On Sat, Apr 4, 2009 at 11:27 AM, Volker Armin Hemmann <volkerar...@googlemail.com> wrote: > On Saturday 04 April 2009, Nikos Chantziaras wrote: >> And besides, what >> have the clueless done to you? :D Just let them be. > > well, I try to be a good member of the community - and that means helping in > the forum. And it sucks to deal with the complete clueless. Even worse are > people who are clueless and become aggressive when pointed to the > documentation. > > When I started with Linux 'RTFM' was seen as an appropriate answer - but today > you could hurt someones precious feelings - and not hurting an imbecile is > very, very hard and taxing.
"The goal of Gentoo is to design tools and systems that allow a user to do that work as pleasantly and efficiently as possible, as /they/ see fit. Our tools should be a joy to use, and should help the user to appreciate the richness of the Linux and free software community, and the flexibility of free software. This is only possible when the tool is designed to reflect and transmit the will of the user, and leave the possibilities open as to the final form of the raw materials (the source code.) If the tool forces the user to do things a particular way, then the tool is working against, rather than for, the user. We have all experienced situations where tools seem to be imposing their respective wills on us. This is backwards, and contrary to the Gentoo philosophy." I have been using gentoo for quite a while and I like the way it does things. However, is that because the tools have allowed me to work as _I_ see fit, or is it because I have adapted to the workflow that the developers have seen fit for me? Gentoo is a set of tools for advanced users. Some of us love poking around, solving puzzles and tweaking things to no end. Some of us just want things done. I am of the first kind, but I do not believe that I am some "special, priviledged member" of the community that should be catered to at the expense of the other. I don't care if users flood the forums or the community just because the tools are sufficiently complete and correct, as they were originally supposed to be, currently strive to be, and eventually in the future should be. If that hurts people who believe that gentoo only belongs to them, then tough luck for them. They are wrong. As for the specific question at hand, the question is not "should there be a gentoo installer", but "are we ready for one?" and "what form should it take?". I believe a gentoo installer that is actually just a guided handbook might be all that we are ready to develop - and support - at the present moment.
