Re: A small Debian-NP detail

Hi Holmes,

Your site and project looks great. For my part I would be interested in 
hearing about your sucesses and obstacles etc using LTSP/Debian in the 
lab. Are you planning on putting any info on the site about that? Also 
are you developing/using any curricullem for the labs that you can share?

John
npotechs.org

Holmes Wilson wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I just joined the list.  My name's Holmes Wilson and I'm involved with 
> running a program that uses donated computers and linux to set up labs 
> in my town of Worcester, Massachusetts: worcestercoop.org.  It's similar 
> to Freegeek, but a lot smaller, and still just getting going.  A big 
> part of my interest in the project has to do with turning nonprofits on 
> to the benefits of free software, so I'm really into the idea of Debian 
> NP, and I think making a live CD was a very good call.
> 
> Anyway, I just tried out the Debian-NP live CD, and I have a couple 
> small points that I think could make the next version better suited for 
> its purpose:
> 
> The first was that I really think the default background art should be 
> replaced with something more conservative.  Not because I don't like the 
> graphic, or because I personally think people should have boring Desktop 
> backgrounds--I hate Windows98 green just as much as the next guy.  But 
> speaking as someone who's really tried to pitch Linux to skeptical, 
> non-tech-savvy people who run community groups, it's always seemed like 
> the number one challenge is convincing them that linux is not some weird 
> wacky thing that will make their computers even more inscrutable.  To 
> that end, I think Debian-NP would be a more effective demonstration if 
> the computer looked a little less weird.  A solid, darkish color or a 
> nice gradient would be a lot better, I think.   If it were subtly 
> branded with something like "Debian-NP: Linux for nonprofits", then so 
> much the better.  But I think the beaker filled with magenta liquid is a 
> bit too trippy for people who are already nervous about changing 
> computers (and may already be leaning towards thinking I'm some hippy 
> idealist :)
> 
> The second issue was with the menu in the panel.  Having a separate menu 
> for Debian apps is confusing and strange.  Things are set up that way 
> too at an LTSP lab we run, and I've seen it confuse people.  Most people 
> aren't going to know what Debian is, and to beginners (nearly everyone, 
> when it comes to Linux) it's bad to introduce unnecessary arbitrary 
> terms for things, because it confuses people.  Some of those programs 
> shouldn't be in the panel menu at all, and other very useful ones are 
> buried under several layers because they're in the "Debian menu".  If we 
> could put all the programs considered useful in a single panel menu that 
> would be a lot less confusing for first-time users.
> 
> Thanks everybody, for putting together such a nice tool, and I'm looking 
> forward to being part of this discussion.
> 
> Holmes
>