Slashdot Mirror

10. Give the gift of Linux this holiday season. If a few burned CDs are too cheap for you, buy a Linux book that comes with the CDs.

10a) How many of us have nerd families that would appreciate this?

9. Refer all charity organizations and any group strapped for cash to Linux. Every year when my kid's school does parent-teacher conferences, I never fail to bring up open-source after the teachers mention school budget cutbacks. (there's always a good opportunity to work that in when the teachers apologize for not getting the reports printed out because XP crashed - again!)

9a) Not bad, but the teachers are clueluess in general. Your crusade falls on deaf ears. Else they wouldn't be working at a primary school. Those who can do, those who can't teach.

8. Drop IE-compatibility from your websites. Use this: http://www.stopie.com/stopie/home/ which will refer viewers to download Firefox. Aren't you tired of having to make your website botched up just to work for the lamest browser on the web, anyway?

8a) Yeah, that's realistic. Do you have a job?

7. Earn money by referring people to Firefox with Google toolbar while you're at it: http://downhillbattle.org/node/view/554 Who *says* there's no money in free software?

7a) I agree.

6. Go to the Ubuntu site - the page where you can order an Ubuntu disk sent to you for free - and fill in RANDOM ADDRESSES. Mystery gifts from the software fairy.

6a) Yes, adding useless costs to free software projects is helping the cause. They don't mind paying to send those CDs out because it earns a new user. When you send out 1000 and 2 people install them, that's not helping.

5. Anybody with a CD burner and a Linux fetish will have old Linux CDs they don't use anymore - like when you've updated to the new version. Take these CDs with you to the library, and tuck them into the Windows books in the computer books section.

5a) Um, yeah. People stick random CDs into their computer. Then get confused when Windows won't run the installer. Case closed.

4. While you're in the library, be sure to fill out those request/suggestion forms for new books to buy with the latest Linux books you're just dying to check out - and hasn't "DOS for Dummies" and "Windows 3.1 - the complete reference" gotten old, anyway?

4a) I like this, around '97 when I first tried Linux it was frustrating there were no books at the library. (I was 13, then.)

3. Never pass a computer store without walking in and asking for software titles that run on Linux. The idea is to make them aware that Linux users *would* spend *some* money, if only anybody cared to do business with us.

3a) You're the Jehovah's Witness of Linux. Neat.

2. Teach your kids Linux. This is the easiest - kids will absorb Linux like little sponges, all you have to do is install it and stand back.

2a) This is a huge disservice, unless your kids already know Windows. They're going to need Windows for school and job skills, not Linux. Sorry.

1. Go to second-hand stores such as Salvation Army and Goodwill. Find a used computer on sale plugged in and running. Stick Knoppix on it. Reboot it. Walk away whistling. Trust me, I've spoken to employee and customer alike at these places - nobody would ever know the difference!

1a) Interesting, but who's going to know what it was running? From my experience when people don't recognize Windows and see a GUI they assume its a Mac, since thats all they know.

10. Give the gift of Linux this holiday season. If a few burned CDs are too cheap for you, buy a Linux book that comes with the CDs. 10a) How many of us have nerd families that would appreciate this? 9. Refer all charity organizations and any group strapped for cash to Linux. Every year when my kid's school does parent-teacher conferences, I never fail to bring up open-source after the teachers mention school budget cutbacks. (there's always a good opportunity to work that in when the teachers apologize for not getting the reports printed out because XP crashed - again!) 9a) Not bad, but the teachers are clueluess in general. Your crusade falls on deaf ears. Else they wouldn't be working at a primary school. Those who can do, those who can't teach. 8. Drop IE-compatibility from your websites. Use this: http://www.stopie.com/stopie/home/ which will refer viewers to download Firefox. Aren't you tired of having to make your website botched up just to work for the lamest browser on the web, anyway? 8a) Yeah, that's realistic. Do you have a job? 7. Earn money by referring people to Firefox with Google toolbar while you're at it: http://downhillbattle.org/node/view/554 Who *says* there's no money in free software? 7a) I agree. 6. Go to the Ubuntu site - the page where you can order an Ubuntu disk sent to you for free - and fill in RANDOM ADDRESSES. Mystery gifts from the software fairy. 6a) Yes, adding useless costs to free software projects is helping the cause. They don't mind paying to send those CDs out because it earns a new user. When you send out 1000 and 2 people install them, that's not helping. 5. Anybody with a CD burner and a Linux fetish will have old Linux CDs they don't use anymore - like when you've updated to the new version. Take these CDs with you to the library, and tuck them into the Windows books in the computer books section. 5a) Um, yeah. People stick random CDs into their computer. Then get confused when Windows won't run the installer. Case closed. 4. While you're in the library, be sure to fill out those request/suggestion forms for new books to buy with the latest Linux books you're just dying to check out - and hasn't "DOS for Dummies" and "Windows 3.1 - the complete reference" gotten old, anyway? 4a) I like this, around '97 when I first tried Linux it was frustrating there were no books at the library. (I was 13, then.) 3. Never pass a computer store without walking in and asking for software titles that run on Linux. The idea is to make them aware that Linux users *would* spend *some* money, if only anybody cared to do business with us. 3a) You're the Jehovah's Witness of Linux. Neat. 2. Teach your kids Linux. This is the easiest - kids will absorb Linux like little sponges, all you have to do is install it and stand back. 2a) This is a huge disservice, unless your kids already know Windows. They're going to need Windows for school and job skills, not Linux. Sorry. 1. Go to second-hand stores such as Salvation Army and Goodwill. Find a used computer on sale plugged in and running. Stick Knoppix on it. Reboot it. Walk away whistling. Trust me, I've spoken to employee and customer alike at these places - nobody would ever know the difference! 1a) Interesting, but who's going to know what it was running? From my experience when people don't recognize Windows and see a GUI they assume its a Mac, since thats all they know.

