Transistor degradation. I went more in depth in other posts, but I don't feel like repeating myself to multiple people. If you're curious look it up, if you don't feel like changing your mind, ignore me like you would have even if I did the research for you.
I didn't say Apple didn't use higher quality, I just said not by much. Plus, you're comparing Dell components which are vastly cheaper than Apple's. At a time however, they *did* get their components from the same manufacturers.
Transistor degradation such as gate-oxide breakdown and hot-electron effects will effect transistor performance. Eventually the chip will fail, but not suddenly. Basically, the chip will be clocked for x cycles, however, its not capable of pulling that off. Eventually the difference is too great and it will fail. Transistors don't always work at the same speed and then fail, they degrade. Most electronics degrade, thats what eventually leads to failure, but not some sort of binary failure of "it either works or it doesn't."
I'm not saying there will be a drastic change in speed, but it will be there assuming you use the device frequently.
Wikipedia transistor degradation if you'd like. I'm not going out of my way to do research, just know it exists and its not difficult to find. I don't have to convince you. If you actually want to know, you'd do the research, if you refuse to believe it, you won't, there's really not much I can do beyond that.
Transistor degradation such as gate-oxide breakdown and hot-electron effects will effect transistor performance. Eventually the chip will fail, but not suddenly. Basically, the chip will be closed for x cycles, however, its not capable of pulling that off. Eventually the difference is too great and it will fail. Transistors don't always work at the same speed and then fail, they degrade. Most electronics degrade, thats what eventually leads to failure, but not some sort of binary failure of "it either works or it doesn't."
I'm not saying there will be a drastic change in speed, but it will be there assuming you use the device frequently.
I'm tired of people saying their apple runs just as good four years later. Its almost technically impossible. Hardware degrades. It has nothing to do with the OS and no, the component quality in a macbook is *not* that much better than what you'd find in a high-end laptop. I guarantee you its NOT running as well as the first day you bought it, you just can't admit it to yourself. No CPU, RAM, harddrive, etc etc etc is going to run as well as it did after four years of usage unless its never getting used in which case the same principles can be applied to any other computer.
The only reason they sell for so much now is precisely because they don't offer any low budget lines. If they had, then you wouldn't be able to sell your stuff second hand so easily.
If any Apple cultist says their machine runs just as well as it did four years after purchase OR touts how much they can resell it for, they're just as disillusioned as a MS apologist. I think OS X is a very fine operating system. I *do* think it *is* better than Vista. However, its not the second coming of Jesus Christ like so many of you people believe. Its *NOT* good enough to base your entire lives around it NOR is it good enough to bash other people just for not having one. Its also not good enough to justify any sort of elitism any cultist has (I'm not saying you're one of them, but you can't deny that Apple groups are overrun with them). There are PLENTY of situations where OS X is *NOT* the best choice for someone and that includes various home consumers, not just business environments.
I can't recall where I heard it or if it was true, but I did hear of some success on getting Android to run on the Freerunner. I could be absolutely mistaken as I'm going based on a vague memory and have no articles to back me up, though it would be interesting if it were true. Hell, if it was, I'd definitely take my openmoko out of the drawer to see the light of day again. It was an OK phone, but a pain in the ass to get operational. I was hoping it'd be a bit more stable with the release, but I was wrong. It wasn't anywhere near useful enough as a phone when it was released. Around now, it may be possible to carry around, but the battery life was terrible at the time, so who knows.
The Freerunner never came with the board and the board always cost $99. I was one of the early purchasers, so I'm aware of what it came with (I purchased it almost immediately when it released). If you purchased the developer's kit before the full release, that came with the board, but that was also more expensive to begin with anyway. So the price drop is in fact a price drop, its not that they're cutting out anything. So you're getting the same thing, just cheaper now.
To be clear, when I purchased it, it was $399 and that did *not* include the debug board.
I would say to look into the program OsiriX (I believe thats what its called.). Its for the Mac and if I recall correctly, its also free. I know it handles DICOM and it likely can also do DICOM Send/Receive/Retrieve. This would allow you to send your files to the Mac using the DICOM protocol, so it doesn't matter what OS each computer is using, just as long as there is a way for them to talk to each other.
Sorta. I write veterinary software for a digital x-ray machine. If he takes x-rays at all, he should soon be starting to look into going digital. If it really is a small practice, it may not be worth the cost right now (if he's taking at least a few a week, it'd at least be worth figuring out whether it'd be worth it), but traditional x-ray isn't going to be around for long.
