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It seems the average people are constantly being brainwashed by the Linux community about Linux being the perfect replacement to Windows. Many Linux fanatics go on about how great Linux is and how much it has been improved over the years to be the perfect OS desktop alternative to Windows. I don’t necessarily disagree with them on this but I do think that Linux or Ubuntu is still not yet ready for an average grandma or grandpa.
If I were to go ahead and install Ubuntu as their desktop, naturally they’ll have a tough time moving around the system because it’s design is more complex than Windows. It’s less user friendly in many ways and a perfect example for this is if an issue arises, for example, network related. On windows, wireless networking is very straightforward and I personally have not had any issue with it and if there are any issues with it, it guides and points the user through a series of steps to check/confirm whether their settings are correct.
On Ubuntu however, if the wireless does not work out of the box, you’re in for a big surprise. I’ve had this issue not once but every time I’ve installed Ubuntu, it does not detect my wireless network by default. I was not guided through any helpers or any step by step check/confirm screens to figure out what went wrong. Because I am not an average user, I understand enough about the OS to dive into shell and go through the messages and other related logs on the system. But what would an average user do here? A poor little grandma or grandpa who only knows how to click on a browser!
Do you expect the less tech savvy to pick up Linux OS and start scrolling through messages file to figure out why their wireless interface didn’t bother coming up? The point of this article is not to bash Linux/Ubuntu community but instead is to let you know that making Linux sound so simple isn’t fair to the rest of world who aren’t familiar with it. They would ask themselves - “If Linux is as simple as they say, why am I having such a hard time getting it to work?!”. For this reason, the people who don’t get it working feel stupid, it kills their confidence, lowers their self-esteem, they under perform at their jobs and schools and some may even decide to kill themselves.
I know that Linux is a great OS and it’s an excellent replacement for many. But when it comes to marketing it and spreading the word, let’s just be a little more honest and humble about it. We don’t have to say it’s easier than Windows or Mac. It’s easy but not to everyone in the world.
Comments
49 Comments so far
From my experience: if something doesn’t work, in linux you have a big chance in getting it fixed. In windows, however (I’m talking about wireless in Vista… that worked out of the box with Sabayon Linux), you don’t. Logs are very brief and useless for instance.
You’re right about the wireless. Fortunately the new Ubuntu will have a newer kernel and the bmc43xx (which is a very common wireless) will work.
The desktop might be more complex only for an average user used to Windows. For grandma or grandpa it is easier to use (..not learn) linux than windows. Try it!
Yeah, wireless networking. Legitimately said. It’s a huge pain in the A$$ in Linux. Still. Shouldn’t be, but it is.
On the other hand, your article supports the argument for OEMs to sell machines with Linux pre-installed, because presumably those problems won’t occur. And when they do, they’ll get support.
Also—you haven’t used Vista yet, have you? Unbelievably complex and annoying GUI. GNOME has it beat by miles, and I hate GNOME (more of a KDE man).
No one ‘installs’ Windows, except maybe guys like you or me. Once you get through the problems of the initial install, I still maintain that Linux is easier to use and remains trouble-free longer than any Windows isntall.
Mate, you have a couple of significant flaws in your argument.
1. No one who is a basic, non tech user ever installs windows. It comes on their computer. Assuming that you do the same thing with a Dell Ubuntu computer, it will work out of the box as well. I had to reinstall windows xp last week on a guys computer who buys them from a major retailer. He didn’t know how to do it, and spent the whole installation chain smoking to cure his nerves.
2. Once up and running, windows isn’t easier to use. My wife killed her laptop with Xp in 2 months, and now after a year of ubuntu, she is still an idiot, but hasn’t stuffed her computer and it does everything she wants, and she comments that it is easier to use. When I put wireless on it, yeah I will be the one doing it, but I’ve heard many rumours about both XP and Vista having wireless problems, so presumably, it has more to do with hardware not having adequate drivers, OS aside.
It’s easy to complain about setting up linux if you never had to set up windows. This is more like comparing apples to pebbles… no similarities whatsoever. Windows comes preinstalled and configured from the factory, so poor little grandma or grandpa won’t have to go through the hassle of hunting down drivers and what not. If poor little grandma and grandpa purchased the dell laptops with preinstalled ubuntu or the lenovo laptops with preinstall SLED, they will have a better experience than with a preinstalled windows laptop.
shut up u damn “analist”
I take offense to this article. What’s wrong with you people. You have so many articles in favor of Linux and all of a sudden you take a big dump on it’s #1 flavor.
I’m hoping the guy who wrote this article was smoking ganja!
You need to understand that there is open source , outside Linux and even outside Ubuntu.
