On Thu, 31 Dec 2020 08:18:02 -0600
o1bigtenor <o1bigtenor@???> wrote:

> I don't really play any games - - - I
> have too much fun just using software on my system - - - - but then
> I'm a business man and self-employed and that means, by definition,
> that I'm weird.

Me too, o1bigtenor. My computer enables me to produce and sell books,
teach systematic Troubleshooting mindset and techniques, and write
software to make my business's workflow better. People like us are
often ignored when software decisions are made. Back in the Windows
days, we were called "Power Users" and respected. Trade mags had
many articles addressed to people like us. Today it seems we're just a
minority to be ignored in the rush to somehow "market" the Linux
Desktop --- an endeavor that's been failing miserably for two decades
now.

This is one of the many reasons I'm glad Devuan exists. Devuan's
rejection of systemd removes the attempt to embed my Linux computer in
epoxy and force me to use only systemd's dials and switches, which of
course are one to several needless levels of abstraction that really do
nothing to simplify, but only get in the way.

Like you, my income depends on my Linux computer. That puts us in a
whole different category from gamers, and from dwobes who use their
computers for social media without understanding anything about a
computer.


> I am working with software in a very wide range of
> things, from CADD to CAM (that very little at present), to
> spreadsheets, to starting to work in self designed software
> supporting equipment that I'm fabricating and a bunch of other
> things. To date I've been mostly a software user but am starting on
> becoming a software developer because in certain areas software just
> isn't adequate. In the software using I've found myself pushing the
> envelope because I combine things in ways that seem to all too often
> be non-customary.

Exactly! Luckily, we still have POSIX, which is a simple way to achieve
amazing things with lightning speed. Just a little knowledge of Python
or Perl, AWK, sed, C and shellscripting can usually produce the exact
behavior you're seeking, which is exactly what Thompson and Richie were
trying to accomplish.

SteveT

Steve Litt
Autumn 2020 featured book: Thriving in Tough Times
http://www.troubleshooters.com/thrive