[Techtalk] _The_ HOWTO

[Charlotte Oliver]

> That may cause some confusion. Please note from the howto 
> itself, subsection Audience (unless some substantive change 
> has been made since I last referenced it):
> 
> > This document is intended mainly for the male Linux enthusiast who 
> > would like to see more women involved in Linux.
> 
> On that point, it appears your comment and the HOWTO are at 
> odds, or certainly could be interpreted that way by a 
> reasonable reader.

Yes, it now reads:

<<Audience
This document is intended mainly for the male Linux enthusiast who would
like to see more women involved in Linux. Its secondary audience is both
men and women who have been too busy having fun with Linux and computers
to sit down and think about why most women don't share their interests.
We hope you'll come away from this HOWTO with some understanding of why
women stay away from Linux and with a few ideas about what you can
personally do to reverse that trend.>>

> I suspect that, when publishing any such document, some 
> difference of opinion is to be expected. Though I agree with 
> the main emphasis of the document, I think it flawed in a few 
> major ways as well.
> 	Anyone who doesn't like the main theme -- that civil 
> and thoughtful behavior can enrich the linux community -- 
> will find every possible objection. On the other hand, 
> perfectly reasonable males may have perfectly legitimate 
> objections as well. And a "comments" section of a web page is 
> generally seen as an appropriate place to air both those 
> attitudes (and more) and discuss them ad nauseam.

Absolutely.  I suppose my gut reaction to all of the "why would you
bother writing such a document because it is not necessary" was a bit
emotional.  They had every right to feel this why and say as much.  I
suppose I was hoping for more criticism in making it a better document
than the name-calling that was present in the forum.  

I should not have brought that to this list and I apologize.  I was
quickly typing up a "Me too!" to Carla's suggestion that we run over and
take a look and did not reread it thoroughly.  As Carla has taken it
over to issues, I'm more than willing to let it die on techtalk.  (I'm
not subscribed to issues@, so won't be participating the conversation
there)

> 	Given all this, I'd be much more troubled if I didn't 
> see vigorous disagreement, some of it stupid. Because, in the 
> end, I'd like to see a document like this provoke responses 
> from all camps, and engage them in thoughtful dialog.
> 	I know there was some discussion of the HOWTO here at 
> LinuxChix, and probably there are women on this very forum 
> who disagree with parts of what we see in the HOWTO.
> 	If that is correct and there are reasonable arguments 
> to find parts of the document objectionable, it should be 
> anticipated and welcomed when the larger audience reads it 
> and also finds it a worthwhile topic. It should also be 
> hoped, and even encouraged, that sincere disagreement may 
> lead to greater understanding all 'round.
> 	Then again, looping back to the original question, any 
> jerk can type. And there's one assertion that, at least, I can prove.

Agreed.

Charlotte