Comments on: Masochistic usage of Operating Systems

By: ex-penguinfan ex-windowsslave

ex-penguinfan ex-windowsslave — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 23:29:38 +0000

since I’ve got my macbook I don’t look back to those linux days. It was fun for me to fix my system and to google for solutions but I recommend every user to try running a nearly user friendly OS like OS-X. Its a completely new experience not to think about how to make things work. Instead of it, having fun using the things that the OS offers you.
The reason why I had so much fun in fixing things was that there was a lack of fun in using it. Now things have changed for me. Even if it sometimes sucks like every other OS out there.

By: Darren Poulson

Darren Poulson — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:09:13 +0000

I often complain, tongue in cheek, about how bad linux is. When I got a scanner, my computer recognised it, and asked me to install the correct software. Wheres the tinking and fun in that?

On a serious side, I’m finding I don’t need to tinker, which turns the computer into a tool, as opposed to a chore! Now I can spend more time looking at the interesting things on the net, like this blog! :)

By: The Elitist’s Lounge » Basic Background

The Elitist’s Lounge » Basic Background — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 19:23:18 +0000

[...] I came across this post that mentions that most *nix (Linux/Unix/Mac) exhibit masochistic behaviour in the use of their [...]

By: Bruno Trevisan

Bruno Trevisan — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 00:39:26 +0000

Is that the Slackware way of life?

By: Ricardo Bánffy

Ricardo Bánffy — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:26:12 +0000

Sidnei,

I find it infinitely better to just use my computer and to be able to fix it if need arises than being totally unable to do even peek under its hood.

I am running Windows right now (current employment conditions) and I can really tell you it´s a painful transition back to a less civilized (and plain ugly) environment.

I think the pain you describe is mostly related to ill-behaved hardware and poorly thought out software I have decided to avoid long ago. Much like that iBook of yours, everything works like charm for me. Unless one enjoys pain (and some people do – you run Vista, after all), Linux is pretty painless these days.

And Anthony, Plone is not painful. It´s just very, very complicated. You can´t approach an alien spacecraft and expect to figure out how it violates every law of Physics without some effort. Still, it flies great once you grok it.

By: Anthony

Anthony — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 03:57:40 +0000

I agree, but must say that is where I am at right now with Plone. (Especially the Googling problems part.) And it feels a bit masochistic because we could have stayed with the safe CMS we had. But we aren’t masochists. Just hopeful for a time when we will know what is going on and causing the problems.

By: garbas

garbas — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:12:08 +0000

i’m also one of those guys who runs linux on ibook, gentoo to be exact … so compiling every program you would say its a waste of time … maybe, but hell yeah its fun … my girl likes it – imagine what all you can do while waiting firefox to compile :)

and yes i agree with that “brasilian guy” … custom keyboard roks. and i always repeat “real men use keyboard only” (http://suckless.org/wmii/)

By: sidnei

sidnei — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 12:57:27 +0000

No doubt it’s exciting, but it shouldn’t be all.

I’m feeling the pain myself, after using Linux pretty much all through graduation. Now I find myself expert in using ‘apt-get’, ‘gcc’ and ‘gdb’ but can’t answer 15% of a sample exam for entering masters.

Personally, my opinion is that using Linux might be good for your career but is a really bad choice during school because it will steal your focus.

By: Ricardo Alves

Ricardo Alves — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:01:13 +0000

The context is very important here. It looks reasonable to me, and healthy, that a computing student finds exciting to learn new things, every time he has a problem.

By: sidnei

sidnei — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:57:08 +0000

See, that was on an iBook. Linux Just Works ™ most of the time on Apple hardware. Tinkering with strange hardware just for the sake of feeling pain is insane.

As for ratpoison, I actually got pretty much the same setup on Windows Vista right now, using GridMove. :)