[kwlug disc.] And people still question Distros that don't include MP3 capabilities

[Unsolicited]

Ah, don't worry about it.

Both of you are correct - the current situation "ain't right", for a 
mind boggling variety of reasons.

And the boggling gets more painful the more you learn of the 
situation, and particularly with the level of insanity that is 
apparent the deeper you go.

The point is well made though - the poor _user_ who just wants to get 
on with their day, and _doesn't_ want to understand all this computer 
cr*p, is bewildered when they can't do a presumably simple thing and 
just play a tune.

For good and valid reasons, but in the end the user perceives it as 
just another reason not to have anything to do with Open Source or 
GNU/Linux.

Which is all to say that users aren't being as well served as they 
should be, and, in this case, MP3 vs. GNU/Linux, how the former 
detracts from the latter when they don't really have anything to do 
with each other.

So GNU/Linux has to keep expending a greater and greater amount of 
effort merely to be _accepted_ as a viable alternative to commercial 
products.

Catch-22: Few people want to be educated, they just want to pick up 
and go and get on with their day (and that's not really a wrong 
attitude), but only through education/information can such problems be 
addressed.

<sigh>

Raul Suarez wrote, On 2/24/2007 1:07 PM:
>> Actually, I would argue that this isn't an argument
>> for not including MP3 (or fill in the blank)
>> support, but an argument for patent reform and to
>> show that software patents are just plain bad (not
> to
>> mention stupid).
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