Slashdot Mirror
Mom Meets Linux - A Lindows 4.0 Review
JimLynch writes "We just put up the first review of Lindows 4.0, with a twist. I actually gave it to my Mom to see if she could use it. Find out if Lindows 4.0 passed the "Mom Test.""
← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)
You have to dig for it, but here it is for your enjoyment!
--------
The "Mom" Test
We recognize that we're a bit jaded after doing so many OS reviews over time. So we sat our mother down in front of the Lindows box and had her use it. We offered no help, no assistance and no advice on how to use Lindows. We simply put her in front of the machine and let it boot to the desktop.
The first thing she saw was the tutorial. She didn't need much coaching for most of the desktop; she's been using Windows for a while so she grokked what most of the icons were for. When she got to the Click-N-Run icon she paused to listen to the audio about what it was and how to use it. A more detailed tutorial of Click-N-Run might be a good idea for new folks like Mom.
After closing out the tutorial she spent some time clicking here and there. She wanted to open an office suite but couldn't initially find how to do it. She eventually put her cursor over the "L" button in the taskbar and opened up the menu. Since we didn't offer any assistance, she was intent on finding Microsoft Office on the box. After a few minutes we had mercy on her and told her that MS Office wasn't available in Lindows but there might be a counterpart to it. At that point she noticed the OpenOffice.org button in the menu (we had installed it earlier when we started this review). So she clicked it and chose Writer to get started writing her documents.
While the lack of MS Office seemed to puzzle her, she didn't have much trouble actually using the Lindows desktop. Interestingly enough, she didn't bother much with Click-N-Run once she found her office suite. But this is less a comment about Click-N-Run than it is about our mother's single-mindedness when completing tasks.
click on image for full view
All in all, we feel that Lindows pretty much passed the "Mom Test." It would probably be helpful to Lindows ease of use if OpenOffice was included as part of the default setup (with icons put on the desktop by default) rather than submerged in Click-N-Run. We're not sure how well Mom would have done if we hadn't already installed OpenOffice. She might or might not have realized that Click-N-Run was the place to go to download it.
--------
Free your mind.
Save yourself
[next page -->]
some time and
[next page -->]
click on the print version
[next page -->]
Lindows won't be considered a viable alternative to (insert MS-OS here) until my Grandma can install and run it.
Soft? That's not what YOUR MOM SAID, BITCH! Is that better for you, hon?
"Consider yourself a member of a virtual corporation with Mr. Torvalds as your Chief Executive Officer." - Linux Advocac
Flamebait? Maybe, but it was bloody funny.
I gave it to your mom last night, as well.
Ah maybe you shoulda checked the pic of her before being so witty.
"If you are going through hell, keep going." - Winston Churchill
I can see the need for anti-spam, but can someone remind me of the need for antivirus on a Linux box?