[OT] TV, Internet, and Democracy

[Evan Leibovitch]

John Van Ostrand wrote:
> It's unfair to say that the Vista launch demonstration was ineffective
> because it had little effect. Virtually all individual ads have little
> effect. It's the sum of many ads that make the difference. The more
> people that see the inflated penguin pop-up, the more they will think of
> it when they see Linux. It's reinforcement.
>   
No it isn't. The audience that already knows that Linux,  (a) is an
operating system, and (b) has a penguin for a logo is aware of that, and
-- by inference -- doesn't need to be re-taught. If they haven't leaded
Linux, seeing an inflated penguin is hardly sufficient incentive for
them to do so.

The public that _isn't_ aware of those things (and would care if they
were) wouldn't necessarily put those pieces together walking past Yonge
& Dundas. For all they know it could be the launch of a new penguin
movie -- heaven knows there are enough of them coming out these days.

The point I'm making is that the public at this point, either

1) doesn't care about computers (talking to this group is relatively
pointless).

2) uses computers but hates them and/or seeks to know the bare minimum
about how they work (Telling them about Linux might evoke a little
curiosity, but no more interest than telling them about a new brand of
shock absorber or vacuum)

3) is aware of the inner workings of their computers (Most of these
people at this point are already aware of Linux, and have made a
conscious decision to either try it or not. These people need advocacy,
but they don't need more awareness of the Linux "brand".)

My point is that the message needs to shift from "what is Linux?" to
"why use Linux?"

> The trade show is dying, the conference is still there, but it can't be
> priced like IT360 (or most commercial trade shows.)
Again, it depends on the audience. Do you believe that most "executive
MBA" programs offer value for money? I don't, yet they're very popular
despite being really expensive, and universities love them.

> These types of events are popping everywhere. Locally we have the Ottawa
> Linux Symposium, the FSOSS at Seneca, Hick Tech in Owen Sound, and the
> Ontario Linux Fest at the TCC, and probably more that I don't know
> about. Those efforts are not hurting, in fact their growing in number
> and attendance.
>   
These -- and BarCamp-type events -- will indeed grow in popularity. But
these events are generally technical and introspective in nature, and
exist to help people who are already sold on open source to deepen their
skills at it. Would you send a complete newcomer to open source -- one
who knows nothing about it and isn't even sure it's a good idea -- to
OLS or even FSOSS? These are places for _existing_ enthusiasts and are
hardly what I'd consider agents of advocacy or promotion of open source
to the public.

Meanwhile, conventional user group attendance -- based on my own
observations at TLUG and other cities -- has been relatively static for
quite a while, and certainly not reflected the increased use of open
source within IT. Indeed, some groups -- such as the one in North Bay --
have closed due to lack of interest. Groups in France and Japan are
starving for members -- Tokyo's LUG, serving a city much bigger than
Toronto in a country more hospitable to open source than Canada, is
smaller than GTALUG.

The existing community does well at supporting itself, but its
"outreach" tactics leave much to be desired. The message and strategies
cannot be the same as they were a decade ago.

- Evan

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