interesting experiment.

[Octavian Rasnita]

Hi, thank you.
No, I don't like Windows. I don't use to play games because I don't have the
time.
I use some sound editing programs but very rarely.
I need Linux because I am learning CGI programming in Perl, Web server
administration, etc.
... and these work better under Linux than under Windows.

But I also don't like to see a lot of people from this list, nor from any
list, thinking that Linux is better than Windows.
Windows is better than Linux for multimedia development but Macintosh is
even better than Windows  for this thing.

Some Unix graphic stations are better probably than Macintosh for their
purpose.

It was a thred about people's opinions and I've told my opinions.
My opinion is that Windows is easier to use than Linux for a blind in
special, but Linux is better than Windows working for server side
applications, and only after you know very well Linux is as same as easy to
use as windows but learning it takes more time than learning Windows.

That is my opinion.
Is Linux easier to learn than Windows?
Is Linux easier to use by a blind?
Is Linux easier to use by a beginner?

Well, I am a beginner in Linux, I am blind and it will take some time to
learn Linux.
Maybe there are some other listers in the same situation.

I like the Linux users to be a kind of helpful community, because they are
not very many, especially blind, but all the experimented people in linux
give the beginners criptical commands without explaining too much, RTFM,
etc.


Teddy,
orasnita at home.ro

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ann Parsons" <akp at eznet.net>
To: <speakup at braille.uwo.ca>
Sent: Sunday, May 19, 2002 5:55 AM
Subject: Re: interesting experiment.


Hi all,

>>>>> "Octavian" == Octavian Rasnita <orasnita at home.ro> writes:

    Octavian> Are there any games accessible for the blind under
    Octavian> Linux, like under Windows?

Yes and no.  If you expect whizzy sound and graphics, no.  But there
are lots of good games.  Do a search on Google.

    Octavian> Are there any good sound editing programs
    Octavian> for Linux, like Sound Forge, Cool Edit, Gold Wave, etc,


Yes, Many in fact.

    Octavian> and programs for creating MIDI music, like Cake Walk?

Dunnow about Cake Walk, but there is no OCR stuff that isn't really
complicated to run, either.

    Octavian> Is there a text editor, that has macro features, Regular
    Octavian> expressions, the ability to save in Windows/Mac/Unix
    Octavian> format, etc?

Emacs has all that, and your friends and employers can import anything
written in Emacs into whatever Word Processor they're using because
Emacs is basic text.  If you're talking about LaTeX or stuff like
that, then no, you can't import it, but why would you, unless you
absolutely had to for a job.  If your employer wanted hard copy, you
could write rings around MSWord.  Can you program in MSWord?  Can you
write C programs in MSWord?  Can you not only write them but check
them and run them in MSWord?  You can't, but you sure as Hell can in
Emacs!

    Octavian> A lot of things are accessible, but ... harder to learn,
    Octavian> harder to configure and harder to use, if I am not so
    Octavian> bright to remember 1000 command line parameters.

Well, if you like Windows, then use it, but don't bother us on the
Linux list, then.  Windowws is very difficult to learn for some
people, especially totally blind people who find it easier to use a
command line interface.  Neither OS is bad, Teddy, each has its
strengths and weaknesses.  If you are willing to learn, Linux is
really rewarding.  Windows can be too, I guess, but not in the same
way, not the way Linux makes you feel as if you've really accomplished
something when you get done typing all those hundreds of commands.
<smile>  If Windows works for you, then use it.  It's all in the tools
that fit your hands the best and do the job you ask them to do best.
Nothing is either right or wrong.

One last note.  I repeat, do not confuse wanting Windows look-alike
programs with needing a good word processor/markup language.  Consider
what you are really asking.  If you want Windows look-alike tools in
Linux for the blind, they aren't available yet.  On the other hand, if
you want word processor/markup languages, programming modes, good
sound editing, and web and so on.  Linux has all that.    However,
make sure you know what you're asking for here.  Same isn't
necessarily best, you know, guys.

Ann P.

--
Ann K. Parsons
email:  akp at eznet.net ICQ Number:  33006854
WEB SITE:  http://home.eznet.net/~akp
"All that is gold does not glitter.  Not all those who wander are lost."
JRRT



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