Ubuntu Makes You Drop Out Of School

Ockie said:
I agree with the both of you. While she wasn't smart in computers, she might excel at something we dont, perhaps she is super smart when it comes to physics, science, math, or biology, who knows, the fact is that she doesn't know computers (this would be the same level if somone tried to sell me cosmetics, i don't know jack squat about it, and if a company like Mary Kay told me what I should buy for my wife, I would be guided based on what I have been told).

Just because we know computers better than we know the real world doesn't mean everyone else does. I kinda feel sorry for the girl.
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Would you go to a news agency to complain if Mary Kay sell you a cosmetic set but you don't know how to open the box or would you learn how to use it properly?
 
silent-circuit said:
I can do that for you, no worries.

Can't believe you're defending this person. Worst case, she asks a computer literate friend for help, or calls Verizon and they send a guy out (as so many others have already clearly stated). There's no excuse here -- it's not like this is Linux on a machine not already confirmed working with it. All the drivers and apps were pre-installed and confirmed working by Dell. The machine, and the software, were working fine. She just had to ask for help, and that help was readily available. Instead she called a news station and badmouthed Linux, spread a bunch of FUD and cried about it.

I also can't stand it when people who claim to know what they're talking about use the word "lappy." This isn't at all related, I just figured as long as I'm being arrogant...
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Ah damnit, I had a post to respond to this but the God damed [H] forums threw a "Fixing" error message at me and I couldn't go back to copy what I had (page expired). I'll try and rewrite as much as I can remember.

Anyway, I can simply see the perspective that she's coming from. That's as much of a "defense" I'd give her. But as you mentioned, she had many ways to resolve the issue on her own without having to drop out. I mentioned it in the very post you quoted, and others have mentioned it as well. THAT part was idiotic, but her lack of technical know-how is completely understandable.

She did attempt to get help from Dell tech support before reporting it to the news at the very least. The fact that Dell gave her some pretty bad advice puts some blame on them. But I can't say that with certaintly, the actual details of the tech support conversation is ommited.

The only thing spin to this story is the [H] headline Steve posted. Ubuntu happened to be involved in this endeavor, but somehow this ended up being "Ubuntu makes you drop out of school." It was more of an attack of Dell's tech support than anything. Hell, the actual article's headline was "27 News Troubleshooter: Woman blames Dell for missing online classes" I think Steve's headline just stirred the pot a little. A lot of people who respond to news posts on the forums never read the actual article. I bet plenty of people know this too well.
 
kac77 said:
I think the story is crap. Meaning I think it was planted. If she went to Dell first they offer version 8.04 not 7.10 which is more than a year old at this point. Second lets say she mistakenly got it anyway. Verizon DSL service doesn't even offer a Mac disc for setting up the internet. The moment she called they would have either sent someone out, or set the modem remotely. FIOS doesn't need a disc.

Then she claims incompatibility with Open Office. Any Word doc she would have received would have opened. Unless she's working on documents with VBA or some super complex document she wouldn't have had any problem whatsoever.

Definately not enough of a problem that would make me lose all of the money I would have spent for online courses. She's either an idiot, or it's a crap story.
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Just to be clear, Linux is not Mac OS X.
 
KaiserWarrior said:
I'm talking about the news channel, not the [H] frontpage. Obviously it has implications in the tech community, but I'm boggled that somebody at Channel 27 thought that story deserved airtime.
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Whoops!...I'm dumbass ;) (sorry bout that)

You are right, it is sad that Channel 27 and Mr. A-Bun-tu reporter ran with a story like this, it does more dammage to the open source community than they can imagine. People see this on the evening news, automatically associate Ubuntu with "teh sux" and never look back. Matter o' fact they'll probably go out of their way to tell friends about the story. Lame.
 
