"It's one thing for a new Linux user to fire up a browser and
check Gmail, or create a new document in OpenOffice and begin
working--especially with the slick, well organized UIs that come
with some netbooks like the Asus Eee PC I tested. Just about anyone
can do those tasks within minutes.
"But it's another thing to figure out why a Linux system isn't
synchronizing properly with a digital camera or external DVD drive.
Even simple tasks like listing the contents of a folder, listening
to an MP3 track, or installing a new program are different. As I
said in a previous article, "The Netbook OS Question: Windows XP
vs. Linux," none of these things are necessarily difficult, but
they're all completely different from what mainstream users
expect.
"Most things that aren't working right on Linux can be solved
with a trip to Google or some of the various Linux forums. But
that's also why Linux isn't right for a lot of mainstream
users."
