On Monday 31 January 2005 10:34 pm, Dennis Kibbe kindly wrote:
> If this weekend's InstallFest is any example of things to come,
> we'll get a wide variety of requests. Everything from simple
> installs to hardware RAID to Gentoo.
>
> So, here's where we need triage.
>
> Is it a simple install for a newbie who will dual boot? Then we
> need a safe choice and an experienced installer. FC3, Mandrake,
> Ubuntu, Mepis look like safe bets here.
One thing to find out at this point of triage is what the client wants
to use Linux for. I had a newbie who wanted to try Linux in a dual
boot situation, already had a lot of experience in development. He
wanted a lot of development tools, which indicated to me Mandrake or
Fedora, rather than one of the smaller distros like Mepis which
doesn't come with those. You can install them later, but I wanted to
give the development tools to him by default.
>
> Is the box being dedicated to Linux, then we can widen the choices
> a bit. Maybe even be adventurous and install Debian or Slackware
> depending on how much the user wants to learn. And some do! We've
> had people that have gone from newbie to Gentoo in a week!
>
> A dedicated box is something a new installer-person can handle
> without fearing they wll trash any data. Good way to learn and get
> more people experinced in installing!
>
> It's not unusal for someone to go through 3 or 4 distros in the
> first month or two. Trying different ones to see what they like.
> So what we install may get replaced within a week.
>
> The more difficult installs are an opportunity for all to learn, so
> we don't want to turn them away, I think. *Unless* there is the
> risk of doing real damage. One InstallFest someone brought a
> laptop with all the company financial records and mentioned that he
> had to meet with the auditors on Monday!
>
> Even if we can't do a Gentoo install or hardware RAID. We can still
> be of service by pointing them to the issues they will face and
> maybe some places online to look for help.
>
> I know der.hans would like to see a totally automatic
> over-the-network install, but I think that is some ways done the
> road and in fact may not be desirable since going though an install
> is an important learning experience for all. The key is
> preparation to make the install process as smooth as possible and
> be able to deal with problems that come up in a professional
> manner. Even if we can't solve a problem, as long as it's not a
> show-stopper we can always come back to it or, at least, explain
> what needs to be done.
>
> How about an IRC channel during the InstallFest? Might be an easy
> way to ask everyone for help without leaving the install you're
> working on. I know a question came up Saturday about hardware RAID
> on Dell 620 Precision Workstations that I could have answered (and
> saved a couple of hours frustration) except I was in another room
> doing an install.
>
> Again, the goal we should focus on in these discussions is that we
> want the person to walk out with a Linux box they can really use.
> That means the printer is setup, Internet and mail work, music
> plays, etc. and we've spent a minute showing them some of the
> features and where the config tools are.
>
> To make this happen we need to learn with each InstallFest so any
> problem we run into we follow up and solve and have the solution
> available for the next InstallFest.
>
> An example of this is Fedora Core 3 doesn't play MP3s out of the
> box. Playing MP3s is something that most people want to do with a
> computer and the solution isn't hard[1], but we need to know the
> solution and make it one of the standard things we do each time
> Fedora is installed.
>
> This means creating a follow up sheet for each install and creating
> a checklist for that distro.
>
> Yes, it means chasing a lot of details, but the payoff is that the
> InstallFest will be a fun learning experience for all.
>
> Anyway, my 2 cents worth and hope it didn't sound too much like a
> rant.
>
> Dennisk
> [1] http://www.mjmwired.net/resources/mjm-fedora-fc3.shtml#xmms
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