There was a whole discussion about this on Digg earlier today, and it really boiled down to 4 BS points (forgive me if I'm repeating them):

1. The Ubuntu section is seriously buried in Dell's site, and you KNOW you're on it. You can't "accidentally" order a laptop with Ubuntu on it.
2. She never called any tech support other than Dell's; not one for the internet, not the local techie (she's in school, there's plenty around), no one, not to help her fix her issues or to just install Windows on it and be done with it. Also, her thinking that installing SOFTWARE voids the warranty.
3. Her whole "my school needs MS Word" (which almost everyone agreed was an assumption on her part, not a written thing) and not knowing that OOO and it were compatible (obvious if you even open the program up).
4. Not having a laptop, as an excuse for dropping out. The first Digg comment was basically "If she's dropping out because of this, she was doing to drop out anyways and was just looking for an excuse".

So yea, I call either shens or a REALLY stupid chick.
 
Her going to the local news station and crying over her own stupidity is what pissed me off about this. I'd of fixed her shit for quick hummer.
 
djBon2112 said:
2. She never called any tech support other than Dell's; not one for the internet, not the local techie (she's in school, there's plenty around), no one, not to help her fix her issues or to just install Windows on it and be done with it. Also, her thinking that installing SOFTWARE voids the warranty.
3. Her whole "my school needs MS Word" (which almost everyone agreed was an assumption on her part, not a written thing) and not knowing that OOO and it were compatible (obvious if you even open the program up).
2. Of course she's going to call Dell's tech support, she most likely doesn't even know what the hell Ubuntu is.

She enrolled in some classes. They said she was going back to school. How is she going to know the number or have the idea to call the IT guys at her school up? I've been at my school for 6 years and I still dont' know the IT department's number. Our school's website is so messed up, it's almost impossible to find anything.

3. She's going back to school. She doesn't look like some teen just a few years from high school. I think she's going to get some desk job somewhere, maybe doing word processing. Of course Open Office can do many things MS Office can do (and vice versa), but if her course she needed required MS Office because, say, it's a "How to use MS Office," of course she's going to need MS Office.

Most of you guys (not this poster specifically) sound like 1337 snobs. Geez. Yes, I do think she's a moron for ordering a computer with Ubuntu also, but give her a break. You don't even have all the facts, yet, you're already bashing the shit out of her and making remarks on how she could've just "easily" fixed things as if she's some expert on all things computer related.
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Her snaggle teeth and bug eyes make me care even less for her troubles! Way to buy a laptop at the last minute. What if the laptop came DOA or had other problems that prevented her from using it? Would this have kept her from starting the semester? Should Dell apologize for giving the world some options? Damn, buyer beware.
 
ferrisnox said:
She is not an idiot, because we a bunch of computer experts on the forum can laugh at her etc... and could have fixed the problem easily.

Nerds/Techies have to understand the rest of the world does not have our awesome computer skills/nunchuck skills..... that doesn't make them morons or sub human....(I"m guilty of thinking this mysefl for a long time.) They simply dont have all the time or haven't spent the nights in front of a computer like all of us.. or may not find computers interesting.

To the outsiders computers are just tools like a vcr or hairdryer sure there are different brands but they just want to plug shit in and have it work.

Does this make Ubuntu suck NO, but realize there is a time and place for linux. It is an amazing system, but its not the most consumer friendly operating system or even a widely supported system. They are working on that.... make it consumer friendly is one of the goals of Ubuntu, but there is still a long way to go.

I dont think the news site had an agenda, just a slow news day and lets face it the media is the U.S. is lame period.
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wow the only decent post here...... +1 for you -10 for the rest


You took the words right out of my mouth! ;)
 
I have a great commercial to play during the Super Bowl.....

"Hello, I'm a PC" (PC guy standing there holding a sign that says Vista)
"and I run the all new Windows 7"
Mac Guy: "Uh PC, the sign says Vista"
PC:OH! ( turns the sign around to the number 7")
PC: "This is the all new Windows 7, Can't you see the difference?"
MAC: "Uh, sure PC, but I run the all FREE MacOS with Open Office"
UBUNTU guy: (Long hair, beard, and T-Shirt with her picture on it) Well, I'm UBUNTU , pronounced, oooh bun too, and I'll make you drop out of college"

Friends don't let friends UBUNTU!!

