Episode: 1346
Title: HPR1346: How to properly evangelize linux or why I use linux as my daily driver.
Source: https://hub.hackerpublicradio.org/ccdn.php?filename=/eps/hpr1346/hpr1346.mp3
Transcribed: 2025-10-17 23:55:38

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Hi everybody, I hope this podcast finds you well on the day that you happen to download
it.
The subject of this podcast is how to properly evangelize technology and or why I use Linux
as my daily driver.
Before I get into that subject, I just kind of like to say that this is my first podcast
ever.
So if I say a lot of us or paws or beeps, well you guys know how it goes.
Thanks for your patience.
Before I get into how to properly evangelize, I just kind of like to give you a little background
on where I'm coming from and how I use Linux and how long I've used Linux.
I started using computers in maybe 1997.
I get to receive the laptop as a gift for my mom when I was in the seventh grade.
Of course it had a pretty sure Windows 95 on it at the time and it was like a Pentium
133.
I remember that thing used to get so out of my lap that I didn't use it too much.
I continued with Windows all the way until I went to college.
My second year of college either foolishly or foresightedly I took out a loan and bought
a nice iMac back in the days when I had that cool, Hingy screen that you could put in
any position.
I got a Mac because a friend of mine at the time was using a Macbook and I just thought
it was really cool and he told me why he's a Mac and it's faster and more secure and
yada yada yada.
So I kind of bit hard on it and went in and I used a Mac for like five years.
In 2007 I moved out after being home after school for a year.
I decided to take an adventure and move to China and in doing so I sold almost all my
possessions including my iMac.
When I came to China I didn't have much money so I bought the cheapest laptop that I could
buy at the time which came with a entry level version of Windows Vista.
The reason I got is because using my poor language ability speaking to the salesperson
I asked I said can you change the language on this and she said yeah of course of course.
What they really meant is I could just install a pirated version of English Windows Vista
and having dealt with a pirated version of Windows when I was like in high school I just
said this is crazy I don't want to do that.
I had a friend who had used Linux and he had talked about it and I said hey well I'll
try it.
I downloaded Ubuntu 7.04 and then it was like feisty I forgot it's feisty something and
I put it on the laptop and I've been using Linux ever since.
I've come and gone to other distributions but I seem to always find myself coming back
to Ubuntu.
On my current laptop thinkpad e430c.
I got Ubuntu 12.04 LTS and I planned to use the LTS until the next LTS comes out.
After distro hopping for a while I kind of decided I was tired of updating and copying files
and figuring out why something wasn't working and I just said hey let's go with the biggest
and hopefully the most stable.
Of course distro arguments are another subject let's get back to evangelizing Linux.
I use Linux on both my work, my home, home theater PC, I have a file server, a Raspberry
Pi that I must run with.
To me it's just really amazing the different applications and things you can do with the
same OS I mean it's crazy yeah that's right I said I use Linux at work and I actually work
in a rather permissive IT department company and I just installed Ubuntu and they gave
me my PC the first day of work.
I didn't ask, I figured if they had a problem they would tell me.
Because of that and because I work in a Windows environment at work with Linux I feel like
I'm pretty qualified to talk about how to get Windows users comfortable using Linux or
understanding how to use Linux.
When you evangelize it's really important that you don't sound crazy.
A lot of people aren't, they're obviously coming to the subject not as passionate as
you.
I mean you were the evangelizer right so you're the one that is obviously passionate about
it.
I'm obviously focusing on Linux but this advice can be used anything if you want someone
to switch to an Android phone or Firefox OS or some crazy, I don't know audio gear
that you might have you can use any of all of this advice at that time.
So you know some basic rules of the road obviously each situation is slightly different and
you have to gauge the person that you're trying to do what you want them to do differently.
They might be technically inclined and you can skip a lot of the simple talk or they
might be like your grandmother and has no idea about any of the things you're talking
about or why Windows is even better that there might be even an alternative to Windows.
So I think the first thing you need to focus on is find the right time to broach the subject.
And I got some examples here maybe when you hear a friend or coworker complaining that
they've had to reinstall Windows just because it stopped working or it got really slow
whether they got a virus or maybe they purchased some DRM software and the licenses run
out you know like an anti virus software and you can kind of say hey you know why you
buy and that stuff you don't need to buy that and that will always peak their interest
when you say you don't need to do something.
This is probably the most important rule is don't talk down to anyone you know or laugh
at them or be a jerk it's easy for you or I to think that Windows is not the best
piece of software that it's you know gouging people money but for all these people that
you're trying to get to use your system they don't really know that you know so when
you're trying to convince someone don't talk down to them you know the people that you're
trying to convince these Linux probably have no idea what Linux is or just kind of heard
about it maybe in passing so your mission is to be as patient as possible.
