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Windows XP Starter Edition Review

Posted by timothy on from the shill-game dept.

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 .)

2 of 430 comments (clear)

  1. training video?? by jxyama · · Score: 4, Interesting
    please. giving credit for a training video on how to use a mouse is a bit off the mark. learning to use a mouse is beyond using windows or linux. it's basic computing.

    for the price/time involved with making/watching such a video, why not provide a fool-proof "play/experiment area" mode of the OS where you can do any mouse movement/clicking and it won't permanently affect the computer system at all? of course, it will still let you drag, click, open, etc. but it won't permanently alter the files, system, etc.

    afterall, the best way to learn to use the mouse is to actually use it, not watch a video. this way, a novice user can play with the mouse to heart's content without fearing "oops, the system is no good because i moved something" kind of a situation.

    do food processor companies deserve the credit for providing a video on how to plug in the power plug?

  2. mouse usage by lkcl · · Score: 5, Interesting

    i know it sounds archaic, but i have watched no-skills mouse users and it's quite serious. they:

    1) play "hunt the cursor" because of poor eyesight and lack of experience with visual on-screen clues

    2) hold a mouse with two or less fingers

    3) move the mouse around tepidly and definitely not straight such that the cursor movement bears little relation to on-screen movement

    4) moving the mouse around in order to locate the cursor itself.

    5) let go of the mouse and watch the mouse itself not the screen in order to press a button on it - result: mouse moves...

    the use of a mouse is something that is taken for granted. try using your mouse with your OTHER hand for a few weeks to see what i mean (if you are not ambidextrous of course).

    try also upping the cursor accelerator and click-speed to absolute max in order to simulate lack of coordination.

    and then: don't you bloody dare write another application with many-leveled drop-down and drop-sideways menus ever again!