30 seconds airtime during the SuperBowl; $1.2 Milion
Bailout from the government to pay for lawsuit from MS and APPLE: $25Billion
Letting the world know what a noob I am: Priceless
 
You guys ragging on her for being clueless need to step back a bit, and think about how clueless YOU were at one time. Every damned one of us were like her at one time, and all she did was follow the advice of someone that was SUPPOSED to have a clue. Tell me that the same thing couldn't have happened to you at one time, and I'll tell you that you are a damned liar.
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I was... never like her. I try to be resourceful and learned in my endeavors and always have been. I don't do something, regret it, then bitch and moan. Which is what she did. Who the HELL calls a news station for something like this..? This makes me wonder how many calls the station gets that are *worse* than this, if this one managed to get on air.

Had she found a computer, gone to google and typed in "Ubuntu" or "OpenOffice" or "Verizon Ubuntu", she probably would have found something helpful to her cause. Why does she even want to go to college? Oh, to make money. That's how you make money, you go to college. You pay for a piece of paper and proceed to make more money. There's no effort involved and you don't have to learn anything; you simply have to survive. That's what some people seem to think anyways.

People truly interested in being educated and better people want to learn and want to understand things. I'd have to say this girl did not want either of those things.

College isn't for everyone.
 
Yoshiyuki Blade said:
The only thing spin to this story is the [H] headline Steve posted. Ubuntu happened to be involved in this endeavor, but somehow this ended up being "Ubuntu makes you drop out of school." It was more of an attack of Dell's tech support than anything.
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Yoshiyuki Blade, meet humor. Humor, this is Yoshiyuki Blade. I hope you two get to know eachother a little better over the coming years.

You see, what makes it funny, is that Ubuntu was involved in the story so the title was made to directly associate Ubuntu with the girl dropping out of school. This exaggeration was done on purpose with the writer knowing that anyone actually reading the article will see that the title is not true. That, in turn, would make the reader see the humor in the title. /The More You Know(TM)

Now then, on to the actual story...

I think if a person is clearly unwilling to learn anything new (like how to use an OS, a laptop or how to get internet access) and she purposely and knowingly buys something, she then should not complain about it. Also, her saying that she didn't want this much attention and that she only wanted some help when she called a fu@#ing TV station instead of tech support makes her not only an idiot but also a liar.
 
Camera pointed TV FOR THE LOSE. Seriously. Lame.

And: who the hell other than us dorks knows what Umbuntu IS? Seriously.

So, is your mom a "stupid bitch?" Because I doubt she knows waht Umbuntu is or what it meant if she wanted to order a laptop.
 
Ubuntu. Have no idea why I put an extra M in there. Lack of edit: sucks.
 
only a small percentage of the world knows how to use computers effectively enough, the rest are like this poor girl. Most of you live in a bubble if you think you are the norm and this girl is not.

Linux isn't ready for primetime. Everything is a few clicks away, then terminal, sudo sh etc, click, restart and.... sudo some more...

How many of you would trust your parents with a windows install? Your wives? Heck how many friends do you have that can do that? How many can't?

Dell is at fault for convincing this girl she'd be ok. She did call to change it. There are plenty of people out there that don't know squat about the PC world. How the hell does best buy keep its PC parts section profitable? Why the hell is their geek squad still up and running?
 
I can't blame her for this problem. I've worked in retail for a long time and after so many years, there are a lot of people who are not tech savvy so Dell should have known and recommended the safe route for its users. I've been reading previous posts on how people think she's stupid or retarded, but we're bias to actually see that since we're competent on technology. How many of you can honestly say your parents or girlfriends have an understanding about computers and how to install windows and its drivers?
 
Steve said:
I'm scrounging around for a YouTube video of this newscast, this is currently the only video of the news story out there. If you find a better video link, let me know and I'll replace it :cool:
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If you use this embedded link to the original story, it won't automatically start like it did before:

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Why did she spend $1000+ on a laptop to take online courses when a $500 laptop would have been more than enough.. and have Windows?
 
