Blog Post

By Richard A. Johnson | March 21st, 2007

Windows Persona

By Richard A. Johnson on Published: March 21, 2007 at 1:17 pm

OK, does everyone have the “Linux Persona” stuff, which has been one hell of a hot topic this week, out of their system? I am sorry, flame me and Microsoft all you want, but where in the hell is our Windows Persona? Bug #1 isn’t going to cut it, especially when people just add comments to it that do nothing but criticize it. Microsoft realizes our community, the Linux community, is a threat to their operations, and definitely their pockets. Well, we don’t have pockets to worry about so much, but our operations and our philosophy are definitely more important. So laugh at, taunt, or completely misunderstand the “Linux Persona” idea that Microsoft has put out, but step back and take a look in the mirror, and realize they just one-upped our community, maybe it is time for us to stop bitching at Microsoft ideas (which half the time are bs), and lets start making our own personas for Windows users, it is a brilliant idea to drive a marketing campaign!

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  • http://www.sf.net/projects/ljklient Ralesk

    Considering how mature the Linux community can be sometimes (if not way too often), it might not be as good an idea as it sounds.

  • http://blog.nixternal.com nixternal

    Mature or immature? :)

    Actually, it would be a great idea. We (Ubuntu) have bug #1 that simply states MS is #1 and we want to be #1. Now where do we have documentation that tells us who to market to, how to market to who, when to market to who and when how to market to who, and so on. We don’t, nowhere will you find in the Linux community this sort of documentation. I have heard for years that you can’t market Free and Open Source the same way you market Microsoft and Apple. I beg to differ, it is this idea that have people with Microsoft and Apple burned into their brains, and a majority going “Linux what?”

    Simply put, our community marketing goals suck. Word of mouth is great no doubt, but a good majority of people aren’t hearing us. Firefox did great with their grassroots and gorilla campaigns, however my mom and dad didn’t switch. Why? Because they don’t follow the technology stuff on the Internet all that much. And when they do, they see Microsoft, Apple, and iThisandThat. 15+ years have gone by and 2 had some really great marketing campaigns by IBM and Red Hat. You would have figured someone would have gotten it right by now.

    Stallman, great philosopher horrible marketer. Torvalds, thanks for the Kernel :) Perens, close but no cigar. Then there is Shuttleworth, he has produced more buzz for the Linux community, and a positive buzz, than anyone else. And he has built a team of great people. Jono is a whiz when it comes to talking about , you have Matt Revell who is an amazing marketer, there is a marketing staff. OK, so we have Ubuntu marketing hardcore (8M+ strong and going), but it just isn’t enough. Mark, if you read this comment, get back up in space with a Ubuntu banner already :) CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, BBC, Reuters, you name it would cover that one big time!

  • http://openix.co.nz Gazza

    Well have you not seen http://www.windowspersonas.com. Someone has also registered the microsoftpersonas domain name too, so maybe another slag off MS site coming up.

  • Vernon

    To forestall the inevitable unflattering stuff that is sure to follow I’ll offer the following good-faith guesses:

    1. The Zen user: Would prefer one prominent button each for browser, word processor, spreadsheet, and on/off. The salt of the earth and the target audience for everyone concerned with usability. Would not necessarily notice if a disguised Gnome environment was presented to them as the long-awaited Vista.

    2. Former office typewriter user: Has followed the progression of office technology with a little trepidation and depends on a few reliable skills. May submit a support request when she notices the windows fading away in Vista.

    3. Carwash owner: Uses Quickbooks and has submitted .

  • http://veritastic.wordpress.com Chris Rohde

    You make a solid point Nixternal, and I tend to agree with you completely here… Linux (at least, the Ubuntu community as seen by lonely ole me) has all the gusto, all the resources, and all the technical know-how to properly market itself. And as ubuntu tends to be a more accessible distro of linux, I can only assume other flavors know their stuff as well.

    It seems to just be a matter of organization. Possibly creating a small sub-team within the marketing unit to study and organize the potential marketing targets within the MS and Mac communities.

    I think it can be done, and it is definitely something worth bringing up in the marketing mailer or at the next meeting.

    Whadaya think? I’d be down to help at least, and I am sure some of http://wiki.ubuntu.com/FloridaTeam would be as well.

    Hooray for shameless linking to myself!

  • http://openix.co.nz Gazza

    What the Linux world needs is another Steve Ballmer, ok maybe not…

    We are indeed missing an evangelist (or two) who will preach the ::insert your distro’s name here:: gospel – and not to the converted either – there is far too much of that going on.

    Petition politicians for open source use in governments and schools, as most of us are tax payers so we have this right to express what our money is being spent on. It’s nice to the conservative party in the UK is starting to take a stance on this.

    Let’s make Linux even more user friendly in regards to multimedia etc and our message will be easier to get across to the average Windows user.

  • http://www.sf.net/projects/ljklient Ralesk

    “Mature or immature?” — I forgot my quotation marks of cynicism in my previous comment :)

    “What the Linux world needs is another Steve Ballmer, ok maybe not…” — I find it a bit weird that people still curse Bill Gates whenever something goes wrong, while there’s a monkey on the loose, who happens to be a much much easier target. I think Ballmer gives Microsoft much more a bad name than anything.

    “Let’s make Linux even more user friendly in regards to multimedia etc and our message will be easier to get across to the average Windows user.” — Yes, yes, and very yes. As much as I love several software here, sound tends to be a major pain in the arse (we are writing 2007 and software are still able to hog the whole soundcard; and this is an issue only on Linux (okay, possibly on the BSDs too, but they’re not part of the end-user market so much))… so yeah.

  • Textureglitch

    I think we’re too late. MS already abandoned their doomed marketing stunt. When I go to their website all I get is: “This material is being updated and will be made available to Microsoft partners shortly.”

  • ed

    Does anyone have a mirror of the Linux Personas site?

  • http://www.squidoo.com/regcleanreview Regclean

    >Does anyone have a mirror of the Linux Personas site?

    Don’t worry, it’s not worth it.

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