[OS X TeX] Lost in Mac space

[Adam M. Goldstein]

If someone gives you an answer you don't understand, then you can just  
say, hey, I don't get that, is there a way to do it some other way, or  
some other resource I could look at, that might help me understand? Or  
can you walk me through it step by step, I am not a terminal user,  
don't know anything about Unix, etc? As we've seen in the case on this  
thread, continued help will be forthcoming.

Someone may have made some point like this previously in this thread,  
but I feel strongly enough about it to say it here, possibly again.

Questions rarely go unresponded-to on this list for more than, say,  
1/2 hour, unless it's a holiday or final exam time. I think that most  
all are eventually answered to the original poster's satisfaction, or  
help the person get there.

One example that is particularly impressive to me is that I have seen  
several people led through troublesome font installations, step by  
step, by many contributors. This is such a difficult task, yet the  
list members don't give up.

I don't have the same knowledge base that many of the more active  
contributors have here and I am thankful for those that do and those  
that answer wish such detail.

Happy TeX'ing,

-Adam

[Top-posted because I am just responding to the general point that  
some answers offered here are hard to understand.]

On Dec 13, 2008, at 6:13 PM, George Ghio wrote:

>
> On 14/12/2008, at 1:54 AM, Alain Schremmer wrote:
>
>>
>> On Dec 13, 2008, at 7:03 AM, George Ghio wrote:
>>
>>> Hi peter
>>>
>>> Perhaps this would be the time to bring this up. Myself and many  
>>> others are not as computer literate as many here in these groups.  
>>> Therefore, while the answer to a question may well be "cd to the  
>>> root"  and while you may know the meaning of the answer, myself  
>>> and many others are bewildered. People learn in many and varied  
>>> ways. Some can learn by reading about the process while others  
>>> must do the process to gain the ability.
>>> [...]
>>> For you, in your experience, the terminal may be the  benevolent  
>>> angel of mac harmony, but, for some of us, it is the gateway to  
>>> the devils lair. An example may help. Suppose that your favorite  
>>> leather jacket was torn. You go to a group on line and ask how to  
>>> repair it and the answer was "You need a pony, a stitching wheel,  
>>> an awl and two saddler's needles" and you are expected to deduce  
>>> the skill of saddle stitching.
>>>
>>> Please, I need to do it to learn it. How do you "cd to the root"  
>>> and will it allow you to get package files in the correct places?
>>
>> All true. BUT:
>>
>> No one on this list has any obligation to any one on this list.  
>> Those of us, certainly like myself, and, presumably, yourself, who  
>> are terminally terminal-allergic, are like hungry people allowed at  
>> the table of people a lot richer than themselves. Yes, as  
>> unpalatable as it may appear to you, we are depending on charitable  
>> people like Dyballa who are giving immensely more to the like of us  
>> that we are ever likely to give back.
>>
>> You might wonder why I am getting into this. One reason, very  
>> selfish, is that I miss some of the most knowledgeable and more  
>> helpful people who unsubscribed from the list. Here are a few:  
>> Robertson, Gerhardt, Voisin. While they may have had their own  
>> reasons …
>>
>> So, what I do, is:
>>
>> — being very careful about what I am doing to my installation (do I  
>> really need this upgrade, do I really need it right now? Etc).
>> — read a lot of what comes down the pike and save it against the  
>> hard day which is sure to come
>> — when push comes to shove, I shove. In the present case, I would  
>> have merely replied "What's cd to the root?" and. ten to one, he  
>> would have explained it. Now, if I were in his shoes, I would  
>> hesitate.
>>
>> Regards
>> --schremmer
>
> Yes you are right, no one on this list has any obligation to anyone  
> else on this list and thus, no need to answer at all. Sort of  
> defeats the purpose of having the group though. There are hundreds  
> of groups on the net that seem to be nothing but arenas for self- 
> aggrandizement. This is not the case with TeX on Mac.
>
> No it is not unpalatable depending on charitable people like  
> Dyballa. It is wonderful that so many people take the time to help.
>
> I am qualified as a workplace trainer and assessor, among other  
> things, so understand how people learn. To learn something I "need  
> to do it, hands on".
>
> Part of what I posted comes from the learning needs of people. Not  
> all learn the same way.
>
> And Peter, well, I have learnt a lot from his posts and look forward  
> to more.
>
> My example stands. It is not a chastisement, just a reminder that we  
> all need to remember that others may not speak the same language and  
> what we perceive as crystal clear may, if fact, be less than clear  
> for others.
>
> Pony - tool used to hold leather work while sewing, a type of vice
> Stitching wheel - tool for marking the stitch length on leather
> Awl - tool for making holes on the stitching marks left by the  
> stitching wheel
> Saddler needles - needles for sewing leather. Different from  
> seamstress type needles in that where the thread goes through the  
> eye is shaped so as not to bind as the needle is pulled through work
> Saddle stitching - the art of sewing with both hands where the  
> thread has a needle on both ends. Produces a stitch that will not  
> unravel.
>
> George
>>
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>
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>


------------------
Adam M. Goldstein PhD, MSLIS
--
agoldstein at iona.edu
a.m.goldstein at mac.com
http://www.iona.edu/faculty/agoldstein
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(914) 637-2717
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Dept of Philosophy
Iona College
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