Yeah, sympathy isn't what she needs.. it's education. Everything in life needs a bit of foresight. What you choose to major in in college and what you choose to purchase are only two examples

It all boils down to, she didn't buy the right tool for the job.
 
From one side it's a propaganda war. Linux is taking a share of a market and Ubuntu is one of nieces/easiest distros IMO. I know people with very little knowledge using it on daily basis. Sure they have geeks in their life's who are helping them when needed but still they would need same help using Windows as well.

On other hand people need excuses. Who knows why she needs hers. At least she can marry and settle most of her problems for good :)

Maybe she needs excuse to date a computer wizard? :)

BTW people she is blond it ain't her fault




MD
 
why couldn't she just return the laptop unopened and ordered a new one with windows?
 
She ordered the wrong thing. Then she let Dell tech support push her into keeping it when she called in. If she had a backbone, she would have Windows for free. Dell hates returns. This is a perfect opportunity for Microsoft to call a local employee and "fix" the issue. Good luck getting Office though. They make you pay for that...
 
Big D. said:
Yoshiyuki Blade, meet humor. Humor, this is Yoshiyuki Blade. I hope you two get to know eachother a little better over the coming years.

You see, what makes it funny, is that Ubuntu was involved in the story so the title was made to directly associate Ubuntu with the girl dropping out of school. This exaggeration was done on purpose with the writer knowing that anyone actually reading the article will see that the title is not true. That, in turn, would make the reader see the humor in the title. /The More You Know(TM)

Now then, on to the actual story...

I think if a person is clearly unwilling to learn anything new (like how to use an OS, a laptop or how to get internet access) and she purposely and knowingly buys something, she then should not complain about it. Also, her saying that she didn't want this much attention and that she only wanted some help when she called a fu@#ing TV station instead of tech support makes her not only an idiot but also a liar.
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The article itself is worth a chuckle, but I feel the spin on the [H] headline just helped fuel the neeeeeerd raaaaaage following this thread, which... isn't that funny. More annoying than anything.

Logical fallacies and exaggerations don't humor me very much it seems. Especially at the expense of someone who made honest mistakes. I get more of a laugh from witty and clever stuff.

People really need a pretty solid foundation of basic computer functions to be able to troubleshoot and identify problems/solutions quickly. So for someone like that, "learning something new" would simply be unfeasible in any decent timeframe. It's not a phrase that can be taken lightly for average people. I know computer illiterate people, and it aint pretty. You really gotta have a genuine interest in tinkering with new tech to pull off stuff like that. I can't blame them for anything.

And I agree... for the third time now I say this isn't newsworthy. But since everyone in this thread knows of the situation, we can analyze it a bit. A mishap happened. Yeah she knowingly bought a laptop but obviously didn't know it had Ubuntu (her fault for the most part). She DID call tech support, but some bad advice and decisions took place afterwards (I'd say both she and tech support weren't communicating very well). And finally, it became irreversable (she couldn't go ahead an convert back to a Windows OS). It ended up being a fiasco for this particular person. Nothing out of the ordinary, probably happens all the time. But it's certainly not worth insulting her just because it made news. And yeah, she self-contradicted herself by not wanting attention, but reported this to the media :D. Idiotic yes, but irrelevant to the main issue.
 
djBon2112 said:
4. Not having a laptop, as an excuse for dropping out. The first Digg comment was basically "If she's dropping out because of this, she was doing to drop out anyways and was just looking for an excuse".
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How the hell do you go to an ONLINE school without a computer? She wasn't going to a college where you site down in a classroom, live in a dorm,... she was staying at home and taking the courses online. That requires you to have a computer to do so. If that doesn't make sense to you then you are just as big of a dumbass as you think the girl is if not more.