This is not only Linux problem but also Hardware developers who write drivers only for Windows!
…running Linux for nearly two years now - exclusively - here!
)
So - I have some rights, I assume, to disagree with the statements of the article above.
I set up Linux (different flavours) on more than one computer so far - also wireless on laptop. It’s not a big deal for “grandma” if she is able to read. The only difficult thing is to overcome irrational fear against using terminal. It’s also not “a biggie” - if one is able to write…
As to failure affecting one’s self-esteem - it’s not a fault of Linux but - Western culture. If one is willing to learn from the mistakes instead of useless moaning about one’s lack of intellect - Linux will not lead to suicidal thoughts.
And one more thing - I’m not a tech savvy person - opposite! So, if the persons like me - relatively literate humanist - are able to run this OS - why it is not honest to say that Linux is actually easy?
Kind regards,
tami (”granny”
Yeah that’s why I use Mepis Linux which is a fully integrated Ubuntu based distro. I’ve installed it on dozens of machines and have found it to be easy to use and that everything just works out of the box. On the other hand I’ve had about a 20% rate of success with Vista and about 50% with XP…neither of which are free both of which are SLOW P.O.S. operating systems.
All my friends use Mepis and I’ve never had one machine come back broken or “infected” with worms and viruses.
Just been reading an article, which really does annoy me, so i’m going to explain why.. the article in its undedited form is
Linux is not so simple
I’ll put my comments in bold through the post:
It seems the average people are constantly being brainwashed by the Linux community about Linux being the perfect replacement to Windows. Many Linux fanatics go on about how great Linux is and how much it has been improved over the years to be the perfect OS desktop alternative to Windows.I don’t necessarily disagree with them on this but I do think that Linux or Ubuntu is still not yet ready for an average grandma or grandpa.
Firstly, there is no post i’ve read in 10 years of following Linux which says that the Desktop Linux OS is a “Perfect” replacement to Windows, or Mac OS. 99% of the posts out there do however state that Linux is a usuable alternative to Windows as a desktop replacement, and as a Vista alternative, it does provide a simpler solution, to a package which costs a lot, and doesn’t deliver much to justify that price increase..
I would also state, with some authority, having supported PC’s for nearly 18 years the Windows in any form, current or past is not an Operating system suited for either grandparents OR the common man. Most people just simply don’t get it.. turn off, because its a PC. Find all things XP hard, because they forget how to read…. Windows, despite what the “Fanboys” might tell you, is actually not a simple OS to get to grips with.. Its not user friendly, the reason why many people find it easy to use, is they moved to it via 3.11, 95, Me, 98, 2000, XP path.. in other words have grown up with it.
If I were to go ahead and install Ubuntu as their desktop, naturally they’ll have a tough time moving around the system because it’s design is more complex than Windows.
So Gnome, and the Ubuntu interface is more complex than Windows XP? or Vista? Gnome, has a mandate which says as part of it, that efficent design and effecency are part of the design ethos, the Basic Gnome screen consists of A menu, with similar groups to XP’s start menu, and has Icons, a mouse, and the same windows based style as found on any Microsoft GUI.. The Preferences are available in under 2 clicks as opposed to the default hidden Control Panels options on XP (you have to click the Switch to Classic View to see all the preferences) Gnome is a simple, sparse desktop for a reason.. to keep it simple..
It’s less user friendly in many ways and a perfect example for this is if an issue arises, for example, network related. On windows, wireless networking is very straightforward and I personally have not had any issue with it and if there are any issues with it, it guides and points the user through a series of steps to check/confirm whether their settings are correct.
So you’ve nto had an issue with it have you, well if thats grounds for an argument, i’ve never had an issue with Wireless networking in Ubuntu, so therefore must be equally as simple to setup.. But we all know, that networking especially Wireless is a nightmare, from drivers, to sessing Security, SSID’s, the whole system is not user friendly on any OS.. not just Windows. I ask you to setup the Wireless card on my Dell under XP without an internet connection, or a drivers disk.. and then do it on ubuntu with no Internet connection.. Ah, yes, that would infer that most users install XP on thier machines, when we know this isn’t the case, most people have XP already installed, which does a lot of the hard work, until, that dreadful day they need to reinstall as the PC is so bogged down with spyware, viruses and other crud, they have the XP disk, but lost the driver disk for thier machine.. I for one would rather be on a Linux PC in this situation..
On Ubuntu however, if the wireless does not work out of the box, you’re in for a big surprise. I’ve had this issue not once but every time I’ve installed Ubuntu, it does not detect my wireless network by default. I was not guided through any helpers or any step by step check/confirm screens to figure out what went wrong.
