On Sat, 4 Jul 1998, Michael Lankton wrote:
I started using linux before I started using OSF1 at school, so linux was my first unix. I found it very frustrating at first, to the point of getting pissed, and I found that the questions I posed on irc weren't getting answered in a way that I could understand, and I just couldn't follow the documentation sometimes. I think this goaded me into a "by God, I'm gonna get this if it kills me" mentality. I uninstalled linux, went to Barnes and Noble, bought "Running Linux" and "Linux in a Nutshell" (both of which are available through SuSE btw). I sat down and read Running Linux from cover to cover, reinstalled linux, and parked Linux in a Nutshell on my desktop. After that, I had infinitely fewer questions, and the ones I did have were easily answered on irc because I was now able to communicate exactly what my problem was, as well as having better knowledge of my system. RTFM is applicable most of them time, but this list exists for those with knowledge to share it with those who need it, so rarely will you get rtfm as an answer on this list.
Michael, you're right. You don't see much here, of the RFTM variety, but I think the original poster, who complained about what she/he percieved as insulting arrogance towards newbies, was probably speaking of linux in general, not just the SuSE list. And to an extent, I see what they mean. People use strong words on these groups, myself included, and all I meant was 'chill out' and don't take it personally, and get beyond it. I even saw some guy call Linus himself a 'pinhead' on some list the other day in response to a kernel issue. In general, on many lists, you *DO* see the occasional RTFM---I just say screw it. Go beyond it. Linux is a great os, but one won't be coddled. I learned pretty much as you did. Though, even with books, it took me a while to figure out which books to buy, as some can be a bit technical and others are TOO newbie oriented and either don't get beyond unix basics, or are outgrown so fast you wonder if it's worth the cost. -M - To get out of this list, please send email to majordomo@suse.com with this text in its body: unsubscribe suse-linux-e