My guess is that he'll run into trouble spots with streaming media, and any 
java applications in a browser.

RealPlayer for Linux stinks. It crashes RH 7.2 EVERY time, even during the 
install. Of course there is no Windows Media player, so I have no options but 
.mp3 downloads. Nothing streaming.

Configuring java with Konqeror is no joy and even when it is finished I find 
that the blank gray boxes that should be applets or .jsps are a common 
problem with Sun's java. Netscape 4.x does fine, but Netscape 6.2 can't run 
it's own java installer and Konqeror dead ends with the aforementioned 
problem.

Using it on a network? Not even Novell's iFolder or iPrint applets work, so 
are Linux distros keeping up with where networking is moving?

I love Linux, but these are some distinct problems that will keep a lot of 
users away with MS JVM and Windows Media Player ready to go with IE.

On Wednesday 19 December 2001 12:03 pm, you wrote:
> Just thought I would pass this along:
>
> To my complete suprise I was contacted and interviewed via email/phone, by
> David LaGesse from US News and World Report for an article he is writing
> concerning Linux and opensource software.  As a part of his
> research, he is exclusively running Mandrake Linux at work for two weeks on
> his desktop while being networked to the company LAN.  The article will
> tackle the question if Linux and opensource software has made progress in
> the desktop user arena.  Something like: "can joe user install and use
> Linux and opensource software at home without being a *nix guru or dual
> booting constanly into Windows for better applications."  He was a complete
> newbie, but thus far reports little trouble getting along without Microsoft
> products. From our conversation, he seemed to have a positive experience
> with Linux and opensource applications.  Good news...
> _______________________________________________
> Twin Cities Linux Users Group Mailing List - Minneapolis/St. Paul,
> Minnesota http://www.mn-linux.org
> tclug-list at mn-linux.org
> https://mailman.mn-linux.org/mailman/listinfo/tclug-list

-- 

David Cross 

http://web.nwc.edu/~dacross 
Email to Pager: 
6125792680 at page.metrocall.com
Telephone: (651) OAT-DIET
Fax: (253) 322-3223 
***********************

What Life Means to Me
 
As a high school student I discovered I wanted  more 
than where my life was heading. Even though I didn't drink alcohol, 
I went  to drinking parties each weekend and they became my life. 
I loved the party  atmosphere and the feeling of getting away 
with something. I found that  the rest of the week was just space 
that had to be filled so that I could get to  the weekend. 
Strangely enough, some friends challenged me to read  the Bible 
for half an hour each day and I took them up on it. When I read the  
Bible I realized that my life was really empty. The best thing 
about my life was  simply going to these parties, but I wanted 
more than that.

As I read the Bible, I realized more than just the emptiness 
of my life. I  realized that if I gave my life to Jesus Christ, 
I could get a grip on  meaning in my life and I could even 
help others. One of the struggles I  had with this was that 
I didn't like church. I'd never found a church that  was the 
"perfect church" and I didn't have an interest in looking.  
However, those same friends that challenged me to read the Bible 
challenged me  to try going to church each week. I decided 
that since those friends were right  about reading the Bible and 
the meaning that Jesus gave my life, I guessed they  might be right 
about church, too, so I gave it a try. I went to church with  those 
friends and I found a real place that I loved to be. I loved learning so  
much about Christ that my half hour Bible reading grew into hours 
each day.

I finally felt that I had found the meaning that I was looking for. 
It wasn't  because I was reading so much or because I went 
to my church's youth group. The  meaning I found was in learning 
so much more about Jesus Christ each time I  opened the Bible 
or met with other Christians. Jesus became my closest friend  and 
I wanted to spend as much time with Him as I could. One thing that 
I knew I  needed to leave behind was the wild parties. Surprisingly, 
God helped me to  leave them all at once. He even gave me the chance 
to tell some of my friends  from those parties about Christ and 
Christ changed some of their lives, too. Honestly, Christ has given me 
a reason to live. The change he has  made in my life is dramatic proof 
that He is real and that He made  me new just as the Bible says He 
would do. I know the difference He has made in  my life, so I want 
to give others the truth that makes people new.