No, you prefer the meaningless XP click next for the next meaningful code number screen.
Because I am not an average user, I understand enough about the OS to dive into shell and go through the messages and other related logs on the system. But what would an average user do here? A poor little grandma or grandpa who only knows how to click on a browser!
And the Grandma and Grandpa would be able to sort this out in XP? I think not.. infact, having as i said worked tech support, i know they can’t, they will howver pay me, to install it for them.. please, stop using this analogy, its wrong, its inferring that your grandparents are IT Geniuses
Do you expect the less tech savvy to pick up Linux OS and start scrolling through messages file to figure out why their wireless interface didn’t bother coming up?
No more than i owuld expect your grandparents to start looking through the event logs to figure out that same scenario in XP.. It happens.. something just doens’t work, with plug and pray.. no reasons.. just nada.. Do your grandparents open Event manager to look and see whats causing the problem? do they try reinstalling the drivers.. do they look at the router configuration to check that there isn’t a problem there..?
The point of this article is not to bash Linux/Ubuntu community
Anything which pecedes the word but, is a lie, and usually you mean the opposite
but instead is to let you know that making Linux sound so simple isn’t fair to the rest of world who aren’t familiar with it. They would ask themselves - “If Linux is as simple as they say, why am I having such a hard time getting it to work?!”.
As they do when XP stops working, or an XP App doesn’t work.. or they load Vista and it takes 3hrs to load, or doesn’t run thier new hardware…
For this reason, the people who don’t get it working feel stupid, it kills their confidence, lowers their self-esteem, they under perform at their jobs and schools and some may even decide to kill themselves.
Ah, so finally, YOU HAD PROBLEMS with Linux didn’t you..
I know that Linux is a great OS and it’s an excellent replacement for many. But when it comes to marketing it and spreading the word, let’s just be a little more honest and humble about it. We don’t have to say it’s easier than Windows or Mac. It’s easy but not to everyone in the world.
OK, you are quite obviously a twat.. so lets clear some things up
1. No one is saying Linux is easier than Windows XP or Vista or the Mac, what is being siad, is that great strides forward have been made over tha last few years on the Desktop, which make Linux easier to use, than it use to be, its not perfect, and will never be, however, it is now a viable alternative to Windows or Apple in a lot of cases.
2. Most users don’t have to install XP, it come sinstalled, when they get in a pickle, or a jam, they call a support dept, ISP, PC World, Young boy next door.. to fix the problem, becuase in the world if PC’s, we all know how to troubleshoot Windows.. Did you notice what i said there? Troubleshoot XP.. over the last 6 years XP has had, and still has issues, there is enough knowledge with friends family, and at the end of a freefone number to get the problem resolved.
3. Linux, unlike XP, in most cases doesn’t come preinstalled, you have to download it, burn it, and install it, this in itself is a very alien concept, setting up drivers, hardware etc, as i mentioned above, most users don’t do this on XP, so having to do it on Linux, is scary for the best of us.. hence the issues.. of for example Wifi installation.. compounded by the fact that most HW manufacturers don’t write drivers. However projects such as Ndiswrapped do make this a little easier, especially as it now has a pretty Gui for the Command line virgins among us..
4. Linux support, specifically Ubuntu’s has moved on from the RTFM, or “Search Google” mentality in a lot of cases, people are starting to realise that the Edge XP really has is that support network, so a lot of the support issues you had could have probalby been resolved quickly and easily through these forums..
What a lot of Windows users fail to understand about Linux is, that we are aware of thetight learning curve that comes with learning another OS, especially as constant comparisons will be made all the time “well this just works on XP” for example, but the fact is, for a lot of these issue, not all, i will admit, the reason it works, is an assumption it doesn’ and not a realisatio, that it was setup by someone else… The biggest problem you will face is that this is NOT Windows, its not a Windows replacement, its an OS in its own right, Like Mac OS, which by the way, i am convinced most people claim to be easier, but have never actually used for a considerable length of time.
As i’ve no doubt made very clear here, Windows is not easy to use, its only perviced to be, a week supporting XP at a desktop level for home users over a phone, will be enough to convince eaven the hardiest neigh-sayer that this is untrue..
Dave Field, please help me! I don’t have internet - the icon “e” on my desktop is gone! I’m using Windows!
When I started with Red Hat 7.1 I was personally happy with it, but back then I would have agreed with it - but nowdays, unless you try slackware, gentoo or some other “hacker distro” this is just not true. Sure, you may bump into this kind of problems even with distros like Fedora or even Ubuntu, but that holds even more true if you actually have to set up windows. One of my friends who knows almost nothing about computers installed Ubuntu in side of Win XP and came to tell me that unlike with Win the installation was easy and eveything “just worked” - even the wireless network he had problems with on Windows, it just worked straight after installation.