In any case, the reason I bring this up is that it may not be a great idea to try to plan 15 years in advance. With the equipment changing, he may have to add a workstation into his network and if you choose the wrong OS, you may run into added difficulties. As far as I know, all the manufacturers out there only right their software for one OS (and most of them are Windows. I wanna try to get one out their for Mac at least, but I'm the only developer, so its kinda difficult). But in any case, a majority of them use DICOM and you'd need to make sure there's a PACS out there that has an interface you like on the OS you end up going with.
Basically, I'm just saying, there are changes in the vet field that sometimes will revamp a certain portion of the practice. Digital x-rays are just one example of how an upgrade will have an effect on your existing network.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
Video cards and wireless stuff are probably one of the most common peripherals for the average user. I had issues getting DVDs to work on Ubuntu. I had issues with the wireless USB drive (had to write some line of something somewhere or else it wouldn't get enough power). I now have issues with a CD-ROM drive on my dad's old pc (used to be windows media center). Maybe they support more hardware, but they apparently don't support the common hardware thats out there. Unless someone is building their PC, its probably built for Windows and from what I can tell, getting all the hardware to work isn't as simple as it is on Windows.
The amount of hardware that works out of the box isn't near what it is on Windows. For the average user, if it doesn't work by plugging it in, then its not compatible because they don't have the knowledge to get it to work. Its not that their lazy, its just they don't know how to do it.
From the amount of people who keep on saying "its not Linux's fault" as their main reason... yes, I find that *third* paragraph somewhat justified, albeit a little bit exaggerated. I've been writing on a few threads and not just yours and from what I've seen, its not a big stretch. Plus, to say that hardware doesn't work as easily on Linux as Windows being an obstruction to the success of Linux is by no means a stretch either. Seeing as how a lot of people have agreed with me on the topic of driver support, I'm not the only one who views it as a problem. Linux experts who don't have a problem aren't the people you should be listening to. If someone who hasn't used Linux is having a problem, then *thats* the problem you need to solve. Its almost as if a decent portion of Linux users/developers just cater solutions to themselves and not to people who are new to the OS. Its almost as if they really don't care its not simple enough for the average user to use and yes, that would imply elitism.
Well, I find it disturbing that people don't listen to reason. That they fail to listen to someone explain the benefits. I find it disturbing that its considered polite to halt progress because somebody is ignorant about the situation.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
Having Linux work as well with hardware as Windows or OS X is *not* a whim. We're not saying "make it blue instead of red." We're coming right out and saying "hey, this is stopping people from adopting Linux."
It's not a whim and there's not too many people to succeed in doing that. MS and Apple already did it.
Driving isn't a right, its a privilege. Freedom to do something completely not illegal, nor harmful, in a public place is a right. They're completely different things.
I don't see why someone should follow your special rules because you've arbitrarily deemed it to be polite. You give absolutely no reason except that "they don't get it." If they don't understand, please explain it. Why is it not polite to do so? and don't just say, "because I don't want it." I want real reasons.
You don't really know how burglars case a house, do you? Can you tell what time people show up? Can you work out their routines so you know the best time to rob the place? This does *not* make it any easier for a burglar to rob any house unless they have a bunch of valuable stuff lying in their yard unattended, in which case, it's going to disappear whether its on Google Maps or not.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
Would you be happier if manufacturers gave you the drivers for the hardware and didn't require you to hack it? If the extra effort wasn't required to make it work, would that be something you'd like? Because that would be the outcome of Linux having greater market share. Manufacturers wouldn't ignore you.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
You wouldn't benefit from increased compatibility from most major manufacturers? I'm shocked. I honestly wouldn't have expected that. Manufacturers will cooperate and GIVE YOU DRIVERS if theres enough people to make it worth their while. So unless you'd rather hack your hardware every time you get new hardware, you'll *definitely* benefit. I'm honestly surprised you had to ask how one could benefit from a larger adoption. I mean, this could force standards across the web. Standards on exchange of data. I'm barely giving it any thought and those GINORMOUS benefits just came to me.
linux developers/users/advocates are really only ones with an interest in Linux. So putting the responsibility on them is kinda the only place to put it. It's not easy, sure. yea, its an uphill battle. Just because its difficult doesn't mean it still is a problem that they have to solve. If an solution was readily available, I highly doubt this would be such a big issue.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
As manufacturer-unsupported, undocumented hardware has had drivers written for it on linux in the past, it is within the realm of possibility. Hard, hell yea. Impossible? Not really. If Linux wants to compete, it has some hurdles that Mac and Windows didn't have to overcome. It sucks, but its there.
