[Haifux] W2L + Installation party?

[Ohad Lutzky]

First, I strongly support Tzafrir's point, which is echoed here by Adir:

On Wed, Sep 17, 2008 at 7:06 PM, Adir Abraham <adir at hamakor.org.il> wrote:

> You can add a special table for configurations. It's been done in the past.
> Most of the requests are the same. Let's call that place "Practical FAQ" :-)
>
>

That's the only thing which would be truly useful. However, I still think
that an instaparty or a supportparty would not be helpful:

Consider the climate: Linux is often touted as easy-to-install and
easy-to-use. Someone who heard this would not understand why he needs to
carry his cumbersome computer to an event to get this done for him, or take
specific time out of his day to come in with his laptop. He is told he can
do this at his own leisure - and this is what he prefers. Furthermore, he
wouldn't want to install a yet-unknown (especially to his neighbours' kid)
operating system if he didn't know he could "handle" it himself. Figuring
out the downloading & installing part on his own is very useful to gain this
confidence (i.e. "if I'm going to use this, I better be able to install it
myself, I don't want those guys to do it for me and when I get home I'll be
lost without their assistance"). This occurs no matter how much you assure
the people that "we'll install it in such a way that you can use it forever
and ever by yourself without our help".

This creates a situation in which everyone would want to install Linux in
their own time, meaning they'd need any initial support at a different time.
For this reason, I send new installers to this mailing list if they have any
problems, hoping that they might bring their computer into the next Haifux
meeting so someone could help them. An organized event might raise
awareness, but installations would happen afterwards, at home.

I think Orr said it best - what we need is SiL lectures, and lots of them.
We can use the W2L advertisements to promote some SiL lectures, perhaps in
higher density (and perhaps about topic which are more attractive to new
users) around the W2L date.


-- 
Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps, for he is the only animal that
is struck with the difference between what things are and what they ought to
be.
- William Hazlitt

Ohad Lutzky
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