[TriLUG] making Linux look like Windows XP

Mon Jun 11 09:20:36 EDT 2007

  I attended the IBM OpenSource VP's talk (Bob Sutor?) at Chapel Hill a few
months back. The Open Source club at Chapel Hill was brainstorming about how
to promote Open Source there. Apparently all of the students get a
(Windows-based) system image from some department of the school. So, their
idea was to hand out Knoppix or portableapps type materials to each student.
I guess the concept is most people do not even know what Open Source is,
Linux is, OpenOffice.org is, et cetera. I guess you cannot recognize freedom
if you've never seen it. Just look at the forced abortions in China.
Horrific when nearby countries such as Kazahkstan have very low population
densities and even 1/8th of the land in the USA is owned by the federal
government. Such atrocities leave little surprise people cannot even
recognize the freedom of innovation in computer software.

  I think the Windows-look-alike is one simple way to overcome an objection.
It is easy now to say Linux works like Windows or Mac. Sure, I don't have to
go through four different layers just to set an environment variable and I
can work with most any compression format as well as fs format, but, in
general the mouse and the overall layout can be the same. The objection of
having to learn a new system is removed for the average user. Any advanced
user (knows where things are in the Registry hive etc) should be happy to
move to Linux.

My $.02,
TimJowers

On 6/11/07, Kevin J. <mrkevinj at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> Oh, that's excellent! Let me know how it goes. If you make any
> modifications that would help the presentation please send them back to me
> so I can incorporate them in to the original. We're planning to give this
> presentation to a lot of orgs in the Greenville-Spartanburg area. Everything
> from churches to libraries to schools if we can get someone to talk to us.
> Also, I have the original in both ppt and odp formats as well if you're
> interested.
>
> Next Saturday we're going to set up some pc's for a local youth summer
> camp; and the B&G club we spoke with last week is interested in setting up a
> small lab in their library area (basically just a bunch of very old books on
> a shelf) for kids ranging in age from 6-13. We are running Edubuntu with KDE
> for a little more Windows-like feel. They were highly impressed with the
> number of apps available (we sorta overloaded it actually), not having to
> deal with viruses and spyware (a lot of the older kids spend time on myspace
> and other sites which was loading them down with ad/spyware), and no
> licensing issues (she couldn't even get in to the e-open site to get her
> Microsoft server license and didn't know who to contact about it.)
>
> We haven't actually done an install yet and we're still trying to pin down
> the characteristics of the final product, but it's looking like an Edubuntu
> base (for LTSP convenience mainly), KDE, and a tiered user grouping which
> would present an age-appropriate desktop based on the login (i.e., 6-8
> year-olds would get a more childish background, the GCompris suite,
> Childsplay, etc. while the 10-13 group would get more science, math, and
> english software, etc. with an age appropriate background.)
>
> If you get something going, please keep in touch so we can compare notes.
>
> Kevin
>
> Have you F/LOSSed today?
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Tom Eisenmenger <teisenmenger at charter.net>
> To: Triangle Linux Users Group discussion list <trilug at trilug.org>
> Sent: Monday, June 11, 2007 8:28:25 AM
> Subject: Re: [TriLUG] making Linux look like Windows XP
>
>
> Very cool presentation, Kevin.  I've actually been talking with some
> other folks at Chowan University about launching such a project in
> northeastern North Carolina (I teach at Chowan).  The plan (as I see it)
> is to form a student service organization that would (a) solicit used
> computer systems from area businesses, (b) develop and install a
> tailored Linux distro (probably Ubuntu-based), and (c) provide
> grant-funded dial-up Internet access to recipients.  I do like your idea
> of partnering with an ISP to provide broadband, though.
>
> Oh, and I'll probably use a modified version of your presentation to
> drive home some points.  Thanks for putting that together!!
>
> Tom Eisenmenger
>
> On Sun, 2007-06-10 at 19:35 -0700, Kevin J. wrote:
>
> > here here!
> >
> > Btw, I created a quick "FOSS Presentation" which we presented with much
> success to our local Boys and Girls Club. You can view it on
> http://www.thinkfreedocs.com/ under the "Featured Presentations" section.
> Please feel free to modify it and/or use it to present FOSS to your local
> orgs.
> >
> > Kevin
> >
> > Have you F/LOSSed today?
> >
> > ----- Original Message ----
> > From: Jason Tower <jtower at cerient.net>
> > To: Triangle Linux Users Group discussion list <trilug at trilug.org>
> > Sent: Sunday, June 10, 2007 8:15:04 PM
> > Subject: Re: [TriLUG] making Linux look like Windows XP
> >
> > i'd suggest that apeing windows is exactly what linux *shouldn't* be
> doing as it
> > sets false expectations (it looks like windows but doesn't behave like
> windows,
> > therefore it sucks).  on the surface windows, kde, and gnome are
> fundamentally
> > very similar - same basic conventions, same desktop metaphors,
> etc.  anyone who
> > wants to can adapt to them very quickly.  changing the desktop
> background or
> > icon theme isn't what is keeping people from using linux.
> >
> > there is one primary, overriding reason people use windows: the
> apps.  you can
> > make a linux desktop look *exactly* like windows but that won't make an
> ounce of
> > difference to 99% of people if it can't run quicken, photoshop, itunes,
> > $FAVORITE_GAME, or whatever.  while there are replacement apps for many
> things,
> > there are plenty of apps that are important to people (particularly in
> the
> > business world) that for one reason or another are windows-only.  and
> *THAT* is
> > why people use windows and not linux.  they don't care about stability,
> they
> > don't care about security, and they sure as hell don't care about
> freedom or
> > community or any of the things that are important to many of us.  they
> don't
> > care about these things in much the same way i don't care about the
> ivory billed
> > woodpecker or indian casino regulations.  let's see, i had a point here
> but i've
> > forgotten where i was going with this so i'll just trail off muttering
> to myself...
> >
> > jason
> >
> > Kevin J. wrote:
> > > I just installed PCLinuxOS 2007 (www.pclinuxos.com) based on the
> recommendation of a new LUG member who recently made the switch from Windows
> after trying it. I am highly impressed. It defaults to a KDE environment
> that is very clean and easy to navigate (probably the most intuitive I've
> seen to date.) There is no reason why any Windows user couldn't comfortably
> switch to this OS.
> > >
> > > Kevin
> > >
> > > Have you F/LOSSed today?
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message ----
> > > From: Magnus <magnus at trilug.org>
> > > To: Triangle Linux Users Group discussion list <trilug at trilug.org>
> > > Sent: Sunday, June 10, 2007 2:15:49 PM
> > > Subject: [TriLUG] making Linux look like Windows XP
> > >
> > > Someone asked awhile back and while I was cruising for KDE themes
> today
> > > I ran into this:
> > >
> > > http://www.kde-look.org/content/show.php/kde3+xp+style?content=1499
> > >
> > > Not to my liking but anyone who is looking for the XP look & feel will
> > > be right at home here.
> > --
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> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
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