9. Refer all charity organizations and any group strapped for cash to Linux. Every year when my kid's school does parent-teacher conferences, I never fail to bring up open-source after the teachers mention school budget cutbacks. (there's always a good opportunity to work that in when the teachers apologize for not getting the reports printed out because XP crashed - again!)

8. Drop IE-compatibility from your websites. Use this: http://www.stopie.com/stopie/home/ which will refer viewers to download Firefox. Aren't you tired of having to make your website botched up just to work for the lamest browser on the web, anyway?

7. Earn money by referring people to Firefox with Google toolbar while you're at it: http://downhillbattle.org/node/view/554 Who *says* there's no money in free software?

6. Go to the Ubuntu site - the page where you can order an Ubuntu disk sent to you for free - and fill in RANDOM ADDRESSES. Mystery gifts from the software fairy.

5. Anybody with a CD burner and a Linux fetish will have old Linux CDs they don't use anymore - like when you've updated to the new version. Take these CDs with you to the library, and tuck them into the Windows books in the computer books section.

4. While you're in the library, be sure to fill out those request/suggestion forms for new books to buy with the latest Linux books you're just dying to check out - and hasn't "DOS for Dummies" and "Windows 3.1 - the complete reference" gotten old, anyway?

3. Never pass a computer store without walking in and asking for software titles that run on Linux. The idea is to make them aware that Linux users *would* spend *some* money, if only anybody cared to do business with us.

2. Teach your kids Linux. This is the easiest - kids will absorb Linux like little sponges, all you have to do is install it and stand back.

1. Go to second-hand stores such as Salvation Army and Goodwill. Find a used computer on sale plugged in and running. Stick Knoppix on it. Reboot it. Walk away whistling. Trust me, I've spoken to employee and customer alike at these places - nobody would ever know the difference!

Well, maybe something in between. A little text blurb at the top saying "Warning: You are using Internet Explorer 7. IE7 is not standards compliant and is considered insecure by most computer experts. We suggest upgrading to a modern browser as soon as possible. For more information, click this link: http://www.stopie.com/" if your server detects IE. Doesn't have to be invasive, just enough to make people notice it.

Not just "the" competition, but competition in general. Forget IE itself for a second, the big problem is monopoly. That's why MS can afford to be so sloppy.

So yes, let's convince people to use alternatives. There are "switch" campaigns all over, most of them focused on specific browsers, most of those on Firefox, since it has the most momentum. Sites like Browse Happy (IE is bad, use something else), or Stop IE (IE will eat your brain, use something else) or one I'm working on, Alternative Browser Alliance (monopoly is bad, use something else).

The trick is finding the right approach -- and that'll be different for each potential switcher.

Actually, it's possible. It's not particularly easy, but it can be done.

On every machine I build for friends, family and clients I always place the Firefox icon on the desktop, taskbar and start menu and set it as the default browser, I rename the desktop icon as "Internet Browser".
Then I delete the IE icon from the desktop and taskbar leaving it only in the start menu and as a finishing touch I set the default homepage in IE to http://www.stopie.com/
Surprisingly, I've gotten very few complaints.

I have switched from IE to firefox, and have neer thought once about going back.. I am currently useing the 1.0PR builds and they are amazing, I cant image version 2.. IE will be totaly dead!

Take a look at StopIE, www.stopie.com :)