[plug] Food For Thought: CILUSIG?

[Harry McNally]

On Wed, 3 Jul 2002 17:19:48 +0800 Leon Brooks <leon at brooks.fdns.net> wrote:

> Ran across this while blearily triaging my Inbox:
> 
>     http://newsforge.com/newsforge/02/07/01/166250.shtml?tid=19
> 
> Perhaps by end of year when there are more PLUG members, we can consider a 
> Computer Illiterate Linux Users SIG? (-: with a nicer name, BoC... :-) It 
> might be a novel and useful way for go-gettem not-so-newbies to test out 
> their talents as well as an approach to a less techie membership.
> 
> Speaking of which, when's the next installfest?

This is the challenge to which Computer Angels rises, Leon. Think local.

I spoke yesterday to a long time Unix developer and now Embedded Linux person
who wasn't across my involvement with Computer Angels. When I explained what our
goals were, his first incredulous question was "How could you get newbies using
Linux ??" Even some Linux people don't know what's now available.

Some time ago I had a very Windows person tell me what we were doing was
_dangerous_ and would be a setback for the users we were assisting. "Windows
will not dissappear in our lifetimes" he proclaimed .. I kid you not (and was
promptly crushed by a horse drawn locomotive .. no I made that up). I picked up
my diary and wrote his exact words in it to read back to him when I need to. And
I will. He's a bit older than me and I wish him good health but I don't think he
will need it :-)

As I've said before, nothing will tickle me more than that our recipients will
be on the leading edge when we snap over the tipping point.

"Hey, I might be a retiree in my 80's / on a healthcare card / seeking work at
the moment / studying for a better life but _I'm_an_early_adopter_ !!" :-)

We will be keeping some metrics on hours per user for our recipeints internet
support needs (we don't expect the ISPs will ever need to hear from them). I'd
like to be in a position to show ISPs that it would be in their interests to
have users running a robust dialup or ADSL connected box that never has to break
again.

And who needs .NET software licensing when it's an automatic (free) feature of
your relationship with your ISP ?

apt-get install your-isp-defined-disto
apt-get update (as a quietly throttled background task when you dial up)

I really really see the potential of all this which is exactly why I'm at
Computer Angels to see what is possible and, better still, help it happen.

"From little things big things grow"

Just me ranting on ?

We'll see ;)

And that, dear PLUGers, is why it's fun :)

H

Oh .. there are some people amounst you at PLUG who have come from Computer
Angels. We all start somewhere. 


Um ................... be there  |
                                 V
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