AusG4's Journal: Why I Hate Linux...

I don't.

I don't hate it at all. In fact, I've probably had a working Linux machine longer than most people reading this entry have even known what Linux is.

That said, I have great respect for the little penguin, great respect for the GNU toolset (the machine I'm writing this on right now, while not sporting the Linux kernel, is indeed sporting the GNU suite), and great respect for the community behind it. I've even contributed my time, code and comments to countless open source projects.

But something very nasty is happening to the Linux community: The rise of the fan boy as the dominant type of Linux user.

There have always been Linux advocates, and frankly, there should be. Just as there are Mac advocates and, strangely, even WIndows advocates. These are the thoughtful people who feel that there operating system, in the right circumstances, is the best tool for the job and explain why they feel this way, allowing others to make up their minds based on their opinions. This is a good thing... every product needs a community to help the unwashed understand if that particular product is right for them.

But lately, more and more, there are less Linux advocates and more and more fan boys. Idiot fan boys, who rather then contribute to a conversation, would just prefer to make a comment somewhere along the lines of "I've never used Solaris/MacOS/AIX, but it's not Linux. This means that it's obviously interior. Additionally, I once heard someone say that Linux was better than the alternative in question, so because I like Linux, I'll quite ignorantly agree with this and run my mouth off to that effect."

This is nothing new. The MacOS, unfortunately, has had these people for years, and frankly, they weren't doing the MacOS any favors either. The real problem is that Linux -isn't- the MacOS. Linux is "geeky". Linux is "l33t". The problem now becomes you've got fan boys who have deluded themselves into thinking that because they use an operating system that requires them to recompile their kernel now and then (as if this was terribly difficult, even before the likes of "make menuconfig"), they think that they're obviously very skilled computer users and that they now have license to run their mouths in any setting imaginable.

At least the MacOS fan boys knew that their operating system was the "easy" operating system, and would almost instantly recognize when they weren't informed about a particular topic.

My point... remember your place. Linux isn't a license to act like you know more than the next guy. Consider what others say, even if your first reaction is to assume that they might be *gasp* speaking negatively about the penguin. They might be... and it doesn't mean that they're wrong.