"Making a 'business' installing LL on old computers": your comments please ...

[m654321]

@m654321 ,
"Backing up data ...  is not worth the price you're asking." 
"The little money you're asking for this isn't worth the legal pressure if you mistakenly lose their data"

Thanks torreydale, valid point - in response to this I changed the following,
from:
"Before any installation, your existing Windows documents & files will be saved"
to:
"Before any installation, save all your personal data to an external drive"

Also, hopefully by changing this, people wont think I'm running some kind of scam to harvest personal data from PCs ... 

[MS]

Looking at the offer in a store of choice, I found one interesting model, available without any preinstalled OS, which is Lenovo Ideapad 330-17AST, coming at about 310 GBP, according to the actual currency translation - in your country, there is probably about a 5% margin in the price, but in my country, electronics is not that cheap either. Anyway, the mentioned laptop has a 17.3" screen, FHD native resolution, 4 GB of RAM (2133 MHz), 256 GB SSD drive, AMD A6 processor (2.6 GHz, 3.0 GHz Turbo, 1 MB Cache) and Radeon R4 integrated graphics. USB 2.0 and 3.1, Bluetooth, DVD drive, camera, microphone, stuff. Nice casual consumer piece of tech.

For the current offers I see, it is hard to find anything with more than 4 GB of cheap quality RAM, without going further than roughly 300 GBP.

What is really the point? The point is, if someone wants Linux, they can get it, but it takes to become involved. Majority of machines come with Windows 10 preinstalled and even though it does increase the price a little bit for certain, the difference is not really worth a damn to casual consumers, to have a machine which will not simply work out of the box when shipped already.

Perhaps you could take an angle in your business that would aim at providing support to people buying a computer without any preinstalled operating system, to get them hooked up on Linux.

For the argumentation, be it either financial savings or having a better piece of tech instead for the money.

But honestly, I think sooner or later you would need to answer some questions regarding the infrastructure or rather, the lack of it. It is not worth the risk on your behalf, I think. Not for that money.

In the contemporary Linux, one needs to think for oneself.

[Moltke]

@Moltke: some good ideas there about spreading the word.  The ‘electric pole’ idea made me smile – I  imagined a Linux Lite neon sign flashing 24/7 outside our house …

hahaha oh well, that wasn't exactly what I meant but the picture of it made me smile too... 

[m654321]

@m654321, how much for is the cheapest new laptop one can get in your country, both without any OS preinstalled and with Windows10 coming on board? What are the specs?

Around the £200 mark brand-new with Win10: e.g. RF Dell Lat. E5440 i5 4Gb 120SSD £209.00
Without OS, you can get for some models, but not easy to find - mainly online - not necessarily cheaper. Without OS can be bought from companies that custom-make to order, but they are usually more expensive than mainstream with Win OS pre-installed. 

Yes, the odds may well be against an ad working, a bit like Artim's previous experience, but I think it's worth a try before calling it a day

[MS]

Speaking of Chromebooks, in my country the country where I live, they did not succeed, because of uncompetitively low hardware specs offered for inadequately high price. Majority of consumers rather bought regular laptops with Windows 10 on board. Besides, there are no known advantages of Chromebooks over Windows 10 systems, valid to casual users, apart from maybe the Android apps support, which has landed fairly lately, too late to make for an argument, I think.

My guess is that you can have a laptop already for as much as 120 GBP, some very low spec, but a new one, with producer guarantee. I think a lot of people would rather go for the thrill of consumerism, than overinvest in something they already would likely get rid of, even for the aesthetic reasons, times often.

Besides, if they are not very tech savvy, nerdy sounding solutions are not really the way to go, are they?

[m654321]

Many thanks for all your comments.

@Artim: sorry to hear the ad didn’t work for you: it didn’t work for me either the last time I tried it. This is now second time round, with a few improvements (screenshots, Jerry’s editing). I don’t know whether it will work, but worth another try.  Your comment about people being suspicious of “gimmicks” and “harvesting data for nefarious purposes” is spot on – there are so many scams these days its right to be wary. 

@Jerry: ad has now been updated online to your edited version – reads much better

@MS: “people still would rather want something commercial”
I think the well known commercial products are familiar – with Windows you know what to expect –  what I’m offering is unfamiliar to most people, so they shy away from it. You’re right about the gaming – wise not to push that one – best to concentrate on admin tasks

@torreydale: I agree with much of what you say – maybe better to do it for free! The only reason I do it at a ridiculously low price is that it’s a bit of a hobby and would like to get the word about Linux out to the 97% of PC users who don't use Linux

@MS: cheapest laptop – do you include chromebooks? I’ll have a look & get back to you.

@Moltke: some good ideas there about spreading the word.  The ‘electric pole’ idea made me smile – I  imagined a Linux Lite neon sign flashing 24/7 outside our house …

[Moltke]

So is there something I need to change in the advert to provoke more interest? 
Your comments/criticisms are welcomed or alternative approaches to marketing, etc.

