The key is for users who will not need to "unlearn" anything.
I understand the frustrations of Linux users moving from other OSs: I feel the same way any time I'm forced to use a Mac. And while I'm most comfortable with Debian based systems (most of my Linux experience is with Ubuntu,) having to administer RedHat Linux is something of a headache.
Mark
[[Asking end users to move to something completely different, like Linux for Libre Office will not find much success]]
That’s the thing though, it’s not ‘completely different’- and most users who are willing to give it a try, will find it very user friendly IF they don’t care about diving deep into an os to do stuff like customize the look beyond what is available in their customization apps- which are pretty good and easy to use- but sometimes folks want more- so then you gotta delve into code or commands rather and stuff-
[[Linux will remain for us geeks for the foreseeable future]]
I’m not much of a linux geek at all- basic stuff for me- I’d recommend this to anyone really- regardless of experience with computers- much safer os and just as easy as windows for the basic users to use- even the start menu is very intuitive like windows- (windows 7 that is)