No O/S as a right more than ever

[Marc Lanctot]

On 20/04/09 11:36 PM, I. Khider wrote:

> I thought this was the Linux users group! Surely my views are not
> counterintuitive here.

Ib,

(I hope it's OK that I CC you)

Try not to take this discussion personally. We're just pointing out that 
you don't have a right to feel the way you do. What we're giving you is 
factual .. it's not subjective. The advice we're giving you is sincere 
and is what's best for you. Writing back to the list saying "hey guys, 
yeah thanks for the advice, I still think you're all wrong" was a bad 
move on your part, and now you're storming off because you're angry that 
we didn't take well to that.

Bottom line: this is a Linux user group, not a Linux advocacy group.

Sure, there are probably a few (maybe a lot) of advocates among us. 
Point is, we all -- presumably! -- like to use Linux and enjoy 
discussions about it and related topics. Don't assume more than that. 
Not all of us would be willing to protest on parliament hill if Harper 
spoke negatively of the GPL or publicly ridiculed our favorite OS.

By the sounds of it you expect us to be equally as valiant as you are in 
your beliefs. We're not activists. Personally I think extremists give 
Linux a bad rep. I have a technical interest in Linux and I think.. in 
time.. a technically superior FLOSS OS is a good thing to have. There 
are right and wrong ways to go about what you intend to do.. and right 
now you're being motivated by your emotions.

Linux is not "mainstream" (yet?), far from it. It's even debatable as to 
whether that would be a good or bad thing, but that's another discussion 
entirely. It's great that you're passionate about your beliefs, but it 
seems like, at the moment, you're interested more in personal gain than 
the success of Linux. I urge you to take our advice and write a letter. 
One letter to HP won't make a difference, but HP has probably already 
received hundreds of them. You would set an example for others, and in 
time thousands of letters will form into something beautiful like a 
consumer demand. This is the best we can do, and in your case right now 
the only thing you can do.

Marc

-- 
Black holes are where God divided by zero.
   -- Steven Wright
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