TechTV.com: Leave Linux to the Geeks

[ Thanks to Greg Smith for this link. ]

"I don't run Linux. Why? Because I'm a lazy sucker with limited computer skills and low geek self-esteem. I'm the worst kind of Windows user. I'm the guy who's read all the bad press on Microsoft, felt firsthand the bug-ridden frustration of Windows 98, and witnessed Steve Ballmer beating a competing software developer about the face and neck with a 3.5-inch floppy (OK, not the last one). Yet I continue to patronize Windows for the same reason that Sir Edmund Hillary climbed that big hill: "Because it's there."

Basically, I don't feel I deserve Linux. I see open source as a club. Not necessarily an exclusive club, but one that expects a certain level of passion and expertise from its members. Web developers, systems administrators, programmers, engineers, chat room moderators -- these people are members of the Linux club. I barely qualify for the peanut butter of the month club. (I'm on the waiting list.)

Linux was born of the desire among frustrated programmers to tinker with and customize software code traditionally locked by commercial developers. The Linux OS gave programmers a platform upon which to build applications as a community, with each member adding his or her own innovative touches to the collective code."

Complete Story

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