to newcomers: please try to solve the problem yourself before asking

[Scott Talbot]

On Sun, 2004-09-12 at 09:09 +1000, CB wrote:
> This topic has generated more heat than the initial post merited but I'd 
> like to mildly counter with the suggestion that many of you (Marius 
> included) are slightly out of touch with ordinary computer users.
> 
> A few specifics:
> 
> >* search on google (it includes mailing list archives)
> >  
> >
> As others have suggested, this isn't always very helpful for a linux 
> neophyte. At least don't assume that they haven't done this just because 
> their question  seems ill-researched. Their search query in google may 
> have been ill-conceived, and the search hits utterly opaque to them.
> 
> >* see the distribution release notes if something doesn't work
> >anymore as it used to after upgrading
> >  
> >
> 
> I've just read the Fedora Core 2 x86 Release Notes. Believe me, there's 
> almost nothing in there that most computer users would understand. Many 
> people, perhaps most, would not get beyond the first few paragraphs.
> 
> >* if you're looking for an application, search on freshmeat.net and
> >sourceforge.net
> >  
> >
> 
> I just went to freshmeat and clicked on the first app link I noticed 
> (for mplayer). There's nothing there that would speak to a non-techy 
> person. It would be utterly bewildering.
> 
> >In maximum 5 minutes of your time you could find the answer, probably
> >learning more.
> >  
> >
> 
> I might just manage all this in 5 minutes. But, having had a lot of 
> contact with non-techy types, please believe me when I say that many of 
> them would not get through that list in 5 hours. It seems simple enough 
> to 'us', but that's because we're largely unaware of the mountain of 
> background knowledge we bring to bear on our computer use and 
> troubleshooting.
> 
> If anyone's response is that someone as naive as I describe should be in 
> charge of a computer, or shouldn't try fedora, or shouldn't post to this 
> list, then that's when  Renee Lee's apparently oversensitive tone 
> becomes justified in my view. No-one that I know of has any mandate to 
> select the user-base of this list, fedora, or computers in general.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> CB.

	Boy! what a great heap of emotion this has become!
For my 2cents (or euros or yen or whatever) all have many valid points
of view.  The OP contained 4 very good places to start for newbies and
old hands alike and though I personally saw nothing to take offense in
that particular email, occasionally I do see some that are a little
mean-sounding.

	So to both sides of this question, maybe if you are tempted to shoot
"across the bow" of some newbie, try to remember how frustrating
learning can be.  To us newbies, let's try to ignore the occasional barb
and maybe even see if some of the suggestions are valuable. (I have
mixed results with google, but it's always the first place to go - hint
look at the groups.google.com - advanced options).

	I have downloaded the redhat docs today, and though they are obviously
out of date, there is an obvious wealth there as well!

Scott