Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
> __/ [ nessuno@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ] on Friday 04 May 2007 23:24 \__
>
>> Dear Mark,
>>
>> Of course you're right, Mom and Pop never set up Windows, either, it
>> comes pre-installed. I just hope that when Dell preinstalls Ubuntu,
>> they include dialup software on the desktop, ready to go. And the
>> "help" books (Ubuntu Bible is the only one I've looked at) should pay
>> attention to the dialup segment of the market, which I suspect is
>> large. As far as older systems are concerned, the installation
>> hurdle is just an obstacle that Linux will have to deal with,
>> something us "linux zealots" (I think I'll have a t-shirt printed up,
>> I'll be proud to wear it) can help out with our neighbors and
>> friends.
>>
>> I gotta say that installing the dialup was easy if you know how, and I
>> like the way it works (both are much better than in earlier Linux
>> distributions I have used). And while I'm on the subject, I did a
>> lot of software updates with dialup, and I like the way you can shut
>> it down and resume later, and it just picks up where it left off. The
>> initial update took 10 hours of download (two overnights).
>>
>> Regards, N.
>
> I was going to weigh in before just to say that my parents would have never
> figured out how to set up a dial-up connection. That's where the 'computer
> expert' (READ: someone who saw somebody else clicking some buttons) comes
> into play. My parents would barely know how to install software, let alone
> where to find it. It's all much easier in Ubuntu Linux.
>
The dialup market is still important, though. My parents-in-law are
about to take delivery of a laptop with Ubuntu on which my No1 son is
currently installing for them. He has already mentioned that it will
need to be set up to dial-up Tiscali, who is their ISP, so I also have
first-hand knowledge of the continued need for it. Also, my own parents
still use dial-up rather than broadband.
I still think my idea about a 'ppd file' equivalent for ppp dial-up is a
good one, though! Get all the world's ISPs to contribute their details,
and it could be downloaded as part of the install.
I used Debian on dial-up for years, never had any problems with it -
package downloads could take some time, but as they go on in the
background, it's not a huge issue.
--
| Mark Kent -- mark at ellandroad dot demon dot co dot uk |
| Cola faq: http://www.faqs.org/faqs/linux/advocacy/faq-and-primer/ |
| Cola trolls: http://colatrolls.blogspot.com/ |
|
|
