Windows XP Starter Edition Review

Digitalommm writes "Paul Thurrott has a story on the latest developments on Windows XP Starter Edition. There are some very good points that the Linux community could adopt. An example is end-user training videos such as how to use a mouse." This is an optimistic, even glowing look at the Starter Edition, which even for Thurrot was not available for unsupervised use, only demonstrated by Microsoft for him. (For using-a-mouse videos, I would suggest also Roblimo's book Point and Click Linux .)

Comments

The difference between Windows and Linux videos

[mukund]

(For using-a-mouse videos, I would suggest also Roblimo's book Point and Click Linux.)

OK OK.. listen. I'm going to sound like a troll, but this is A JOKE. None of it is really true.

The difference between a Windows "using the mouse" instruction video and a Linux "using the mouse" instruction video is:

Windows:

1. Plug the mouse in
2. Clicking twice means a double-click. It is different from a single click.
3. Right clicking means clicking the right mouse button which brings up properties in context

Linux:

1. Plug the mouse in
2. If you believe in God, say a quick prayer for the next things you're gonna do
3. Edit /etc/X11/XF86Config and fill in all the appropriate sections. The 60 page manpage reference is an ideal reference.
4. Edit /etc/sysconfig/gpm (if you are using Fedora Core or /etc/someother/file if you're using Debian, or /etc/someotherother/other file if you're using Gentoo, or....) and blah blah blah blah blah blah..
5. Say a prayer again
6. Start gpm server. Start X.
7. Wash, rinse and repeat until it works.

Re: computers + old age.

[themusicgod1]

Oh come on. It's not that difficult. Anyone who can pass grade 3 can use a mouse. Worst case scenario you need the one button solution

People should learn.

[northcat]

People should learn how to use computers. They can't just sit in front of it and expect it to do most of the stuff for them and teach them how to do the rest of it. That's why computer education at schools is so important. Computers are complex machines. When developers try do make it too easy to use things get overly complicated and bugs start to sneak in. Much of today's problems with computers can be attributed to people dumbing down computers.

Almost everyone seem think that Useability/Good UI means that the useage of the program should be easy to learn. However, a program's difficulty of learning has nothing to do with its useability. Even if it's hard to learn, once someone has learnt how to use it, the user should be able to do things quickly and easily. Therefore, programs like Vi (or even emacs) fare well in terms of useability. And most of the Windows/Mac/X apps are unuseable. Just because all the program's options are visible in a menu and big fancy buttons doesn't mean that it's easy to use. It's just easy to learn .
[And I'm sure I'll get flamed and modded down as troll because I mentioned Mac in a negative context.]

Re:Nothing to see here

[recursiv]

I wasn't talking to you. Get back in your cube.

Re:The real XP Starter Edition...

[Anonymous Coward]

They'll probably know immediately when they can't actually run anything or they try to load up Photoshop, but some amateur crap like GIMP comes up instead.

Re:geez, take it easy

[kurokaze]

thanks for putting it so politely.. I wasn't going to be as nice :)

KDE / CUPS fixed, winblows not.

[twitter]

Eric S. Raymond disagrees with you, big time [about the ease of setting up CUPS].

He used old software. Fedora Core One has been supplanted by Core two and Simply Mepis never had this problem to begin with because it was properly configured to use KDE's walk through. I set up a network printer with KDE 3.2 tools two months ago and it was really a walk in the park. I just chose network printer then the printer model from a pulldown list. It was that easy. Had I been using Mepis, I would not have even had to know that the subsystem was CUPS, because it just worked!

Let's compare this to the Winblows we have on hand, shall we? First we note that what ESR tried to do CAN NOT be done because Starter Edition does not include LAN printing or file sharing. Good luck to all those technicians who run across this beast in the future. Next, even local printers are a headache under windoze. I can't tell you how many hair pullers I've heard of using hideous all in one devices. That's with all the vaunted vendor support. You can bet that Starter Edition will receive ME type vendor support.