You are obviously one of the people who need to be educated. Those of us with Aspergers are not 'maladjusted.' While its true he may have Asperger's, him using it as an excuse is just like someone using child abuse as an excuse. Plenty of people have gone through the same thing and did not end up maladjusted. Plus, you missed the point.
If you assume someone with Asperger's is someone who is misbehaving, you're obviously ignorant about whats going on.
I wouldn't be surprised if that guy *didn't* have Asperger's and was just using it as a cover or possibly he does have it and is still only using it as a cover. The behavior you described isn't really common to Asperger's symptoms or at best is an extremely exaggerated and stretched definition of some of the symptoms. Studies have already shown the brain in an aspie is quite different from one who's brain is normative.
Instead of assuming violence, punishment, and discipline is the answer, maybe try research and education.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
You're not the average user so don't assume that people should do what you do. The average user doesn't do that. Usually they go by what's on the box, not what they searched for in Google. It doesn't matter if they're screwing themselves. The problem still results in Linux not being adopted. Stop trying to shift blame and just find solutions. What do you do about users who go by whats on the box, not extra research done online. Ultimately, you *need* to win that user to gain any significant market share. Why do you think Windows' and Macs' ads always say how easy it is to do everything. Yet Linux's answer is always, "you should be doing more work."
You can't expect the non-Linux advocates to fix the problems of Linux not being able to gain market share.
Of course, if you don't have any problem with Linux's market share, well, you're not one of the people we're addressing with the criticisms. No one can give any sort of criticism about a problem if you just don't care about the problem.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
You miss the point. I want to learn to drive stick-shift, however I won't make my next car purchase a stick shift unless I already know I can drive stick shift. Its sorta the same thing with OSes. I'll buy new hardware with an OS I know how to use, but I won't buy hardware specced for an OS that I'm unsure I'll like. I'd rather test drive it and learn how to use it first. You can't expect people to just take that kind of cost just to try something out. You need to allow them to enter gradually. It's not so much that the hardware is specced to Windows, its just the software is within specs. Linux specs needs to try and overlap more with Windows specs so people can give it a test drive on their own hardware. Why would I spend more money on more hardware and then possibly find out that I don't enjoy the experience? Plus, you're not thinking like the average user. To them, an OS controls the hardware. If some newfangled OS can't even control what I'm already using, why should I switch to it? Plus, which distro are they gonna spec to? Not all hardware works out of the box on every distro and if it doesn't work out of the box, you can forget it. You just lost the average user.
You might be able to get new users when they're switching out their old hardware, but what about people who want to give this Linux a shot but don't want to invest in new hardware. They'll see it won't work and bam, bad impression of Linux for a long time, if not forever. Virtually everyone on slashdot is not your average user so you gotta stop thinking like you do and think thats just the way it is. What we see is the real problem isn't the problem that the average user sees. We gotta solve their problem, not try to make them understand that they're just doing it wrong.
Re:Nope, it's the putative new users problem
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
You're making the problem out to be that people aren't switching to Linux because hardware that didn't work in the first place won't work now. People aren't switching because hardware that IS working now WON'T work with Linux. So if you want people to switch, you need to support that hardware. That's the problem. NOW, who benefits the most from answering that problem? The hardware manufacturer? No, or else it'd be done already. The end user? they can'd to anything about it but spend more money. The Linux community? Yes.
Your situation isn't the problematic one, though it may be an issue itself. The problem that is being presented here, the problem that I'm saying the developers should address (even if its not their fault) is this:
Person A has a 3 boxes, Windows, Mac, and some Linux distro. They put the card in the Windows box and it works. They put the card in the Mac box and it works. They put the card in the Linux box and lo and behold, it doesn't work.
Who's problem is that? The manufacturer is losing very little by not having Linux drivers. The Linux community is losing A LOT because they're trying to increase market share and this is one of the biggest hurdles they have. So, who is this a problem for? The Linux community. It's not their fault, but they suffer. So, they should fix it. I don't understand the purpose of this elitist idea that if its not your fault, you shouldn't have to fix it. Or if you're unjustly blamed, you shouldn't have to fix it. Again, you made the same mistake as another post. We're not placing the blame on Linux, but its causing a problem for Linux. They need to solve it or else they won't succeed. I don't care whose fault it is, its an obstruction to Linux's success so why are people like you avoiding trying to solve it?
Slashdot Mirror
*clocked for x cycles.
