[Jonathan183]

Originally Posted by elija

I think it's kind of telling that everyone who has posted has a similar but
slightly differing view of what user friendly is. For me at least that reveals
the true scale of the task when making an operating system or piece of
software user friendly.

I do like the distinction between newbie friendly and user friendly. It is not
something I had considered before. As a developer, it is something I shall at
least consider in future.

Its a good question to ask but a difficult question to answer ...

I think I usually know what I want to achieve - but I am always coming across new features which I did not know existed ... but now I know it does, what I want to achieve has changed !
I want to work the way I want to work, this will vary with task ... what is important for surfing the web is unlikely to be identical to what is important while backing up data. Its not always the least time or fewest key strokes, sometimes I am more concerned about not making a mess of something than the time it takes to complete.
I want the computer to be very forgiving of my mistakes but never make a mistake itself.
I don't mind ... actually I like learning new things but the amount I am willing or have time to learn will vary with tasks, time of day and other things the computer has no knowledge or influence over.

When the computer does not meet any one of these requirements it is not being as user friendly as I would like ... how far short of the requirements, what I am doing at the time, and what I know about the computer so far affect how user unfriendly I consider the computer to be

[lucho]

EDIT: Hi lucho. You posted as I was typing! Intersting we should arrive at such a similar analogy simultaneously!

Great minds think alike

I think it's kind of telling that everyone who has posted has a similar but
slightly differing view of what user friendly is. For me at least that reveals
the true scale of the task when making an operating system or piece of
software user friendly.

Part of the reason for everyone thinking in similar directions is that we are all to a degree influenced by the same sources. Like I said, it is common for the user friendly tag to be waved about; Microsoft and Apple are good examples. Both companies try to convince users to not look too closely at the details. Some Linux distros (Ubuntu, SUSE, and PCLinuxOS for example) and even BSD (e.g. PC-BSD) have made enormous strides in making decisions for the user. Suddenly we see an upsurge in claims by the Microsoft camp and its legions of advocates (you know, the fanboy army) making claims and declarations about the lack of user friendliness of Linux without offering convincing arguments about how Windows is better. About Apple... well, when has Steve Jobs ever responded with anything else to questions/ comments/ complaints about the internals of his products? How many Mac users even know about the system internals? Few and fewer I'd wager. Dapper Dan's analogy about being chauffeured around takes on special meaning with regards to Mac users.

[cousinlucky]

To me a " user-friendly " computer operating system is one that holds your hand like a wet nurse and gives you a list of options to choose from every step of the way.

To me that is akin to being like a puppy tethered to a short leash. I can only go where the os allows me to go. I can only do just what it allows me to do.

The os knows that I am stupid and intends for me to forever stay that way.

" User Friendly " is a wading pool no more than six inches deep and three feet in diameter. Linux is an ocean than you can never reach the bottom of or swim across.

Such are the thoughts of an old man that completely appreciates Linux even though I do not know a thing about it or a thing about computers.

[jayd512]

I don't think that being "User-Friendly" is a trait, exactly. I think it is more of an ideal... or an abstract concept that we all have of what a product should be. Or should not be. Between all of the thoughts that you have laid out here, I would have to say that there is no such thing as a universally User-Friendly OS.
Some of us like to do a majority of our tasks through a GUI tool or convenient short cut. Others prefer to drop to a terminal and give a few quick commands. Personally, I find both to have their appeals. And I think that's what I like about Linux. That's what makes it User-Friendly to me. The fact that I'm not locked into only 1 or 2 ways to accomplish any given task.
There are others, though, that would argue that what I call friendly is only a way to over-complicate what could be done thusly.
Unfortunately, I really don't think we'll ever have a final answer for this thread, but it is definitely something to continue to think about.

Just a few random thoughts here...

[Artesia]

Very interesting thread. One thing I'm getting from all these posts is that user-friendliness is a relative term that applies differently based on the needs or wants of the user.

Personally, I would use the term differently based on who my audience is. A coworker of mine is intimidated by a CNC machine because the control panel has a keypad and a 2" X 4" screen. Another coworker can turn on the computer and use Outlook, but would rather not. My sister is extremely proficient with PhotoShop and Illustrator on her Mac, but needed my help to install an app that didn't come on a CD.

But this is a Linux community, so here's my answer in that context.

To me, user-friendly means that I can install the OS and get it to do the basic things I NEED a computer for within a reasonable amount of time. When it comes to everything else, I don't mind having to spend time learning because I understand and want the benefits of having more control over my system.

For example, if I had to type commands into bash just to install a web browser, I would consider that unfriendly.

Ubuntu gave me a system that worked, with menus I could understand, and a gazillion resources online. I love that I have options in how I can accomplish tasks, and that I can personalize the hell out of my machine. I consider this user-friendly because it makes me happy.

Perhaps if I spent less time computing and only used the machine for limited tasks, I would find this ability confusing/irritating/unfriendly.

These days, when I sit down at my XP box, I feel... limited. Really, the more I use Linux, the less user-friendly Windows seems.

[fingal]

Flippant reply: it's a cartoon.