My biggest Linux success of all is that I have been getting my wife to use my already running Linux system to read her Email and browse the Web, rather than having her boot up her computer that runs Windows 98 SE. Her computer is getting old and the hard drive on her system is showing signs of age - dll files have been disappearing and the scandisk program frequently wants to run.

Not only have I had success getting my wife to use my Linux system, I've gotten her to use a system that would normally be thought of as a geek system - a Libranet system, which is a commercial (but really open and flexible) implementation of the Debian GNU/Linux system. By the way, that reputation is undeserved. This system, though unusual to a novice, is not beyond comprehension. Anyone who knows how to read and is reasonably computer literate can not only figure it out, they can become quite productive with it.

I also boot quite a few different Linux distributions, and I've had my wife use different distros, different Window and desktop managers, in short, a variety of environments. They are set up easily enough that she has not had any major problems figuring out the basics.

A few months ago, I was ill and could not even get on my system. With minor coaching, my wife was able to navigate my entire setup and use my computer during my illness, and even sent out some Email messages on my behalf. Now that, to me, is progress!

Good job ... I have been trying to convert my wife for about a year now.

Michael.

Thanks, Michael, it wasn't easy at first. My wife would insist on using only her computer running only her software. As time went on, though, she'd notice that I'd be zipping along on my system running stuff while her Internet Explorer browser would stumble, sometimes fail to refresh pages or retrieve content, and sometimes crash and abort altogether. Meanwhile, I did not experience even a single problem during the same time.

The first time my wife used my system, it was just to check a Yahoo! Mail message. Then she realized that my Web browser could do the same thing her browser could do. Pretty soon, she'd look at Gymboree.com, the Washington Redskins Website (yes, she's a BIG football fan), and other stuff like that. As time went on, she clearly saw that she could get all the same stuff on my computer as she could on hers, only faster, safer, more reliably on mine. Some of that is due to the fact that my system is nearly three years newer than hers, but part of it is also due to the stability of my software, for both of our systems are over three years old.

Anyway, it works. Start small, get people to browse a Web page or two on a Linux system, and show them that it's easy. Then show them later how Email is just as easy (especially with Mozilla Mail or Evolution), then as time goes by, demonstrate other stuff, perhaps a game, the Open Office Suite, or something else that's of mutual interest. Once a person sees that the stuff works, that it is fast, reliable, and often less expensive, at least some people will become interested. For those who don't care, it's not worth the time or effort anyway. But for those who are close friends or family, it's worth the effort to show them what Linux can do. After all, many of the apps run, not just on Linux, but also on BSD, UNIX, and sometimes even on Windows!