Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2008 21:45:39 +0000 From: spellberg_robert <emailrob@emailrob.com> To: fbsd_chat <freebsd-chat@freebsd.org> Subject: on content versus presentation [ was: Re: Why the FreeBSD license will not be changing ] Message-ID: <47DAF203.40106@emailrob.com> References: <478556AD.6090400@bsdforen.de> <20080110154737.GA20976@soaustin.net><47864933.6010203@gmail.com> <20080110170010.GA16567@volatile.engineering.cwru.edu> <20080111115804.T2095@klein.bigpond.com>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
Peter Ross wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I hate to pollute the list with
[ snip ]
> Many think of FreeBSD in terms of a "vanilla" Intel/AMD desktop OS only,
> and while it's not that popular here (and has some shortcomings there -
> most are related to missing or outdated drivers for consumer hardware or
> things like Flashplugin etc.), they consider FreeBSD as fading.
[ snip ]
> I think it is in the interest of the stakeholders to advocate FreeBSD.
>
> FreeBSD needs to look "cool" and alive to attract developers.
[ snip ]
> Even a lot of IT folk I am work with do not know how widely used FreeBSD
> is, and the media adds a fair share.
[ snip ]
> Just my 2 Cents.
> Peter
[ snip ]
greetings, all ---
enough with being semi_serious,
permit me to get fully_serious for a few lines.
perhaps, this belongs on -advocacy.
if so, i will defer to more knowledgeable people to make that determination.
for now, i will post this to -chat, as it is always a safe place.
call me "retro",
but, i just can't cotton to this "one size fits all" mentality
being spewed these days by the trend_mongers of popular_culture.
i firmly believe in freedom of choice for adults,
provided that they bear their own costs of their choices.
now, mr. ross, above, appears to prefer that
freebsd behave similarly to microsoft and apple,
but, without actually being microsoft or apple.
for those who want such a thing, i say,
"go ahead, create this for yourselves, i won't stop you".
however, i believe that freebsd's single greatest marketing point is that
it permits --great-- freedom of choice.
two points: user_interface and development.
i am very text_oriented, but, i am ac/dc on the choice of u_i.
i use the one that is appropriate to the task.
i had been installing x on my bsd_boxen for years,
but, i never used it beyond verifying that it worked.
about a year ago,
when my coding style just couldn't be contained in 132 columns any more,
i fired up the x system to see how vi would behave
[ although my 21" will do 1600 x 1200,
i settled on 1280 x 960 because
the 5x9 chars in the 6x12 blocks were too small, otherwise;
also, a screen of 70 rows by 212 columns is enough for now
].
except for scrolling speed
[ i am adapting, but, vga --is-- fast
],
it's just fine.
i don't have to explain this one any further.
on the development side, freebsd is --great-- for the do_it_yourself crowd.
some people are happy with a motor_vehicle that takes them to the office,
then takes them to the mini_mart for
gasoline, kosher dill spears and pistachio ice_cream
[ her ob/gyn says it's triplets ],
then takes them home again.
other people turn their garage into an auto_shop.
similarly,
all some people want is a platform for their consumer applications.
then there are folks like me,
who want things a certain way because our needs aren't typical.
even then, we get the choice of writing for speed [ c ] or
writing for comfort [ perl, python ].
i will summarize.
i don't care if freebsd doesn't have a flash plug_in.
i think there is one in my firefox browser on my microsoft platform.
even if not,
it seems like every web_site says all over its pages,
"click here to get the plug_in".
if someone else wants it, let them do the work.
imho,
freebsd does not --need-- to be "cool" so as to attract developers.
it only needs to be reliable.
the single greatest asset is that "keep_it_simple,_stupid" is do_able.
"cool" costs money.
"cool" means that the web_site is
chock_full of images that take forever_and_a_day to load.
now, the images are in high_def, which is that much worse.
i already have a microsoft platform.
lastly,
when i go public with
a certain thing that i am doing that uses freebsd,
i will be prominently informing people of this fact.
specifically, i will be telling folks that
different platforms have
different advantages for
different situations and that,
for my specific concept,
microsoft and apple platforms are "inappropriate" and
i will explain why.
the beauty of my concept is that
my target audience gets to decide for themselves.
i will leave you all with this deep philosophical thought.
it's about "content" versus "presentation".
the "wizard of oz" is presentation.
frank morgan, behind the curtain, is content.
microsoft and apple are all about presentation.
when you have fancy_dancy presentation,
in fact, when your whole raison d'etre is fancy_dancy presentation,
you can afford to let your content slip
[ this is kinda_like "quality" versus "quantity"
],
although this is not a requirement.
freebsd should focus on content.
when your content is sound,
the presentation will take care of itself.
hope this helps.
rob
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?47DAF203.40106>