Transistor degradation. I went more in depth in other posts, but I don't feel like repeating myself to multiple people. If you're curious look it up, if you don't feel like changing your mind, ignore me like you would have even if I did the research for you.
I didn't say Apple didn't use higher quality, I just said not by much. Plus, you're comparing Dell components which are vastly cheaper than Apple's. At a time however, they *did* get their components from the same manufacturers.
I posted this in response to someone else...
Transistor degradation such as gate-oxide breakdown and hot-electron effects will effect transistor performance. Eventually the chip will fail, but not suddenly. Basically, the chip will be clocked for x cycles, however, its not capable of pulling that off. Eventually the difference is too great and it will fail. Transistors don't always work at the same speed and then fail, they degrade. Most electronics degrade, thats what eventually leads to failure, but not some sort of binary failure of "it either works or it doesn't."
I'm not saying there will be a drastic change in speed, but it will be there assuming you use the device frequently.
Wikipedia transistor degradation if you'd like. I'm not going out of my way to do research, just know it exists and its not difficult to find. I don't have to convince you. If you actually want to know, you'd do the research, if you refuse to believe it, you won't, there's really not much I can do beyond that.
Transistor degradation such as gate-oxide breakdown and hot-electron effects will effect transistor performance. Eventually the chip will fail, but not suddenly. Basically, the chip will be closed for x cycles, however, its not capable of pulling that off. Eventually the difference is too great and it will fail. Transistors don't always work at the same speed and then fail, they degrade. Most electronics degrade, thats what eventually leads to failure, but not some sort of binary failure of "it either works or it doesn't."
I'm not saying there will be a drastic change in speed, but it will be there assuming you use the device frequently.
I'm tired of people saying their apple runs just as good four years later. Its almost technically impossible. Hardware degrades. It has nothing to do with the OS and no, the component quality in a macbook is *not* that much better than what you'd find in a high-end laptop. I guarantee you its NOT running as well as the first day you bought it, you just can't admit it to yourself. No CPU, RAM, harddrive, etc etc etc is going to run as well as it did after four years of usage unless its never getting used in which case the same principles can be applied to any other computer.
The only reason they sell for so much now is precisely because they don't offer any low budget lines. If they had, then you wouldn't be able to sell your stuff second hand so easily.
If any Apple cultist says their machine runs just as well as it did four years after purchase OR touts how much they can resell it for, they're just as disillusioned as a MS apologist. I think OS X is a very fine operating system. I *do* think it *is* better than Vista. However, its not the second coming of Jesus Christ like so many of you people believe. Its *NOT* good enough to base your entire lives around it NOR is it good enough to bash other people just for not having one. Its also not good enough to justify any sort of elitism any cultist has (I'm not saying you're one of them, but you can't deny that Apple groups are overrun with them). There are PLENTY of situations where OS X is *NOT* the best choice for someone and that includes various home consumers, not just business environments.
I can't recall where I heard it or if it was true, but I did hear of some success on getting Android to run on the Freerunner. I could be absolutely mistaken as I'm going based on a vague memory and have no articles to back me up, though it would be interesting if it were true. Hell, if it was, I'd definitely take my openmoko out of the drawer to see the light of day again. It was an OK phone, but a pain in the ass to get operational. I was hoping it'd be a bit more stable with the release, but I was wrong. It wasn't anywhere near useful enough as a phone when it was released. Around now, it may be possible to carry around, but the battery life was terrible at the time, so who knows.
The Freerunner never came with the board and the board always cost $99. I was one of the early purchasers, so I'm aware of what it came with (I purchased it almost immediately when it released). If you purchased the developer's kit before the full release, that came with the board, but that was also more expensive to begin with anyway. So the price drop is in fact a price drop, its not that they're cutting out anything. So you're getting the same thing, just cheaper now.
To be clear, when I purchased it, it was $399 and that did *not* include the debug board.
I would say to look into the program OsiriX (I believe thats what its called.). Its for the Mac and if I recall correctly, its also free. I know it handles DICOM and it likely can also do DICOM Send/Receive/Retrieve. This would allow you to send your files to the Mac using the DICOM protocol, so it doesn't matter what OS each computer is using, just as long as there is a way for them to talk to each other.
Sorta. I write veterinary software for a digital x-ray machine. If he takes x-rays at all, he should soon be starting to look into going digital. If it really is a small practice, it may not be worth the cost right now (if he's taking at least a few a week, it'd at least be worth figuring out whether it'd be worth it), but traditional x-ray isn't going to be around for long.