MTXR said:
why couldn't she just return the laptop unopened and ordered a new one with windows?
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She didn't know it was ubuntu instead of Windows until she opened it. After finding out she called to exchange it for one with Windows. The Dell rep however talked her out of it telling her that Ubuntu would work just like windows and do everything that she needed. Which like somebody else stated isn't that out of the ordinary. We once had a laptop get misplaced during shipment. They send out a second one next day air. We got the second one, then 2 days later got the first they send out. When we called Dell to let them know that we finally got the first one they offered to sell it to us at 75% off its price instead of sending it back. I think this is becuase once the machine is built and shipped if they recieve it back they have to sell it as refurbished so they are going to lose money on it.
 
Wow...

Seriously, it is because of people like this that our jobs exist lol. She obviously didn't read the requirements for Verizon software or the online college that she applied for.

Reading is fundamental. Who woulda thunk?
 
mavalpha said:
Why, the News team was absolutely useless and they don't even realize it yet!

Congratulations, Verizon will send a Tech Support crew out to her house. No guarantees that they'll be able to configure it.
Congratulations, she's enrolled. They said she has OpenOffice- compatible, but apparently they need Office specifically. Guess what? She still doesn't have Office!
If the college has any of its own software, she's also SoL.

Long story short- useless!

But this does show that Linux is not ready for primetime. No matter how easy it is to use, the world doesn't support it. And until they do, it's DOA. Unless you are a techie yourself, stay away.
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You have an awfully pessimistic view of society, don't you?

It's OK...so do I.
 
as its an dell all she needs to do is get an tech to come around with an dell vista disk as dells need no keys self activated to an dell pc (but thay need use diskpart to remove the Linux partitions as vista hides none windows partitions from the installer)

i do believe she ring them up to order the laptop some Dell rep though it would of been an good idea to sell ubuntu to an novice user
 
People who backed up the girl must never use Ubuntu before. Yes, it is not Windows but there is almost no difference between Windows and Ubuntu for basic computing like internet and office application. You don't need to use the terminal for basic functions, if she can't even find Open Office, she is really an idiot. Even if she has a Windows laptop, she would still have trouble with MS Office 2007 if the school is still using an earlier version of MS Office. Her stupidity is to blame here, not the OS or Dell.
 
This only reaffirms my belief that this country needs sterilization based on a standardized "Are you a moron or not" test.
 
To follow up on one of the several trends in this thread...

Computers are not amazingly complex. When the world saw the first cars, there were people who got it, and people who didn't. But in very short order people learned to drive because cars were ubiquitous facets of life, generally speaking required for a person to function in life. So they learned the pattern to start a car, the way to handle gas/brake balance, the fine art of shifting -- a device they'd never had to do before, and at the time was very arcane with that mix of clutch and gas. Cranking the cars manually, before they had auto starters. In short, people learned a complex machine because they had to.

It is the same with computers now. You plug it in, you hit the power button, you're on your desktop. A few minutes of fiddling with the mouse would yield the start menu or its equivalent, and get to programs, and voila. And yet for some reason, people refuse to learn. Computers are just as ubiquitous now, and people refuse to learn.

The reason there's so much animosity is because most of the people in this thread were using computers as children, back when computers were actually semi-challenging to operate. We all managed to figure it out around or in some cases even before age 10, so why are these 20+ year olds failing to do the same when computers are now easier than they were ten and twenty years ago when we did it?

Having worked in a position where I sometimes had to give tech support to property managers, there were people who did not understand the concept of right-click. Even the most basic sort of curiosity would reveal that there are two mouse buttons, and that they do different things.

It's not a rage against computer-illiterate people. It's a rage against stupid people, because not being able to figure basic things out like how to open and use OpenOffice in Ubuntu is a sign of idiocy, not a simple lack of computer knowledge.
 
Nowadays, the world is too complex to know everything; so being intelligent isn't so much about knowing a lot - it's about knowing how and being willing to find information. Then the person either helps herself or (upon learning her limitations and lack of time and/or motivation) gets someone to do the job for her.

I'd be okay with a computer illiterate person willing to put in some effort to learn (or not even touch a computer because he knows he'll never need or want to use one). I'm not okay with ignorant stupidity.
 
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