This article really was not that well thought - ignores problems with windows and explains about one individual case where someone had a problem with something. And, btw, I personally like to configure by hand, but I bet you could have solved this without tterminal and logs with simple googling.
Dave Field, please help me! I don’t have internet - the icon “e” on my desktop is gone! I’m using Windows!
Chuckle!!
Hi there,
Well for me I say the problem is not because Linux is not too easy, the problem is that all people are windows driven or lets say Windows Minded.
So in that case lets go ahead and put 2 students who don’t know anything about computers and Desktops. Both have same age and give one a Linux Desktop, and the other a Windows Desktop. Then after a couple of years lets go and say to the student with the Linux Desktop move to Windows, and the Other Move to Linux. They shall both face same problem, which is they are used to what they where being using.
Go the Idea mate
I am just discovering linux, thinking about unix and bounded with my windows background
PCLINUX is my recommendation. I agree wholeheartedly about installing software is not easy but PC linux has worked flawlessly for me when others like Ubuntu and SuSe failed to get my built in wirelss on my laptop working. If others produce as friendly a package I can really see Linux being attractive to a lot more “normal” PC users. It has I feel passed the
Geek stage.
Al
one geek told me that ubuntu got the fastest installation ever. he tried the installation about 3 days…
I tottally agree with this article.
Linux is not that easy for normal users
i have installed ubuntu which is ment to do all my windows working jobs,
ok
where is my Yahoo messenger , dont tell me go to yahoo!!! it is not as windows one with cam and voice features.
WINE for yahoo. no it didnt work either,
where is my Itune? how can i install Photoshop. how do i do my dreamweaver thing. i dono about coding.
just installing WINE it was very sophisticated.
in windows u press next next next finish….
in ubuntu??? Hm,,, respitory??!! address?? wget??? /root bin usr??
what the hell…
in windows poeple dont know where the windows folder is and what is in it. but they do know about internet yourube. and daily work.
in linux u HAVE TO KNOW EVERY THINGS TO BE ABLE TO MANAGE IT. from codings, programmings, commands, switches, usage, oh…
it is too much
i totally agree with the article.
WINDOWS IS A USER FRIENDLLY OS
LINUX IS NOT AS EASY AS WINDOWS.
ALTHOUGH IT IS OPEN SOURCE, EVEY ONE WORKS ON IT, IT IS FREE, BUTTTT
WINDOWS IS EASIER FOR MAMMY.
END;
Completely agree with little grandma.
msherm, perhaps it is because of you that people still use Windows. You like the “Next Next Next Finish” approach, because it requires no effort on your part. Well I pity you (well, the pity that’s left over from me will go over to you). “No pain, no gain” - that saying was said for a reason.
And I wish people would stop suing the term granny/grandad. My dad’s 77, and he’s more intelligent than most middle-aged people I’ve seen. He could work Ubuntu out in a couple of days given the chance.
I hasten to note that Windows isn’t particularly user-firendly when it welcomes you with a BSOD. I mean, what’s a STOP: 0×00000050 error? The fantastic windows error reporting tool does nothing but take you to a page which says the cause of the error was unknown - what a piece of genius! Make customers think we’re giving them something for free! At least with Ubuntu, and all other Linux systems, it’s straight with you, tells you what caused it, and there are billions of places where casual and professional nerds alike can shed light on what’s happened and quide you through what needs to be done. You’d pay £1.50/min for that with Microsoft.
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Linux/Ubuntu is not nearly as easy as Windows, largely because basic user information is scattered all over the internet, and is never (in my observation) written for true beginners. Today I installed Ubuntu 7.10 on a newish Compaq notebook. Already I have two problems–the OS didn’t find the WLAN, and there are random problems with the display, esp. at startup and shutdown. But for the purposes of my rant, I’ll just stick to the WLAN problems.
I have installed Win98, XP and Vista from scratch many times; I have set up home networks, and I’ve replaced memory and hard drives in computers. My friends call me for help with their MS computers, and usually I can help. I know how to locate drivers and how to install them. I assumed (falsely) that similar basic information would be easy to find online for Ubuntu, and I am very wrong. I’ve been looking today, and I cannot find a BASIC instruction manual for install & setup for Ubuntu 7.10. Everything that claims to be basic is full of unexplained jargon and half-transcribed terminal lines (I’m supposed to just know how to fill in the blanks, I guess). I’m not afraid of the terminal; I just don’t know anything about Linux file structure or terminology. Linux users need to get a fix on what “basic” really means. It means that all basic concepts are explained plainly and clearly.
