[NCLUG] root/superuser pwd question

[Scott Scriven]

* Brian Wood <bwood at beww.org> wrote:
> Generally I set up [foo] ...

Most users don't configure anything unless absolutely necessary.

I mean, most people configure *something*, whether it's their 
wallpaper or their kernel scheduling algorithms.  But most people 
stick to easy, superficial changes, and even heavy tweakers tend 
to focus in depth on only a few components.  Distro designers 
have to assume that almost everyone is using default settings for 
almost everything.

That may seem odd, but the same thing happens with cars.  How 
many cars on a busy street have souped-up engines, extensive body 
alterations, or other major changes?  And how many are pretty 
much straight from a factory, with no changes other than dice 
hanging from the mirror or some bumper stickers?

Many users don't even bother "changing the oil" on their 
computers.  They just buy a new computer when the oil gets dirty.  
(or, rather, they don't upgrade their software; they buy a 
computer with the upgrades already installed)  How is one 
supposed to design a system for that type of user?

> I don't understand why they do not want to leave that decision 
> up to the user.

The single biggest problem with free software, for "normal" 
users, is that it inflicts too much choice.  That's half of the 
reason distros exist.

For distros aimed at popular use, the goal is to reduce the 
amount of required decisions to an absolute minimum.  Users don't 
want to research options and build a system.  They want it to 
"just work".  Anything which requires configuration fails that 
criteria and will probably be ignored.

For people who do want more choice, well, that's easy.  It's 
open-source.  Unlimited customization is, at worst, just a 
tarball away.


-- Scott