Randall R Schulz wrote: [snip]
And already behind the times: Kernel 2.6.9, KDE 3.3, OO.o 1.1, X.org 6.7, Java 1.4.2, CrossOver Office 4.1 (which is a 30-day trial only). Limited s/w: Reiser and Ext3 only, e.g. But what would we expect: "Based on Debian..." [snip]
IME, the vast majority of users neither know nor care whether they are up with or behind the times. They just want something that is dead easy to install and use, which comes with the right kind of software and which works very reliably. Since users like this probably won't be running particularly new hardware, older programs that go easier on resources can be a plus point. These users exist in their countless millions. They simply do not have the money to buy new copies of Windows software and fancy new hardware. A friend of mine who runs an old p2 recently asked me what a "computer's bios" was. They had never heard the term and hadn't any idea. I guess anyone who wants to produce a pop OS really has to start at a level that's this basic. My own money is on Ubuntu, but not for a couple of years at a guess. Oh, and "based on Debian" may well be the wave of the future anyway, not a putdown. The city of Munich clearly thinks so. :) Fish