[X-Newbies] Re: Inappropriate for this list (was: X-Newbies)

[Brian Durant]

I was the first person that replied to the original question. Part of
my posting included mention of StarDict, which requires going through
the process of installing X11 and in my case, Fink. It is true that
the command line underpinnings of OS X are not really "newbie", but on
the other hand, it is part of the underpinnings of OS X. I simply
voiced my opinion on what I personally consider to be the "best"
albeit more complicated solution. The reality of the matter is that
there isn't much software out there for people who work in a number of
languages and would like to have some sort of electronic reference to
jog the memory. Unfortunately, as of yet Apple has not done much with
the multilingual potential of Dictionary.app, despite the multilingual
underpinnings of OS X already being in place for localization. This is
a vast improvement to having to purchase a seperate "langauge kit" for
each language, as multilingual users had to do under OS 9.

As far as I am concerned, the "problem" with "too much *NIX"
discussion began when there was an interjection about the benefits of
MacPorts versus Fink. This isn't the first time that I have
experienced this on the list. While I am sure that the person was well
meaning, there is a tinge of evangelizing that quickly creeps into the
postings. I happen to use Fink, but I don't have any strong opinions
on the pros and cons of either or and therefore I have not replied to
those postings. I think the discussion of the pros and cons could be
an interesting discussion, but doesn't necessarily belong here. It
could instead be taken over to the MaX List, where there would be more
input.

It would probably be enough for this list to know that it appears the
Darwin developers have closed shop to protest Apple's lack of support
for open source development and porting from Linux to the Mac. This
issue is of concern to everyone on the list and may in reality be at
least part of the reason that the MacPorts versus Fink interjection
occurred. Perhaps a bit of frustration? This would be perfectly
understandable as the install base for this seems to be shrinking and
maybe an increase in vying for the few users that delve into the *NIX
underpinnings of OS X?

Cheers,

Brian

On 11/5/06, Al Poulin <alpoulin at cox.net> wrote:
> I usually do not join in on "off topic" discussions such as this one.
> But here I will.  This thread went off topic when someone complained
> about the UNIX flavor of answers to a purely legitimate NEWBY question.
<snip>