Raspberry Pi Forums

I must admit I'm trying to assume good faith but I find it really hard to believe that some people are not being disingenuous about what they expected from the Pi. I get the distinct impression that a lot of people made a "me too" purchase and now don't really know why they bought it as tinkering and finding stuff out is not their bag. That's fine but to say that you were led to believe you were getting a destop/laptop replacement for £29.46 is not something I ever remotely thought and saw nothing anywhere to suggest this.

cashaw wrote:...... and that is exactly the attitude which scares people off from buying Linux based devices such as the Pi. Infact Linux has always suffered from the attitude "If you don't know how to use it, buy Windows" when the Pi is supposed to be encouraging people to learn something new!

Yeah, but this is a whingy moany thread (look at the title). In the threads where people are actually asking for help, I am very happy to offer help in the areas I am able to, which, thanks to the Pi, I'm glad to say, are increasing in number. (Note, in this thread I directed the OP towards omxplayer and XBMC, a long time before this extended discussion started.)

I haven't once, yet, told anyone to use the search function, go buy an apple product or stick to windows. I'm only a relative linux beginner.

The_Saint wrote:I must admit I'm trying to assume good faith but I find it really hard to believe that some people are not being disingenuous about what they expected from the Pi. I get the distinct impression that a lot of people made a "me too" purchase and now don't really know why they bought it as tinkering and finding stuff out is not their bag. That's fine but to say that you were led to believe you were getting a destop/laptop replacement for £29.46 is not something I ever remotely thought and saw nothing anywhere to suggest this.

OK, a scenario... I overheard someone at work today talking about the Raspberry Pi, I spotted an article on BBC News and saw a mention on Engadget. What is the Pi ? I ask myself. I google for "Raspberry Pi" and at the top of the search results I find this link -

http://www.raspberrypi.org/

I want to learn more, what is the Pi and what can it do for me ? Look at the top ! There is a FAQ page ! That will answer all my questions ! -

http://www.raspberrypi.org/faqs

So what is the Raspberry Pi and why is everyone talking about it ? Look ! The first FAQ response answers all my questions -

What’s a Raspberry Pi?

The Raspberry Pi is a credit-card sized computer that plugs into your TV and a keyboard. It’s a capable little PC which can be used for many of the things that your desktop PC does, like spreadsheets, word-processing and games. It also plays high-definition video. We want to see it being used by kids all over the world to learn programming.



GREAT ! I read the rest of the page, a lot of it is in computer speech which I don't understand but if it will run games and spreadsheets and stuff then I am in ! Time to place my order !!!

Wonder if it runs World of Warcraft ? I do hope so.... There is nothing on their webpage which may ever suggest to me, a non-computer nerd that it may be a little bit slow. If it does HD video as they say then it must be pretty powerful ! A new capable little PC for $25 !!! Isn't life great !!!

(I do keep hearing that the Foundation is listening, but I see no evidence that they are trying to update or clarify what the RPi is, or what it is for, or provide documentation to help out)

Note, that a lot of the above is based on a conversation I had with a work colleague the other day, who has ordered a Pi with an impression that it can do a lot more than it actually does. I am busily trying to set his expectations.

You make a fair point there.
But the world still belongs to those who do their homework.

Wonder if it runs World of Warcraft ? I do hope so.... There is nothing on their webpage which may ever suggest to me, a non-computer nerd that it may be a little bit slow. If it does HD video as they say then it must be pretty powerful ! A new capable little PC for $25 !!! Isn't life great !!!

dis·in·gen·u·ous/ˌdisinˈjenyo͞oəs/
Adjective:
Not candid or sincere, typically by pretending that one knows less about something than one really does.
Synonyms:
insincere - false - devious - hollow-hearted

locked, adj. /lɒkt/
a. In senses of the vb.: Closed with a lock and key, closely fastened or entwined, etc. Also fig.