Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 10:28:04 -0800 From: "Jordan K. Hubbard" <jkh@zippy.cdrom.com> To: Brett Glass <brett@lariat.org> Cc: Mike Smith <mike@smith.net.au>, freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Windows Refund Day Press Reports: Linux, Linux, Linux Message-ID: <22294.919189684@zippy.cdrom.com> In-Reply-To: Your message of "Tue, 16 Feb 1999 09:49:24 MST." <4.1.19990216094823.0410d990@mail.lariat.org>
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> No, I didn't "wimp out." I simply did not go to the Bay Area, because > the event was run by a Linux group and was intended to exclude users > of many alternative OSes. I wish people would stop looking at this so one-dimensionally. The function of these events is not JUST to stoke the press, though that's always nice, but to also meet some of your fellow geeks and plant the seed that maybe Linux isn't the only game in town and there are others who feel just as passionately about a different solution. In effect, somebody needs to evangelize to the evangelists and that appears to have happened here regardless of how the press chose to spin the event. Don't forget that most of these folks probably never even heard of Linux 2 or 3 years ago and it's not like their minds are completely closed to the idea of something else being free and wonderful - I've personally converted many dozens of Linux users over to FreeBSD, some of whom are now our loudest advocates. Even more importantly, expecting the press corps to grow brains and learn that there's more than one poster child to show off is just not realistic. Linux currently has the spotlight and the press is going to continue to focus the spotlight in one place, at least for awhile, because that's what the press does. They're not TRYING to present a balanced viewpoint here and rarely do, they're just trying to get some of that Linux buzz on themselves and show that they're "hip" too in covering it. I've had press people tell me directly that they know about FreeBSD but they have no desire to confuse their audience by focusing on more than one free OS since their audience is still trying to come to grips with the idea of any OS being free at all. I don't have to like this, but I also can't say I blame them. One sound bite, one poster child, one solid 15 minutes of fame at a time - that's how the game works. As an example, anyone here ever see People Magazine and their "sexiest man alive" cover feature they like to run on the news stands every few months? I remember it was Mel Gibson just a few months ago, as I stood there with my Ben and Jerry's slowly melting and waiting for check-out, and just the other day it was now Leonard DiCaprio. Mel Gibson is, as far as I know, still alive and well but evidently he's no longer sexy if we believe People Magazine, my point simply being that the press is NOT about balanced coverage and expecting it to be is, frankly, the height of stupidity. The press is about hype, and hype works best when it's concentrated. Given time, I expect that people both inside and outside the press will get tired of Linux since even the most aggressive press agent has a hard time getting it to stay focused on anything (just ask the artist formerly known as Prince) and it will be our 15 minutes on stage, assuming that we don't screw it up. - Jordan To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message
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