[Haifux] [HAIFUX Workshop] The Web Rant Workshop

[Dotan Cohen]

On 26 April 2010 23:50, Eli Billauer <eli at billauer.co.il> wrote:
> Orr Dunkelman wrote:
>
>> history shows that people approached
>> webmasters as individuals, and usually it did not succeed. Maybe
>> trying as a group would have a better effect.
>>
>>
> Since the event is now over, I'd like to share my opinion about the
> whole web compatibility issue: In short, I think it's a waste of energy.
> Not because it's hopeless, but because it's a war to be won with or
> without the FOSS community in it.
>
> In the past, non-IE users were mainly Linux users and otherwise geeks. I
> don't justify those who ignored complaints from us, but I can understand
> them. Such a complaint necessarily meant that the person complaining
> knows how to solve his or her problem (that is, install Windows and IE)
> but chooses not to. The fact that the site is defective is bad, but if
> it harms a very small group with some weird ideology about software. In
> particular, if the complaint included terms such as W3C, it's evident
> that it's about ideology and not getting access to the site.
>

Well said. This is why we should never mention "linux" or "firefox"
when complaining. Just say that the site does not work. Let them ask
what broswer if they want. This has several advantages:
1) It makes "linux" or "firefox" users seem more like mainstream
users, nothing special about them.
2) It makes the complain look less like a zealot and more like a lost
potential user.
3) It increases contact with them (more messages back and forth), so
the incident stands out more.


-- 
Dotan Cohen

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