Re: Emacs learning curve

[Eli Zaretskii]

> From: Tom <address@hidden>
> Date: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 09:27:59 +0000 (UTC)
> 
> The logic goes:
> 
> 1. we don't have a killer application out of the box with zero
> configuration like refactoring support, etc. It needs lots of work.
> 
> 2. we have a UI which is very different from the ones in popular 
>   systems (e.g. keybindings)
> 
> 3. since we don't have a killer feature which is instantly appealing
> to newcomers and we have a different ui, they usually say, in my
> experience: Why should I bother with it?  Why should I learn new
> keys for copy/paste if there is not killer feature?
> 
> 4. by making the UI more similar (by default, without any necessary
> configuration) to other popular systems, we lower the barrier of entry. 
> Casual users can try emacs with no upfront effort and some of them
> will be interested to learn more about it if they like what they see
> and experience. First impression matters.
> 
> 5. If more casual users try emacs the more chance there is they become
> regular user and maybe even contributors.
> 
> 6. By taking the conservative estimate that 1 percent of new users
> become emacs hackers who contribute something worthwhile (code,
> documentation, testing, etc.) then if we can attract 1000 more new
> users we can get 10 good contributors. If we can attract 10000,
> we get a 100.
> 
> 
> That's why I think making emacs more appealing to new users is important.
> More users means more hackers (that 1 percent, that is) and more hackers 
> means more development resources which leads to a better emacs.

Well, Notepad has all the familiar UI you are talking about, but
somehow it doesn't attract "more hackers".  I guess your logic lacks
something important.