[Computerbank] Re: [cai-sa] Teen Challenge -Network

[Grant Diffey]

On Wed, Apr 02, 2003 at 06:18:34PM +1000, Kylie Davies wrote:
> HI all,
> 
> And now I join in....
> 
> Peter Gossner wrote:
> 
> > Now as we give poor unsuspecting recipients comparatively low end boxes
> > I believe we should be installing software that makes their experience
> > pleasant / easy.  That means it should be responsive.

But it also needs to be functional including.

	A browser that renders 90% of the web 
		including things people use
		http://www.msn.com.au
	
	A word processor that has some hope of reading word documents
	and has some desktop publishing functions


> 
> Totally agree here, hence why I am tearing my hair out over the system we are 
> currently distributing in Victoria...this is why I am asking for more memory 
> in the systems - because - unless we ship a P2 class system - the computer is 
> way slow, not that useable (lots of waiting time / hdd cranking) and it 
> doesnt do anything to promote free software as an alternative. 




> 
> I, as a trainer and a linux user (only since 96) - I am totally embarrassed 
> when recips say is it really this slow or when KWORD takes up to 4 mins to 
> open a KWORD document. (P133, 32RAM) We recently had one who decided that 
> they didnt want this computer after all - it was much too slow. 

When you use a system from 1995 with software from today. some performance hit
will be expected yes.



> 
> In Vic - admittedly there has been a lot of great development by Jaymz, 
> Daniel and others...to enable KDE  to run faster on low end systems...but 
> with KDE3 -*I* think we have gone OTT. It really needs 64RAM at the 
> minimum...it runs dog slow on P133 (so much so that we are not shipping 
> these). 

and icewm is shipped as an option for this reason.


> 
> Before the KDE development - we also had some development involving GNOME - 
> by Frank C..this changed at some point...with NO real discussion...but we 
> were promised that things would be faster. (Incidentally one of our recips 
> came in the other day with this GNOME install - and their system flew - in 
> comparison to the ones we now ship on the same spec box.)

Which particular gnome install was it. 
	the one with the broken gdm? or the one where the icons dissapeared
	at random or thethe one wher the pannel dissapeared and couldn't be
	recovered

> 
> We were also told that things would be better under KDE3 (from KDE2) but this 
> has been proven wrong. We are told that KDE3.1 will be much better...but 
> those who have had a go on the development box (a P166 with 32RAM) - have 
> given up with it - because it is slowwwwwww and all you mainly do - is wait. 
> Maybe we could get rid of some of the KDE eye candy and the system may become 
> somewhat faster...do computer users really need a shadow backdrop under their 
> mouse cursor??? ;)

The shadow cursor is done in hardware and doesn't cost anything.

> 
> Oh - and dare i say it - the knoppix german hdd installer - is too 
> easy...even in German.... not many questions to answer...really a walk in the 
> park cf other linux installs I have done. And the end result was 
> perfecto...everything worked including sound! :) 

except it's totally inaapropriate for production use.


-- 
Grant Diffey aka "nevyn"

President of Computerbank Australia Inc.
http://www.computerbank.org.au/
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