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Run, Clarissa, Run

by Rachel Eliason

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Lin-dows FO (Fake Out) edition

For all my Linux friends out there, this post is for you.

Do you have a techno-phobe in your life/family? If so you've probably heard a lot of "This doesn't look like Windows. Why doesn't this look like Windows? Leave my Windows alone, I am happy with it." The truth is that most people are creatures of habit. They are simply not like us Linux geeks.

If you are computer geek of any stripe, but particularly if you are a Linux geek, a new device, machine or even screen makes us swoon. We gleefully start tapping buttons and dragging icons and menus around, trying to figure out what this new system can do.

For many people learning a new computer system is hard work. When suddenly confronted with a screen that looks different from what they are used to they get terrified. When they can't find a program or file where they expect it to be they get frustrated.

There is good news and bad news. Let's start with the bad news. If you live with a technophobe brace yourself. You are going to be hearing the above refrain a lot. Why? Because Windows 8 isn't going to look much like Windows. They have a whole new desktop that they will start unrolling next month. It's going to freak a lot of people out.

Now for the good news. It's the perfect time to try lin-dows FO, the linux-windows fake out.

This is a screenshot of Ubuntu with the LXDE desktop installed. I've put a nice traditional blue background on it and added icons to the desktop for all the common program a non-technical user might want, web browsers, libre office, etc. You've got a nice little pop-up menu in the lower left corner, exactly where Windows XP users expect it to be. They can double click icons on the desktop to open programs, just like classic Windows format. As long as they don't do anything crazy (like try to configure something or download a new program) without consulting you first they should be fine. They can surf the web like it's 1997!

Seriously I am not suggesting you trick your non-technical family member into thinking they have an old version of Windows. What I  am suggesting is that every time Microsoft does a big upgrade, like it's about to with Windows 8, Linux has a moment of opportunity. 

Once again their will be computers, older computers and lower cost computers that won't be able to upgrade successfully. They won't have enough RAM, or fast enough processor speeds or something. Some users will limp along, running XP but complaining the whole time because it won't run the latest software. Some will go out and shell out several hundred dollars for a new system. The old computer will sit in a closet gathering dust even though it works just fine. Why not breathe new life into an old machine with Linux? Linux is easy on resources. Many older laptops that won't run the latest Windows will run just fine in Linux. 

Once again we will have Windows users complaining about having to relearn the system. Before spending weeks relearning Windows so you can use 8, why not spend a little time testing out Linux. Contrary to the myth, Linux is no harder to learn than Windows or Mac. Distributions like Ubuntu have large and active help forums. As the screenshot I've shared shows, if there is even one geek in the family they can easily set the system up so that non-geeks can easily find web browsers, email and other commonly used programs.

A Dirty Campaign?

A lot of people are saying that this election is really dirty, that both candidates are launching tons of attack ads and nobody is focused on the real issues or engaged in a real debate. As some one who has been interested in politics since my parents let me stay up late to watch Jimmy Carter win in 1976 (I was six), I have to disagree.

I don't think there has been an election in our lifetime where there has been so many substantial differences between the two candidates, nor has their been an election that has been so driven by issues. The problem is that one candidate is a liar and a whiner. Here's how I see the campaign so far:

Romney: "Let's focus on the economy. The economy is the biggest issue facing America. I am the better candidate to fix the economy because I have a background in business. I ran a business successfully for many years before going into politics."

Obama: "Do you mean Bain? Didn't you gut that company, send the jobs overseas and run it into the ground?"

Romney: "No that was after I left. It was doing good when I left."

Obama: "Really, according to public records you were CEO from..."

Romney: "Let's not talk about the economy. Character, that's what matters in a president."

Obama: "What about the allegations that you held down a gay kid and shaved his head in college? What does that say about your character?"

Romney: "I don't recall that, and I didn't mean character, I meant transparency. Obama's record on transparency leave a lot to be desired."

Obama: "Have you disclosed your tax records yet?"

Romney: "This isn't about my transparency. Quit attacking me!"

Akin (in the background): "Blah, blah, blah, legitimate rape, blah, blah, shut it down, blah, blah"

Obama: "Wow that was really offensive!"

Romney: "Healthcare! let's all talk about healthcare! Obamacare is awful."

Obama: "Actually we based it mostly on your plan."

Romney: "Quit attacking me!"

Etc. Etc. Etc.

The point is that this election campaign has almost been entirely made up of Romney and the Republicans lying about stuff and Obama and the Democrats calling them on it. Now they are trying to point the finger back at the Democrats by calling this personal attacks. I am not buying it.

If Romney wants to run on the economy and on his business experience, I am going to use what he did at Bain to judge him. If he wants to brand himself a "job creator" then his record at Bain and while he was governor of Massachusetts is pertinent to that claim. If he wants to talk about government spending, how he manages his own finances is important.

(That's why I am not running for president. Let's face it, I am terrible at budgeting. Put me in the White House we'll all be lucky if the water bill gets paid, let alone the deficit.)

Mitt wants to talk about family values and character, so how he treats his dog and how he treated an unpopular kid in college speaks volumes about his character. Mitt wants to talk about his ability to lead this country. His disastrous European vacation gives us some clue how the rest of the world might view a Romney presidency and what sort of foreign policy leadership he might have.

And yet when someone points these sort of things out, they call it an attack. Sorry, that's not how it works. If you want to be president, dish. We The People have a right to know. How can we judge your ability to run the country if you can't see how you've ran your life?

Meanwhile on the flip side of things, the Romney campaign has attacked Obama again and again. They've lied, like when they said he scrapped the work for welfare program. They've bent the truth about Obamacare, his spending record and numerous other things. They have denied him due credit from taking out Osama Bin Laden and ending the war in Iraq. And when he stands up for himself they accuse him of running a dirty campaign.

Is this a tough campaign? Yes. Is it a dirty campaign? Not so much. Our nation is facing some tough times and we need be very careful about who we elect to run this country for the next four years. If Romney isn't tough enough to face and answer tough questions, he needs to get out of this race.

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I haven't blogged in a long time now. I keep meaning to get back to it and maybe I will. However for now here's a little something to go with my upcoming Accessline article. I'll post the link when the article goes out.

What do you think of this cover? Please leave comments good, bad or indifferent.