[Infowarrior] - Why do people accept faulty operating systems?

[Richard Forno]

Why do people accept faulty operating systems?

http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/locutus/why-do-people-accept-faulty-operating-systems-42185

Average people, the kind you see walking down the street, buying milk at the grocery store and frequenting Walmart, Kmart and other similar retail chains are a very fickle bunch. They are also very demanding. Not one of them would accept damaged goods willingly. If they buy a television and it doesn't work they take it back. If they buy an item of clothing and it is damaged in some manner it is sent back post haste. If they buy a piece of meat and two hours later it is green, that piece of meat is forcefully returned to the butcher (LLBC). 

Yet, when it comes to computers. These same people who throw a raving screaming tantrum when a button on their new DVD player is loose will accept a computer with a faulty operating system. 

Sure they will throw the same tantrums with a physical computer fault however, on the software side of things they will accept without a murmur and actually request to install the most bug ridden, virus infected and unstable operating systems in the history of computing. They will use these systems and not care that it is sending spam to the four corners of the world (why do people say that? The world is round) or some fifty odd viruses are siphoning off their passwords, credit card numbers and personal details for sale on the black market. 

Even when these people know about spam and malicious programs they still allow those into their system, and live with it crashing and running slow for months. When asked why they allow this to happen they shrug their shoulders and say they do not know. Yet most of these people are intelligent, successful at their trade and are able to raise families. When it comes to computers however, it seems that their brain shuts down and they revert back to Neanderthal ways of thinking. 

WHY? 

I don't blame these people. As much as I become exasperated at uncle Pron Surfer or cousin Email Link Clicker when I have to reinstall their operating system for the n'th time I still don't blame them. They are simply a product of their environment. It is the environment which I blame. 

The environment, created by software and service companies, that end (L)users don't know how to properly use a computer, is responsible for this sheeple mentality. These companies act on the premise that people are dumb and design their operating systems and programs on that principle. Throughout the years of this patronizing by the software companies, the average person has been trained like Pavlov's dog to accept sub-quality products. 

The attitudes that people have in that computers crash, viruses and malware are a fact of life and programs are always buggy are brought about when these software companies release improperly tested software. When the end (L)user rings up to complain they are told that unfortunately this is how it is and things will be different in the next release. The customer has no other choice but to accept this and thus the brain washing begins. 

If I remember correctly, the computers of yesteryear were of higher quality and far more reliable than the latest personal computers of today. The excuse that the code is more complex and does more does not wash with me. The real reason is that not enough quality control is exercised. 

The design of these operating systems is also at fault. They are designed on the assumption that computer users are dumb and just want things to work without having to think. So these companies try to build an operating system which does all of the customers thinking for them. The computer is then turned from a useful, powerful and complex machine into a mysterious beige box which does nothing very well except chew up resources. It pains me to think that computers which were less powerful than a modern mobile phone could send people to the moon while modern computers, thousands of times more powerful, are harnessed into sending spam, propagating viruses and surfing pron. 

I think it is a huge waste and a crying shame that people have this attitude about computer software. What can be done about this? I think that, as with everything, it starts with education. Educating people that they don't have to live with this computing situation. Educating people that a computer is more than a black box. Educating people that, like the family car, a computer is a complex machine which needs regular maintenance. Finally, educating people that they do not have to accept sub-standard software and that there are alternatives available. 

That is the main reason people return faulty goods in stores. They know there are alternatives. The software alternatives are hidden and slandered by companies so the end users do not feel they have a choice. Once they realise they have a choice then perhaps the quality of software will return to it's previous level of excellence. Perhaps then, people will be thought of as valued customers, instead of dumb (L)users. What do you think?
"I get paid to support Windows, I use Linux to get work done."