As mentioned before, I used a raspberry pi 2/3 for nearly a year as my
primary computer, until I accidentally obtained a windows all-in-one
machine, which now has linux on it as well, but when I got it, it had
windows 8.1.
It's relatively easy to use linux for nearly everything you'd do in
windows. There are a few things where windows is necessary, but those
things are few and far between, and the gap is narrowing all the time.
For gaming, there's no option but windows, since I've tried convincing
windows developers to develop for linux too, and it's more like ramming
one's head into a brick wall, even if the language they use for
developing works just fine on linux, nobody cares, for some reason,
windows developers believe there is no other os, and therefore, windows
is all they should write for. I've proven it's trivial to make programs
(yes, even ones for the blind) work on both windows and linux (and we
can now throw mac in there too), depending on the language used for
development. It's all about the toolsets, but I digress.
Linux can be used for everything you'd ever want to do on the computer,
the only thing besides games you'd actually need windows for is if you
are in a work environment that uses windows, and you absolutely must
have interchangeability with other employees on windows. It's certainly
possible to convert documents for use with linux, but they don't always
convert back in the exact same form they were before being moved to
linux, so some users get uptight about that kind of thing, thus using
windows is the only way to satisfy those users. All other things can be
done, email, web browsing, text editing, conferencing, gaming, and just
abuout anything else you can think of. Obviously, games on linux aren't
the same games on windows, but there's till games out there if you're
willing to search a bit.
With that said, I'd like to point out that again, most of these things
can be done without the gui, though there are things that do require a
GUI, but again, those things are few, as mentioned elsewhere in this
thread, Just like the Mac, users can get along quite well without
windows, and there's nothing stopping folks from doing exactly that.
I dropped windows entirely in 2005, and didn't return to it until over
10 years later when the aforementioned pc entered my orbit, and this was
largely done with the mac and linux boxes, though the raspberry pi
helped in there too. :)
Windows is *not* required in a modern world, it's just the most often
used os, and therefore, everyone who doesn't know better believes it's
the *only* os, and many are loathe to believe other options exist, and
of those who do believe such, often they don't believe the alternatives
meet the same usability standards as the windows ones, and as long time
linux users know, this simply isn't true.
On 1/2/2021 10:22 PM, Zachary Shifflett (Redacted sender zshifflett for
DMARC) wrote:
The discussion of Linux as a home desktop environment is interesting to me. I===========================================================
am a windows user and have been for pretty much my entire computing life.
I have started learning a bit here and there about Linux system
administration, but I don’t see how a blind person could really use a Linux
gui as a viable option to replace windows or even mac.
I’d love to be proven wrong on this, as I think it would be an interesting
experiment to see how far I could take a Linux desktop, but any system where
I don’t have a highly functional browser, spreadsheet and word processor at
the very minimum is gonna be a no go for me as a personal computer.
We even have image descriptions in NVDA and Jaws now for all those pesky
facebook memes.
Any thoughts on this?
Again, not trying to say it can’t be done, I would just like to learn how if
so.
Cheers,
Zach
Sent from Mail for Windows 10
From: Pranav Lal
Sent: Saturday, January 2, 2021 9:14 PM
To: raspberry-vi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [raspberry-vi] Re: Thanks for your hard work
Hi Vojta,
There are companies like IBM who do have Linux running on their desktops
therefore do not lose hope. However, all computing need not be done for
employment. It is perfectly ok to use Windows at work and Linux at home.
Pranav
-----Original Message-----
From: raspberry-vi-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <raspberry-vi-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
On Behalf Of Vojtech šmiro
Sent: Saturday, January 2, 2021 11:40 PM
To: raspberry-vi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [raspberry-vi] Re: Thanks for your hard work
Hello,
yes, never mind. I have Raspberry half a year, because I like Raspberry very
much, because no noise, no many electrical power, the best computer what I
had. I don't need laptop or desktop. I have laptop and desktop, but it is
turned off. And my friend Libor and my girlfriend Mirka have Raspberry too.
And our friend Pavel has it too. We all are blind and we use it. In the Czech
Republic is interrest in Raspberry Pi and linux from some visually impaired
people. Many people has Windows, but now, there are some people interrested
in linux. But many of them use linux only like a toy or some interresting
additional system. I am really uncomfortable, because to be employed in some
company with linux is really hard. I don't know any visually impeired people,
who is employd and use linux.
Best regards
Vojta.
Dne 02. 01. 21 v 16:14 Michael A Ray (Redacted sender mike.ray for
DMARC) napsal(a):
===========================================================
Sorry Vojtech. I got your name wrong. And I think you've been here for
a while. I lose track of who is and who is not a longer-term member.
We had about 250 list members last time I checked.
It would be interesting to know the international spread.
On 02/01/2021 14:48, Vojtěch šmiro wrote:
Hello,
I am joining too and thanking you Mike and all people who works on
Raspberry Pi web sites and Raspberry Pi OS accessibility and all what
users need.
Thanks again for your hard work.
Best regards
Vojta.
Dne 01. 01. 21 v 18:00 Michael A Ray (Redacted sender mike.ray for
DMARC) napsal(a):
===========================================================
Thanks Tony.
Mike, G4XBF
On 01/01/2021 16:54, Anthony McCloskey wrote:
Hi Mike:
Just wanted to thank you for your hard work with this list. Also I
wanted to wish you a happy new year.
Tony McCloskey, WA3CAO
The raspberry-vi mailing list
Archives: //www.freelists.org/archives/raspberry-vi
Administrative contact: <mike.ray@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
-----------------------------------------------------------
Raspberry Pi and the Raspberry Pi logo are trademarks of the Raspberry Pi
Foundation.
This list is not affiliated to the Raspberry Pi Foundation and the views
and attitudes expressed by the subscribers to this list do not reflect
those of the Foundation.
Mike Ray, list creator, January 2013
The raspberry-vi mailing list
Archives: //www.freelists.org/archives/raspberry-vi
Administrative contact: <mike.ray@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
-----------------------------------------------------------
Raspberry Pi and the Raspberry Pi logo are trademarks of the Raspberry Pi
Foundation.
This list is not affiliated to the Raspberry Pi Foundation and the views and
attitudes expressed by the subscribers to this list do not reflect those of
the Foundation.
Mike Ray, list creator, January 2013
===========================================================
The raspberry-vi mailing list
Archives: //www.freelists.org/archives/raspberry-vi
Administrative contact: <mike.ray@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
-----------------------------------------------------------
Raspberry Pi and the Raspberry Pi logo are trademarks of the Raspberry Pi
Foundation.
This list is not affiliated to the Raspberry Pi Foundation and the views and
attitudes expressed by the subscribers to this list do not reflect those of
the Foundation.
Mike Ray, list creator, January 2013
===========================================================
The raspberry-vi mailing list
Archives: //www.freelists.org/archives/raspberry-vi
Administrative contact: <mike.ray@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
-----------------------------------------------------------
Raspberry Pi and the Raspberry Pi logo are trademarks of the Raspberry Pi
Foundation.
This list is not affiliated to the Raspberry Pi Foundation and the views and
attitudes expressed by the subscribers to this list do not reflect those of
the Foundation.
Mike Ray, list creator, January 2013