In any case, the reason I bring this up is that it may not be a great idea to try to plan 15 years in advance. With the equipment changing, he may have to add a workstation into his network and if you choose the wrong OS, you may run into added difficulties. As far as I know, all the manufacturers out there only right their software for one OS (and most of them are Windows. I wanna try to get one out their for Mac at least, but I'm the only developer, so its kinda difficult). But in any case, a majority of them use DICOM and you'd need to make sure there's a PACS out there that has an interface you like on the OS you end up going with.
Basically, I'm just saying, there are changes in the vet field that sometimes will revamp a certain portion of the practice. Digital x-rays are just one example of how an upgrade will have an effect on your existing network.
Video cards and wireless stuff are probably one of the most common peripherals for the average user. I had issues getting DVDs to work on Ubuntu. I had issues with the wireless USB drive (had to write some line of something somewhere or else it wouldn't get enough power). I now have issues with a CD-ROM drive on my dad's old pc (used to be windows media center). Maybe they support more hardware, but they apparently don't support the common hardware thats out there. Unless someone is building their PC, its probably built for Windows and from what I can tell, getting all the hardware to work isn't as simple as it is on Windows.
The amount of hardware that works out of the box isn't near what it is on Windows. For the average user, if it doesn't work by plugging it in, then its not compatible because they don't have the knowledge to get it to work. Its not that their lazy, its just they don't know how to do it.
From the amount of people who keep on saying "its not Linux's fault" as their main reason... yes, I find that *third* paragraph somewhat justified, albeit a little bit exaggerated. I've been writing on a few threads and not just yours and from what I've seen, its not a big stretch. Plus, to say that hardware doesn't work as easily on Linux as Windows being an obstruction to the success of Linux is by no means a stretch either. Seeing as how a lot of people have agreed with me on the topic of driver support, I'm not the only one who views it as a problem. Linux experts who don't have a problem aren't the people you should be listening to. If someone who hasn't used Linux is having a problem, then *thats* the problem you need to solve. Its almost as if a decent portion of Linux users/developers just cater solutions to themselves and not to people who are new to the OS. Its almost as if they really don't care its not simple enough for the average user to use and yes, that would imply elitism.
Well, I find it disturbing that people don't listen to reason. That they fail to listen to someone explain the benefits. I find it disturbing that its considered polite to halt progress because somebody is ignorant about the situation.
Having Linux work as well with hardware as Windows or OS X is *not* a whim. We're not saying "make it blue instead of red." We're coming right out and saying "hey, this is stopping people from adopting Linux."
It's not a whim and there's not too many people to succeed in doing that. MS and Apple already did it.
Driving isn't a right, its a privilege. Freedom to do something completely not illegal, nor harmful, in a public place is a right. They're completely different things.
I don't see why someone should follow your special rules because you've arbitrarily deemed it to be polite. You give absolutely no reason except that "they don't get it." If they don't understand, please explain it. Why is it not polite to do so? and don't just say, "because I don't want it." I want real reasons.
It's also an entirely legitimate desire to want all of Trump's wealth, that doesn't mean I can go take it.
You don't really know how burglars case a house, do you? Can you tell what time people show up? Can you work out their routines so you know the best time to rob the place? This does *not* make it any easier for a burglar to rob any house unless they have a bunch of valuable stuff lying in their yard unattended, in which case, it's going to disappear whether its on Google Maps or not.
Would you be happier if manufacturers gave you the drivers for the hardware and didn't require you to hack it? If the extra effort wasn't required to make it work, would that be something you'd like? Because that would be the outcome of Linux having greater market share. Manufacturers wouldn't ignore you.
You wouldn't benefit from increased compatibility from most major manufacturers? I'm shocked. I honestly wouldn't have expected that. Manufacturers will cooperate and GIVE YOU DRIVERS if theres enough people to make it worth their while. So unless you'd rather hack your hardware every time you get new hardware, you'll *definitely* benefit. I'm honestly surprised you had to ask how one could benefit from a larger adoption. I mean, this could force standards across the web. Standards on exchange of data. I'm barely giving it any thought and those GINORMOUS benefits just came to me.
linux developers/users/advocates are really only ones with an interest in Linux. So putting the responsibility on them is kinda the only place to put it. It's not easy, sure. yea, its an uphill battle. Just because its difficult doesn't mean it still is a problem that they have to solve. If an solution was readily available, I highly doubt this would be such a big issue.
