On Saturday 06 February 2010 08:41, Pierre wrote: > > I get so frustrated by not being able put up a persuasive argument to > persuade our staff to change to FLOSS or OSS. > > [CARE- RANT FOLLOWS] > > However, I learnt a lesson last week when two new desktops were > installed in our office. We do a fair bit of minor photo editing, > usually no more than lifting a section of photo image of its background > and pasting it onto a different background. We may also do some basic > photo enhancing. The file is then saved as a tiff and emailed to a > manufacturer for some processing. > > We'd been using Paintshop Pro to do this. > > I persuaded the two workers who do this to try "The Gimp". > > Within minutes there was a snag and near mutiny. It wasn't so much the > Gimp itself that was the problem; it was the fact that there was no > context sensitive help to guide users on how to cut the section of > image. It took me the best part of twenty minutes to track down the > relevant documentation. By that time my colleagues had thrown their > hands up in despair and insisted Paintshop Pro be installed.
Despite the fact that poor documentation and help files do frequently exist on FOSS software. This is not an issue that The GIMP suffers from. The GIMP's help files are larger than the program file: http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/stable.html > More to the point, if it took me some considerable time to identify how > to perform a fairly common and basic task in the Gimp, what chance the > user. To me you have admitted to being a GIMP Newbie, not an expert, yet you pose this question as if you are an expert. > I have to conclude that therein is FLOSS's main handicap; the lack of > meaningful help files & system. And you would be wrong. What you have proven yet again is that FOSS suffers from an overabundance of idealists that recommend programs without being able to provide the support that is required with any new program. This support needs to fall into several categories: 1. Understand the program yourself, be prepared to be the help desk for the program. Know your stuff. Be prepared to learn if you don't know it before you push the product. 2. Install new software beside existing where possible. Show what it can do simpler, can do better or can do what the other software can't. Be prepared to do this frequently. 3. Push the use of the program when opportunities to show it off arise. (i.e. when save document formats are being discussed) > Arguably OOo is better served in this area, but it has failings as well. > For example. After years of using OOo, to this day I cannot get outline > numbering to work. The instructions in the help system just do not work > for me. So, whenever I need to use outline and paragraph numbering I'm > back in MS-Word. It is just so much easier and more intuitive. Click > Outline View and there it is and it works. OOo just doesn't do that in > my experience. I frequently do outline numbering in OO.o without issue. > [END OF RANT] and thanks for listening. I feel much better now. :D Pleased you feel better, but you are perpetrating miss-information. The above clearly shows a lack of ability, not program defects. Most people constantly think and hear "that's easy" where computers are concerned. If it were all that easy then we wouldn't have degree courses to get people started in the field. -- Michael --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
