@Suiseiseki Your reply does not appear in my notifications. Other favorites do though. I was.lucky to notice your post because I had to revisit the whole thread to copy links for e-mail and SMS contacts.
The PCs that the nice lady and two kids are playing with were put to pasture or in storage for more than 5 years. I was hoping to do something like this, make free software experiences available, about 6 years ago. After the installation binge in 2018 (I guess?) Nothing came of it. This free night school opportunity and a rainy weekend brought the old machines back to being useful. I imagine a lot of people have PCs like this laying around. Maybe kids will find some... https://snap.as/bsmall2/free-programming-start/ioAxuLV
@Suiseiseki I forgot gnumeric! But I was thinking I have to showLibre Office's Calc. One of the Moms is hesitant about erasing Windows because she might use Excel. A neighbourhood guy that does a Karaoke bar wants his old PC to move better so he can do Spreadsheets too. If they show me what they do we can probably figure out how to do it with Calc. The ancient machines I use as demos might hang with Office apps though. Org-mode tables would be more fun but not the laddrer's low rung.
@clacke My feeling is that emacs with org-mode should be able to do everything for non-programmers. For media-literacy everyone should probably learn some html/css anyway. I guess any office or setup just needs a few people that get into css for laying out pages and spreadsheets from org. If git or some VCS was a basic literacy thing too, an "its-all-text" approach would be very tempting to anyone whose lost a lot of work through a HD failure or some other problem... @gnutelephony@doctormo
@gnutelephony I'm wondering if the middle ground has to be covered by some sort of grassroots face-to-face movement. Like a barefoot doctor, or barefoot economist kind of thing. I've set people up with old PCS installed with Debian, GCompris, Tux-typing, emacs, DrRacket etc... but haven't found the right combination of place, people and time yet. It'll happen eventually though: gotta have faith! @clacke@doctormo
@gnutelephony@doctormo@clacke My guess is we already have the hardware and software we need. It's all laying around to be put together with enough effort: get people's old machines and put 32-bit Debian on them with Tux-Typing, emacs, Racket etc. We just need a Cuban literacy effort kind of thing where people do learning workshops everywhere: make if fun/natural to replace spreadsheets with org-mode or something. Make racket-pict memes with kids. Any libre Blub lang would work too I guess.😜
@gnutelephony The emacs paper(?) mentioned how people that didn't consider themselves programmers (secretaries..) naturally started making their work more convenient by programming emacs. It just didn't seem like programming... Sometimes I wonder if we could start early with emacs or DrRacket or a shell and get people into a natural progression into becoming more and more able to do things on their own... It just wouldn't feel right to use clunk OSs or Office software.. @doctormo@clacke
> Deeply entrenched inherited wealth has become a dominant, enduring feature.. > #GeorgeCarlin.. observed: “"The owners of this country know the truth: It's called the #AmericanDream because you have to be asleep to believe it." > .. neoliberalism with its faith in.. the market transfixed leaders in the corporations and political parties. Within this magical mindset no American “#IndustrialPolicy” was. devised, no democratically formulated plan for.. factory work..technological change..
@alxd The article reminded me of the guy that went to live by himself somewhere in Alaska. They found is body in an abandoned bus. I think there is a book and a movie about it. An article suggested that his last meal poisoned him. The greens were edible in other areas but had too many toxins(?) where he was for the way he had to rely on them. A local community might have taught him to avoid self-poisoning with local plants.
@bookwar@vaurora Jeff Schmidt's _Disciplined Minds_ go me thinking that the tests filter out people who refuse to think like machines. It's like people have to accommodate themselves to sociopaths for a while as they jump through hoops. And then if they want to get paid well for their trouble it's best not to snap out of the accommodation.
@clacke Everyone seems beautiful to me when I'm drunk in a social setting too... It's a shame we have to get drunk to feel appreciative of everybody...
A quick search got me to an on-line video of Silvio Rodriguez performing #PlayaGirón, The audience participation is very moving... the feeling in the faces as they sing along with the performer..
@haq You're welcome! I first heard Silvio Rodriguez on a gift mix-tape from girl I met in a post-office in Mexico. And then a Spanish guy that could do the _Carmen_ dances and headed the Spanish-themed part of the dorm at college put Silvio Rodriguez songs on a mix-tape too. I thought a woman was singing Play Giron and that she was too powerful for me to understand yet... I should find those mix-tapes and a cassete-player. One tape was my introduction to Oscar Chavez! https://audio.liberta.vip/library/albums/7234/
Born in USA, PA. Living in Kyushu, Miyazaki. Graded Direct Method(GDM) teacher. DrRacket (Racket-Language) hobbyist. GNU/Linux Debian Gnome and emacs user. Learning from the 公害(Catastrophic Polluting of the Commons) in Minamata 水俣 and Toroku 土呂久.