Combining responses on two threads since this is my last post for the day. First free software (followed by an attempt at answering Chris Doss):
Doug, our very own Mac OS X totting Antoinette ;-), with the help of others, continues to repeat the complaint that users should not be made to learn programming. I assume the poor chap(s) is yet to read the many messages that point out that nobody asked for that. There is also the continued vilification of "geeks" (I would prefer "hackers" for Free Software enthusiasts) in aid of the "not user friendly" argument (and the "Purer than thou" argument). This too is... how shall we put it... bullshit. Free software contributors are constantly working to increase the usability of the tools they provide. Individual experience varies, but my mother finds Mozilla Thunderbird easier and more intuitive to use than Microsoft Outlook (i.e., when Outlook actually has not infected her computer to death). I wouldn't be surprised to see her heading over to http://bugzilla.mozilla.org/ to post feature requests soon. Good luck trying that on microsoft.com, leave alone the constricted and constipated world of Mac OS (check my headers, fools! ;-)).
At around 24/1/07 4:58 pm, sharif islam wrote:
> On 1/24/07, Chris Doss <lookoverhere1 at yahoo.com> wrote:
>> Ravi, Ulhas, Sujeet -- I'm looking at YOU! :)
> [...]
>> Thanks, and whatever "thank you!" is in Hindi as well! :)
>
> you are assuming they all speak Hindi? :)
>
Good catch. I don't (speak Hindi). In fact, where I am from, there were riots against the imposition of Hindi (people make the same mistake about "Bollywood" - the B representing Bombay, now Mumbai, where the Hindi movie industry is situated. The majority of Indian movies are made elsewhere and in other languages).
Chris, Amartya Sen has written in his two recent books about this issue (and its particular complexity for India, with multiple languages, religions, customs, and so on): 1) The Argumentative Indian, 2) Identity and Violence.
For some idea, see: http://tata.com/tata_sons/media/20010304.htm
This is indeed a very significant debate currently, as the Hindutva movement tries to redefine Indian identity as a Hindu (fundamentalist) identity.
--ravi