Re: Seems to be huge computer opportunity

I would very much enjoy learning from your sophisticated analysis. You 
have a lot of knowledge to share and discuss. Please don't consider this 
a rude request, but perhaps you could begin a new thread.

I'm just a Linux only bumpkin. And as my original post suggests, I rely 
on Linux to learn about the far bigger world.

Please, open a great new discussion thread.


Haudy Kazemi wrote:
> There are good open source tools out there...I use several and am
> thankful for them. Sometimes they are the best, most flexible tool
> available. OTOH, we need to remember that this is not always the case.
>
> OpenOffice/LibreOffice is a poster child of this situation. It still
> does not have a built-in remove duplicates function. Extensions aren't a
> reliable solution as they come and go. Remove duplicates is a very easy
> to use feature, accessible to users of many skill levels. It is found in
> MS Excel and Google Sheets. Yes, there are ways to create similar
> functionality via formulas, but nothing as accessible as highlight cells
> and click on a 'Remove Duplicates' button. A few web searches show users
> were looking for this feature back in 2010, and I am sure it was
> requested before that time too.
>
> From the perspective of advanced spreadsheet users, the lack of
> something that works like the Excel Tables functionality is a big gap.
> This is a very powerful alternative to traditional Row#-ColumnX
> referencing. It allows for easier and more reliable analysis of datasets
> by making formulas, references more dynamic than is possible with
> traditional RC referencing. It fills a gap between traditional
> spreadsheets and databases (spreadsheet formulas and cells provide a
> more of a 'visual' way to work with data in contrast to SQL).
>
> ---
> On open-source issues:
>
> The issue with open-source solutions is not with the underlying
> architecture (MacOS, iOS, and Android are all Unix-like under the hood)
> or with the philosophy. The issue is with:
>
> 1.) presentation (UI usability, which includes how performance scales
> across various hardware and missing but basic features, and UI
> stability, which includes how the system behaves with runaway apps)
>
> 2.) hardware and accessory compatibility. IMO, this seems to be a
> noticeably lesser problem than in the past. Also, many accessory devices
> are manageable via browser-based UIs over networks rather than needed
> USB connections and matching drivers.
>
> 3.) Whether discoverable application software is available that can do
> *everything* the person regularly did while using the prior solution.
> Obscure, nondiscoverable software adds friction. Renaming software
> between every distro adds friction. Should users need to relearn the
> name of all their common tools for each distro? I have seen browers
> renamed, file managers renamed, even calculators renamed. Some things
> shouldn't be renamed.
>
> To get a person to replace an existing solution, the new solution must
> be equal or better than the old solution in every way that matters to
> that user. Or the person must be willing to accept whatever the
> compromises are with changing solutions.
>
> [I see parallels to how people evaluate moving from a gasoline car to an
> all-electric car. Moving to a short-range electric vehicle requires more
> compromises than moving to a long range Tesla Model 3 (which has Linux
> running its UI), backed by the national Tesla vehicle charging network.
> Network effects in real life.]
>
> ---
> On performance:
>
> My experience with Android is it does a very good job, on par with
> Windows, in dealing with processes that become very memory or CPU
> hungry. The systems tend to stay responsive (may lag slightly, but
> usable), and recoverable (task managers can still be brought up), even
> under extreme memory and CPU pressure. I have yet to find a desktop
> Linux distro that can do nearly as well. Chrome and Firefox both easily
> get into 100% CPU usage and high memory usage situations that I don't
> experience on Android or Windows.
>
> If anyone knows of a distro that does as good as a job at maintaining
> resource control and desktop responsiveness under heavy load as Android
> or Windows, I would love to hear about it.
>
>
> On Fri, Jul 24, 2020, 16:58 Iznogoud <[email protected]
> <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:
>
>     Unfortunately only some bleeding-edge segments of the US government have
>     embraced Linux (I am thinking 3-4 letter agencies). The mainstrea
>     rests on
>     mostly Microsoft products and unfortunately the Windows OS flavours.
>     I am
>     guessing that there is a healthy amount of lobbying to keep things
>     this way.
>
>     The open-source alternatives should be lobbied for in governments,
>     and the
>     barrier has to be overcome. It is not just that the responsibility
>     rests on
>     the Linux community to make it look and act more like Windows, it is
>     that
>     the investment has to be made by people to get out of their comfort zone
>     and learn new things. So, it is both. Perhaps we can find creative
>     ways to
>     reel them in, educate, and make them preach this gospel. Food for
>     thought.
>
>     Not sure if there is a class in junior-high that is about computers and
>     includes some aspect of familiarizing kids with non-popular types of
>     computing. Maybe there should be some command-line work, like when I
>     grew up.
>
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>     [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>
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>
>
>
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