Hmm… that’s a good question. I think for some people they might get frustrated and leave linux. I remember when I first played with Red Hat. Everything was okay until I had to get a network card working. I got so frustrated at that time that I never did much except install the OS (often without networking). I quit Linux then. I returned (with Fedora Core 1) when there was a better GUI interface, that allowed me to slowly learn more and more about terminal commands. (I picked up Ubuntu after Fedora Core 3) I think that with a little experience the “immersion” method might be effective. But with brand new users? Maybe not.

In one way, it’s funny that you mention this as I think one of the ways to encourage people to switch is to show them how rich the environment is, and that it’s not something the average user should consider as rocket science. I remember when my father switched to Linux (he uses Ubuntu Linux). He was in his late 70′s at the time. Being a Windows user he thought there we several similarities between his Windows and Linux computer. He also said the hardest challenge for him was getting used to the GUI. “Where to click to get what”, as he phrased it. But he stuck with it and does not want to go back, because in his words “I can do more with Linux”. He’s now in his 80′s. If he would have been given “The real way” back then, I wonder how much he would have learned and if he’d have stayed with Windows.

If there’s anything I can post about that helps, or if you have questions, don’t hesitate to comment about them. Same goes for anything you’d like to contribute to the blog. Have a great day! :)

Thanks for the blog and best wishes. :O)