On Sun, 2004-06-13 at 14:35, Damon Jebb wrote:
Andre Truter wrote 13 June 2004 17:58
The problem with Linux is dependencies. So the need to 'yell for help' is exactly my point.
Yes, YaST can work, but more often than not I have found it
necessary
to work out exactly which package is missing, identify whether it's available from the SuSE disc or not and then install that package.
I don't know how you are using YaST, but I have never had to figure out dependencies when using YaST. I found it to be excellent at solving dependencies.
The only times that I had to seach for a specific package is when I try to compile an unsupported package and I need to know which package will supply a specific development library, or when I install an unsupported rpm, like a Mandrake or RedHat rpm on SuSE. But then you can expect to have to solve dependencies, as it is not a supported package.
On Windows I have similar problems trying to find a required dll if I install an unsupported package. In fact, it will normally just install it and the program will not work, complaining about a dll or ocx.
--
-- I generally do not believe that a 6-year old (or any inexperienced) user should install software on a computer. A PC is not a toy. One of the reasons why I like Linux, is because I can let a 6-year old play on my computer, because I know he/she cannot do real damage.
I was not advovcating 6 year olds installing. I was pre-empting the often seen advocation of linux from people on this group saying that their 6 year old has no problem with it. I don't believe anymore than you that a 6 year old should be installing software
It's been my experience that it's usually their 12+ year old sibs who are only to happy to do that install that causes the problem. Nice things about Linux, to do an actual proper install requires root access, which they probably don't have the password to. My Mother-in-Law's system has been hit so hard by her grandkids installing their "Hey Grandma look at this neat program" thing, that I've had to reinstall more than once to get it back to usable. This is one nice thing about XP Pro, you need that special access in order to install programs.
About comparing Linux ease-of-use to Windows:
I think to make a fair comparison, one should compare two products that are aimed at the same market. So, you need to compare Windows XP Home Edition with something like Lindows or Xandros. These products are aimed at the general public.
RedHat, Debian, Slackware, SuSE Professional, etc are aimed at people that have a higher technical knowledge of computers and software.
The problem here is that while you draw a distinction between Lindows, etc. (and some others have) this is not generally the case. Many fanatics simply say 'Linux is better than windows'. I disagree.
Many non-fanatics say that as well. Especially those of us who have used Windows over the years, since 3.11 for myself. I made the mistake ONCE and only once of letting a neighbour kid do an install of a MicroSoft game (Age of Empires if I recall correctly) on my main system, it went down for a reboot (you can tell it's written by MS when it does that), I had the kid eject the cd, for simple virus security reasons, and that trashed my WinME forcing a bare bones install. Fortunately I keep the important data on a separate partition. Mike