That leads me to my next point is don't harp on how bad the system they are currently
using is you know like nobody wants to hear that Windows sucks that's not the way that
you sell something you don't sell something by saying something else sucks you sell
something by saying this thing is great you know find a situation in which they could
benefit from the use of Linux whatever that might be you know one of the things is most
annoying things about the internet if you read any tech blog is fanboys you know like
what and I think my personal feeling is the reason why fanboys exist is because we all
have this need to feel that we are right or to believe you know in another way to say
this to believe we are not wrong and so if I'm not wrong then when I'm using Linux right
and the other guys using Windows then he certainly is wrong this applies to everything you
know the the most famous thing is like iPhones and Android right and you get people on the
internet arguing over really pointless things and the reason why is because they bought a
phone and they want to feel like they made the right decision when they bought that phone
that's the only reason so you know keep your opinions about the other system to positive
things only this is the next the next thing is don't attempt to tell the person what
free as and free is and not free as in beer for all of you you know geeky guys out there
are girls news alert nobody cares we care because we understand why it's important but unfortunately
the lay person has no idea why this is a good thing and I wouldn't I wouldn't take the
time to really lay out why free is good you know like that you lose your freedom nobody
and if it's like well I have freedom I download that software for free so I don't know what
you're talking about the easiest way to get people to do it is to just use practical examples
as to why open source just works better for me an example that I've used in the past is
you know it's very simple to anyone has a little experience of Linux was just wowing
my co-workers by running a web server on my desktop we were trying to get some project
management management web software I went online I typed open source web project management
software of course just like a billion of them I downloaded like the top five that I think
I could find I installed them on my patchy you know my lamp set up put a little seat my
sequel database and I let everyone test them and say which one do you like and we had a vote
and everyone was just like amazed like wow this is crazy I didn't know you could do that
so yes Linux is why it's so great you know I love to tell people is when when you're
working at work and you're trying to I don't know I have some new idea I want to do and
I don't want to download Photoshop you know I'll just open something again when they say
what says a Photoshop I'll say no it's again you never heard of the game and they're always
amazed like I didn't know that existed so you know show them how you use Linux or other
open source projects in your daily life another great just like draw jaw dropping thing to do
is I love showing my friends my XBMC setup on my home theater PC I've got this little dinky
atom PC that's got an island board on it and people love I candy you know how they love to see
all the cool things you can do and the screenshots and the artwork and just showing like hey click
movie opens it's just amazing to them another cheesy eye candy thing to do is show them
composite effects or you know cube on your desktop people just think that's so cool
so if the person is you know security minded
explaining them the Linux is just more secure if they ask why if they ask why you can give them
any number of reasons I think we all know that open source is at least when it comes security is
most likely the best model also that because it's it's open source and it's free to download all the
updates are free so you'll never be on updated you know we're on a fully non fully updated PC
use current events you know I mean the NSA is in the news right now explain to them that you know
it's good luck to the NSA trying to to do that on the Linux PC if they probably don't or can't
uh you know if you see some big news about a virus in the news uh you can easily point out
like well I don't have to worry about that and people will say huh why don't you have to worry
about that or if they have an old XP PC you know I say hey you know that the support for XP is
running out in about seven months did you know that um you know and then finally once you get
the person interested in it maybe you know ask them what they seriously use their computer for
you know I have this feeling that I say 75% here but I would say it's probably more like 95%
of computer users that aren't in a technical environment or creative graphics environment
they don't need they don't use anything on their computers that doesn't already exist or have like
a worthy replacement for you know in Linux or an easy web application to use um and if worse comes
to worse you can show them that they have the umbilical cord of wine or even a virtual machine
you know you can install XP on a virtual machine um like I said I've been using Linux
at work in three different companies now for the past four years and it is quite rare when I
actually need to boot into a Windows environment in fact it almost never happens it's quite annoying
actually the boot into Windows not for me just because I always have these updates to install
you know finally the best thing is you know maybe you need to appeal to their
fragality uh everybody loves to not pay money for things right and if you can
are able to get a modern desktop environment for free literally free uh you know don't
to shell out anything um people love that you know if you like I can't believe it uh what's the
catch so there is no catch get it for free and you know like once you have people's interest peaked
uh Linux excuse me um probably the most important thing is to put your money where your mouth is
you know if you're taking the time to evangelize a product give the person the reassurance that
you would help them in their time of need my wife uses Linux only because I made her um and anytime
she has a problem she just gives it to me and I fix it and I might be not be the best thing
because it makes her dependent on me but we're married so I guess that's okay um maybe something
you can do for someone is uh maybe make a certificate on your computer and say print it out and
it's like a guaranteed tech support certificate you know 20 sessions or something like that
and that gives the person the the comfort of knowing like if I have a problem I can call them
you know tell them to give Linux a one day and when after they like it a one week and then a
one month trial and I was feeling you know after that one day when they feel a little more comfortable
in the desktop environment uh finding things opening folders deleting files etc you know in one
week when they get comfortable uh understanding which software to use and depending on the use case
and after one month when they realize they're like hey I haven't opened windows in a while like
I guess I don't really need it of course don't forget to help them install it um for most people
the BIOS is a foreign word you know sounds like some alien term um or even you know change your
boot order I have a feeling I must be able to don't even know what a boot order is so show them what
you're doing make sure they're looking over your shoulder and say hey look you know here it is um
give them a live CD show them how to boot into a live CD and and say hey don't you know don't
shut down your computer for a couple days and see if you like it um train them you know uh all of us
I think on hpr I know that desktop linux is essentially the same as desktop windows or macOS 10
but for some people just changing where the menu bar is makes them feel uncomfortable
so like I said before be patient and don't talk down to them and I think if you do some of these
things uh you'll notice that uh some people will come over to your side so uh I guess that's all
for now um love to hear some more of like how you guys have gotten uh people interested in linux
or other uh software or technologies um thanks uh hope you enjoyed my first podcast
and uh plan to submit more have a great day bye
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