I need something more practical, at the moment, than a glossary–I need to get up-and-running ASAP. The computer’s Broadcom 43XX WLAN card didn’t self-install, and looking online, it appears that it isn’t supported in Ubuntu 7.10 yet (despite what a previous commenter said above). More looking, and I found a list of drivers, except some are updates, and others are… well, I’m not sure, because I don’t know the various file extensions in Linux. Since I don’t have internet access on the Ubuntu machine, I have to transfer the file from one computer to the Ubuntu one, then install the file from the computer–except I don’t know how to do this, and I can’t find instructions anywhere on how to do it–all the instructions on driver install I find assume you have a working internet connection, and have you create an installation path from somewhere online. Where’s that basic user guide that explains basic Linux/Ubuntu ideas and terms, and walks you through the entire setup process? Ubuntu didn’t even tell me today that when it first booted/installed, it booted/installed as a Live CD, rather than installing the OS to the HD. I figured it out quickly enough, but that’s a perfect example of how basic information isn’t explained to new users.
[…] Linux is not so simple […]
I’ve been using Linux since 1993. I swear and kick then throw crap at my box. I do this when I’m loading Windows or Linux. I have found for both - they have come a long way. Neither are great for anything except burning the time of your life away. I think the writers who talk about all the different issues are “all” pretty much correct to some extent. Since using Linux in the days when it was more like a Unix distro of Windows 3.1 - I must say we as humans are pretty dumb. We really haven’t come that far yet. Linux is still like an advanced version of Unix Windows 3.1. only more complex and complicated than ever - but, without the billion dollar company to fund it and especially without the brain power to compete with the GUI richness of Windows. MS Windows has come a long way from the days of Windows 3.1. The program (OS) still does the same damn jobs only faster and with lots more color. Microsoft has concentrated on the “Dumb” users who make up the most buyers of its software and Linux hasn’t even begun to bring this awareness to the table. Linux developers are still trying to make believe that the average user is pretty computer savvy. NOT! Just ain’t gonna happen. Most computer users can barely use their cell phones. I use Linux as a Proxy, Firewall and File Server. For these things - I find it actually does do better than any Windows Server. I use Windows Active Directory for internal Security because even though Linux may seem secure - you have to be a geek to really get it to perform. If you don’t know LDAP - you’ll never get Linux to act as Active Directive does. Active Directory is far and beyond anything Linux has put together and LDAP. Oh - LDAP is what Windows uses also and it originally came from Unix so it’s not the software - it’s the brains in development. Linux Developers could build a version of Active Directory for Linux and almost identical to Microsoft’s even with staying clear of the patent crap. Linux developers just don’t have insight of the future nor the brains in creativity that Microsoft does. Even MacIntosh doesn’t do Active Directory. For being someone who has fallen in love with Active Directory (which is a version of LDAP with FS Security) I would never compare Linux’s inferior ability of LDAP with a superior Microsoft server program such as Active Directory. At the rate Linux is going -it will be 5 to 10 years before the world sees a working and beautiful easy to use server such as Active Directory and now Windows 2008 Server is leaving Linux in the dust. With W2K8 I can completely control all my Linux servers and desktops. I can’t even come close to that with Linux. Even though Linux Developers could create the GUI’s that are the basis of Microsoft’s success with LDAP (Active Directory) they won’t because they miss the boat everytime. They do like IBM and Novell used to do - and MacIntosh, too - They force whatever they create down the throats of the user and both sides eventually lose. They seem to keep Linux complicated and stupid. Mac has learned - and is now growing leaps and bounds. It will take Linux Developers another 5 to 10 years to accept this issue and start giving the people what the people want. If not - China will probably have to buy all the Linux’s just like it did with the PC Division of IBM and Microsoft will put Linux out of business just like it did with Novell. Wang did the same and went out of business. There’s been a lot of great companies do the same thing and are now gone due largely to their arrogance and blinded eye to the people. Just because you have something great - doesn’t mean the people want it. Charge to much and make it complicated - people won’t want it and won’t buy it. This is a Simple and Proven statement! Microsoft gave the people what they wanted and helped them along the way with things that didn’t work and charged them a comfortable price. That’s why Microsoft is a $40 billion a year company and Linux’s all put together might be a billion. The proof is in the sales.
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I agree with poster. I play with Linux and other OS unix base and still give me hard times. For exemple I have 2 computers and wanted to use a kvm switch. The mouse in Linux is going crazy every time I switch to the other computer. This doesn’t happend in Windows but it applies for all Unix OS base systems. A simple thing which can be a nightmare for a non experience user.
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