[Artesia]

I'm weighing the pros and cons and I'd appreciate your input.

They (meaning my mother and sister) are about to buy a new computer. They already have one picked out and of course it's going to have Vista on it. They aren't all that computer literate, but enough to realize that Vista isn't safe.

I brought my laptop last time I went to see them and demonstrated how awesome Ubuntu is. They liked the desktop customization and file browser, and seemed open to learning "where stuff is" (which is actually a huge improvement in their overall attitude towards computers). They liked apt-get and the concept of easily trying out software. My sis played with the GIMP and was impressed. But when she couldn't find a tool, my mother said "Well what do you expect, it's free." I did my best to explain open source to her, but if that's going to be her stance, it's not a good sign.

Aside from the obvious, this move would save them tons of money. These people buy PhotoShop and Illustrator every time a new version comes out, plus extras. Sometimes multiple copies.

But I have huge concerns. For one, they lack the adventurous spirit that seems integral to a happy linux experience. They won't click on buttons just to see what they do, although the intelligence and ablity is there. Overall, their attitude towards the computer is that it's a tool that needs to fulfill a specific job, and if it's not working as expected, it's a source of irritation rather than an opportunity to learn. And it's supposed to work out-of-the-box. They never update anything, except Firefox, and that's only because it does that automatically. This is because they're still on dial-up, although they keep talking about going highspeed eventually.

Another major issue is that I'm still quite new to linux myself and won't be able to solve many of their issues, especially if some hardware incompatibility comes up. Neither do I want to become tech support. At the same time, the concept of introducing people to linux is exciting and I'd feel like I made a contribution to humankind.

My thought was to set them up with a dual-boot so they can play with it. The machine will have a 500 gig hd, so they wouldn't miss a few. But now I'm reading about Vista having issues with dual-boots and it's already giving me a headache.

Have any of you successfully gotten less-than-literate people into Linux?

[fingal]

A difficult one Artesia. I'm not the right one to answer your questions, but as I have trouble keeping my mouth shut I thought I'd try anyway.

My situation is different from yours because I've got frail elderly parents who are about to go online on a second hand laptop (a Dell Latitude). I haven't opted for Linux for them because that would have meant spending too much time getting them used to it (and worry for me). I live quite remotely from my parents so there would have been support/technical issues.

Having said that I can't see why they shouldn't give Linux a pop. If they are comparitively young, and if you're around to offer at least some support they might surprise you. They might just learn to find that adventurous spirit you've mentioned... It's in there somewhere.

You could always experiment with using tight vnc to install updates for them...

[Dapper Dan]

Hi Artesia,

My mother is seventy-five and has been running Linux for years now. All she really does though is Emails and cruises the net occasionally. Fingal has a good idea about setting up VNC on their computers. It's a good way to administer from a distance. If they liked what they saw on your Ubuntu machine then I think they'd be good candidates.

Why not this: They could purchase Dell Ubuntu machines and see how they like them. After a reasonable period of adjustment, if they still don't feel comfortable with it, they can always install Vista. But they'd need to know they'll have a different set of headaches with Vista and might then be entirely on their own.

EDIT: Just looking over those Dell Ubuntu machines and notice they are very affordable! Also, Dell offers Ubuntu support now! It costs but then, Vista support costs too.

[carlosponti]

I only have one windows PC in my house and its my wife but she is very comfortable using linux because she has a dual boot and uses the house laptop that has ubuntu on it. She also uses my computer from time to time as well which only has Ubuntu on it. If something goes wrong i will mention you will be the one working on it.

[MikJP]

If they really spend money for every release of Photoshop and Illustrator, they should probably be using Macintosh instead of Windows. The higher price of a Mac does not matter at all when using this kind of expensive professional software. In fact, I do not know a single person using Photoshop or Illustrator on a Windows computer.

Macintosh is safe. It is a Unix and Photoshop and Illustrator are available for it. And it is safe for people not interested in geeky things like freedom of software.

Greetings,

mikko

[questio verum]

Originally Posted by MikJP

If they really spend money for every release of Photoshop and Illustrator, they should probably be using Macintosh instead of Windows. The higher price of a Mac does not matter at all when using this kind of expensive professional software. In fact, I do not know a single person using Photoshop or Illustrator on a Windows computer.

Macintosh is safe. It is a Unix and Photoshop and Illustrator are available for it. And it is safe for people not interested in geeky things like freedom of software.

Greetings,

mikko

I was thinking the same thing. I have a friend that owns a graphics design house, and she uses Macs exclusively. Most graphics people do. The only non-apple computer in her shop is a linux-powered lappy owned by her boyfriend.

Back to the original post though... If your mom & sis already have their hearts set on a certain computer, I would go the dual-boot route. I wouldn't be too distracted by the naysayers. You might spend some time investigating linux art & graphics sites, since it sounds like that might be a sticking point. I can't think of the name right now, but there's at least one collective on the web that acts as an incubator and an advocate for the creation of art and graphics using linux. Know going in, that your mom & sis are going to need a little direction from you as to where the resources for these things are. Some things can't be overcome though. You can't make someone adventurous or curious. You can set the bait, but that's all. I wish you luck in all this.

qv

[Dapper Dan]

An associate of mine who was using Photoshop on XP had his hard drive crash. I recommended he go with a new Mac. He got it last Monday. Yesterday he told me it's been a period of transition, but already he sees how much more he's going to enjoy the Mac over what he had before.

[Artesia]

Thank you for all your thoughts and input. They have used Macs in the past and own a couple MacBooks. They also used a Win machine some years back. For some reason, they want a PC now and actually just bought it a couple days ago. (It's still in the box. I can't even comprehend that! lol)

They are into the dual-boot thing and I feel like I kinda owe them, since I've been using their Macs to fix my iPod. I'll try to make it really clear to them what my experience level is and we'll take it from there. The VNC route seems like a great option, thanks fingal.

Maybe they will surprise me, who knows. It shall be interesting...

[Oxygen]

I tried to get my parents onto it but they just wanted XP... the only difference is when Linux breaks I fix it, when Windows breaks... they're screwed!

Overall... if you can, then go for it.

[bigtomrodney]

The one thing I've learned is that if people don't actively want it they find it easy to blame it when things go wrong. I've helped a few people out on the way over. Both my parents dual boot with Linux and use it a bit. Of course you become the full time tech for when things do go wrong.

Dialup can be a bit of a pig on Linux. I know Network Manager currently has a bug that misreports the connection with certain drivers, so that Firefox starts in offline mode all the time. That kind of small detail is nearly a deal breaker when it comes to non-techies.

On the other hand you can always try it. If you have an external drive with space you can even back up the system with dd before they boot it so that it can have its original Vista build back if they want to switch back.