As manufacturer-unsupported, undocumented hardware has had drivers written for it on linux in the past, it is within the realm of possibility. Hard, hell yea. Impossible? Not really. If Linux wants to compete, it has some hurdles that Mac and Windows didn't have to overcome. It sucks, but its there.
Usually, yes. If that was humor, well, then I probably just proved it...
You are obviously one of the people who need to be educated. Those of us with Aspergers are not 'maladjusted.' While its true he may have Asperger's, him using it as an excuse is just like someone using child abuse as an excuse. Plenty of people have gone through the same thing and did not end up maladjusted. Plus, you missed the point.
If you assume someone with Asperger's is someone who is misbehaving, you're obviously ignorant about whats going on.
I wouldn't be surprised if that guy *didn't* have Asperger's and was just using it as a cover or possibly he does have it and is still only using it as a cover. The behavior you described isn't really common to Asperger's symptoms or at best is an extremely exaggerated and stretched definition of some of the symptoms. Studies have already shown the brain in an aspie is quite different from one who's brain is normative.
Instead of assuming violence, punishment, and discipline is the answer, maybe try research and education.
You're not the average user so don't assume that people should do what you do. The average user doesn't do that. Usually they go by what's on the box, not what they searched for in Google. It doesn't matter if they're screwing themselves. The problem still results in Linux not being adopted. Stop trying to shift blame and just find solutions. What do you do about users who go by whats on the box, not extra research done online. Ultimately, you *need* to win that user to gain any significant market share. Why do you think Windows' and Macs' ads always say how easy it is to do everything. Yet Linux's answer is always, "you should be doing more work."
You can't expect the non-Linux advocates to fix the problems of Linux not being able to gain market share.
Of course, if you don't have any problem with Linux's market share, well, you're not one of the people we're addressing with the criticisms. No one can give any sort of criticism about a problem if you just don't care about the problem.
You miss the point. I want to learn to drive stick-shift, however I won't make my next car purchase a stick shift unless I already know I can drive stick shift. Its sorta the same thing with OSes. I'll buy new hardware with an OS I know how to use, but I won't buy hardware specced for an OS that I'm unsure I'll like. I'd rather test drive it and learn how to use it first. You can't expect people to just take that kind of cost just to try something out. You need to allow them to enter gradually. It's not so much that the hardware is specced to Windows, its just the software is within specs. Linux specs needs to try and overlap more with Windows specs so people can give it a test drive on their own hardware. Why would I spend more money on more hardware and then possibly find out that I don't enjoy the experience? Plus, you're not thinking like the average user. To them, an OS controls the hardware. If some newfangled OS can't even control what I'm already using, why should I switch to it? Plus, which distro are they gonna spec to? Not all hardware works out of the box on every distro and if it doesn't work out of the box, you can forget it. You just lost the average user.
You might be able to get new users when they're switching out their old hardware, but what about people who want to give this Linux a shot but don't want to invest in new hardware. They'll see it won't work and bam, bad impression of Linux for a long time, if not forever. Virtually everyone on slashdot is not your average user so you gotta stop thinking like you do and think thats just the way it is. What we see is the real problem isn't the problem that the average user sees. We gotta solve their problem, not try to make them understand that they're just doing it wrong.
You're making the problem out to be that people aren't switching to Linux because hardware that didn't work in the first place won't work now. People aren't switching because hardware that IS working now WON'T work with Linux. So if you want people to switch, you need to support that hardware. That's the problem. NOW, who benefits the most from answering that problem? The hardware manufacturer? No, or else it'd be done already. The end user? they can'd to anything about it but spend more money. The Linux community? Yes.
Your situation isn't the problematic one, though it may be an issue itself. The problem that is being presented here, the problem that I'm saying the developers should address (even if its not their fault) is this: Person A has a 3 boxes, Windows, Mac, and some Linux distro. They put the card in the Windows box and it works. They put the card in the Mac box and it works. They put the card in the Linux box and lo and behold, it doesn't work.
Who's problem is that? The manufacturer is losing very little by not having Linux drivers. The Linux community is losing A LOT because they're trying to increase market share and this is one of the biggest hurdles they have. So, who is this a problem for? The Linux community. It's not their fault, but they suffer. So, they should fix it. I don't understand the purpose of this elitist idea that if its not your fault, you shouldn't have to fix it. Or if you're unjustly blamed, you shouldn't have to fix it. Again, you made the same mistake as another post. We're not placing the blame on Linux, but its causing a problem for Linux. They need to solve it or else they won't succeed. I don't care whose fault it is, its an obstruction to Linux's success so why are people like you avoiding trying to solve it?