On Wed, 1 May 2002, Barran, Richard wrote: > > there really isn't a great need for any "more" papers to be > > written since > > a HUGE number of them already exist. Not to mention the > > incredible brain > > trust that is on this list and the expert list. to write more > > papers would > > be a futile waste of good time that could be spent having fun with our > > PC's coding something cool. > > > > Yes there is a lot of information out there - but not for complete newbies. > Speaking as one who joined the Linux world only a few months ago, I found > very few bulletproof help pages out there - many are generic Linux pages, > many Mandrake-specific ones are for older distributions, or go about fixing > problems using the command-line when Mandrake has created a GUI tool to > solve that specific problem. And a LOT of them will have at least one error > in them. A experienced Linux user will have no problem in amending bits and > pieces of the FAQ to fit his circumstances; not so a beginner, who needs, > well, basically a recipe that he can follow exactly. > > BTW, MandrakeUser is one big exception to this - clear, easy-to-follow and > (mostly) up-to-date. > > Richard > > PS To anyone in the UK I'd recommend having a quick read of this month's > Linux Format magazine - there's a good opinion column on help pages, newbies > and RTFM replies. >
all you've mentioned here reinforces what I said earlier. what i mean by that is that even as a brand new Linux user it is very important to immerse yourself into the seemingly incomprehensible documentation of even the most generic of Linux documents. thats "where" it all starts. most of it is all ready as simple as it gets. that in itself is part of the journey. beginning to read through a HOWTO and coming upon something totally foreign to you, having to stop there and research the thing which is foreign, and then continue on in the HOWTO where you had to stop. thats how most of the "older" users got to be older users. thats where this and other lists like it come in. sharing the knowledge with the new ones as those before us did when we came in. Ed!? can I get an amen? When I first started learning the ins and outs of Windows XP, which I have to do for my day job, I found myself doing just what I've described above. I subscribed to a few windows xp NG's and started readying and posting and talking to the experts. Had I never had the experience I've had here with the newbie and expert lists in the last 2 years I would have not had the easy time of it I've had. the techniques in search and researching I've learned as a Linux user are serving me well on and off the job on a daily basis. My point to all this is the "hunt" and search for the knowledge is the fire that tempers the metal. without it the blade would never hold an edge and would never be good for anything. couldn't even spread butter with it. -- daRcmaTTeR ---------- Registered Linux User 182496
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
