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I crap on FOSS a bit because I like it and wish it got more traction in the mainstream. I intend it as constructive criticism. I've been a FOSS user and someti
by api 6y ago
I crap on FOSS a bit because I like it and wish it got more traction in the mainstream. I intend it as constructive criticism.
I've been a FOSS user and sometimes contributor since 1994 when I installed Linux with floppy disks, and have consistently watched FOSS lose the mainstream because they don't grasp the critical importance of UI/UX.
I want to write "it has to just work" on a sledgehammer and bash people about the head with it over and over again until they understand that user experience is f'ing EVERYTHING and every installation or setup step required to adopt something roughly halves adoption.
This is largely because we are in an age of time and attention poverty.
- bittercynic 6y agoIs it really a goal of most FOSS projects to attract the mainstream? IME some of the highest-quality and longest lived projects know who their users are and provide an extremely high quality product. I don't want to see Arch Linux, for example, to start prioritizing for attracting non-technical users who want it to "just work."
- Sporktacular 6y agoWell you should be thankful our predecessors took making things "just work" seriously enough to remove your need to boot using toggle switch sequences.
- bnegreve 6y agoOh come on! It is not because I spend most of my life inside a terminal that I don't prefer simple things over complicated ones. Technical doesn't mean "unnecessarily complicated", it means "rich, expressive and built for users that are willing to spend some time to learn" (at least it should)
- montjoy 6y agoSorry then. I had read something anti-foss the other day (probably on Reddit) which seemed to have a hidden agenda behind it like in the old days. As far as having a “it just works” experience- sticking with the Lenovo and Dell professional lines has worked out pretty well for me.