What about getting your ad directly to people? You might want to consider printing it and handing it over to people on the street whenever and wherever possible, post it somewhere; on a wall, on an electric pole...Don't know,  where possible and permissible. This way you'll increase your chances since you'll be getting to more people, don't forget to add a link to your web-ad.

Hope this helps!

[MS]

@m654321, how much for is the cheapest new laptop one can get in your country, both without any OS preinstalled and with Windows10 coming on board? What are the specs?

[torreydale]

@m654321 ,

Backing up data, installing the operating system, making sure networking is working, wifi is working, screen tearing isn't appearing, and restoring data is not worth the price you're asking.  Furthermore, about half of the people I know barely use PCs, especially desktops, in their personal lives.  For those who don't have a laptop, they think they can get by for everything else using their phones, tablets, or pen and paper. 

Personal computer repair is not a thriving business venture anymore and people are just more inclined to purchase Windows or Mac.  I find "prospects" by doing what was mentioned in this thread...offering help when I notice someone is experiencing Windows or Mac pain.  That includes folks in my sphere of influence, ie. church members, family, friends, coworkers, etc.  I don't charge for it.  If they had to pay for my time, they could just buy another computer or two.  I put in the effort because it is fun to serve others and I know I ultimately am offering them a safer and faster alternative.  Sometimes when I'm finished, they ask, "What do I owe you?"  I tell them "nothing," but encourage them to make a donation to the project to keep it alive.  Perhaps you can help those in your sphere and get new propspects via word of mouth. 

Finally, another reason I don't charge is because I feel I'll then be on the hook for support and at risk if I lose their data.  If I'm offering free help, not so much.  The little money you're asking for this isn't worth the legal pressure if you mistakenly lose their data or if their hardware dies while in your possession.

[MS]

That people do not want to pay money to get things, I can understand.

But when people do not want to get things, which are offered to them for free, makes me think.

I do understand you charge the price for the service, not for the operating system.

But still, Linux itself, is completely free of charge and people still would rather want something commercial.

EDIT:

Lightweight distro could indeed help to run an old computer better for the sake of office tasks, though I would hesitate promising people gaming, unless you are going to be very murky about what you mean - this, or the cloud services, which come at significant price of monstrous bandwidth unlimited.

[m654321]

Price changed, '-' dashes gotten rid of, some re-wording.

Many thanks Jerry for taking the time to edit the ad - really appreciate this! Yes, I too felt it was too long.
Later today I'll replace the existing ad with your edited version - fingers crossed, everyone will benefit from this.

Cheers
Mike

[Artim]

I tired this once with an "ad" on a couple of local forums run by the local news media.  It ran for four months, not a single hit.  It was less wordy than yours and less detailed, but it included all the important points.  Not one bite in four months.  And I the price was right, but not so darn cheap that it seemed to be just a gimmick or some way to harvest data from a computer for nefarious purposes.

So now I just restore old computers (with various Linux distros, depending on whether they're 32-bit or 64-bit, etc) for folks at church, a couple of nursing homes where the computer is in "kiosk" mode, and a private school.  I still have all the fun of watching people's faces light up and go "wow" and see how fast and simple their computers can be.

[Jerry]

Consider changing:

Do you have an old or low powered computer that no longer seems usable? Perhaps it has the no-longer-supported Windows XP or Vista installed on it, or it's simply too slow to run Windows 7, 8 or 10. Alternatively, do you get frustrated with the endless rounds of Windows updates, occasional crashes and are concerned about Microsoft's privacy and security issues? Or, maybe you're a student, who'd like to buy a new PC for your coursework, but are strapped for cash.

If you answered YES to any of the above, then it could be time to resurrect your old Laptop or Desktop PC, replacing Windows with a faster, more resource-efficient and secure Linux operating system. The release Linux-Lite is capable of running efficiently on most older or low-powered PCs, as well as on more modern ones, rejuvenating them completely in most cases, giving you the impression you have a brand new computer once again - this is also better for the environment, reusing an old computer that would otherwise end up in landfill. Linux-Lite is also more stable & secure than Windows, and won't be plagued by intrusive software, viruses and other malware - you wont even need antivirus software.

Linux-Lite is very easy-to-use, for anyone who has used Windows. I have Linux-Lite installed on a 12-year-old laptop, used on a daily basis for all my internet browsing, e-mail, playing videos, office admin tasks, etc, and it behaves like a brand new machine ...

SO WHAT'S THE PACKAGE I'M OFFERING YOU?


    Try Linux-Lite for yourself on one of our PCs: compatibility can be assessed directly on your PC without affecting your existing Windows installation

    Before any installation, your existing Windows documents & files will be saved

    After installation, you'll be shown how to use Linux-Lite for routine daily tasks

    Help Manual & free Online Community-based Linux-Lite Support included

    Pay only if Linux-Lite is compatible with your PC - not compatible, pay nothing

    Cost of package: £20 (normal rate) or £10 (student/unemployed/retired)

To a more concise:

Do you have an old or low-powered computer that no longer seems usable? Or maybe you're a student who would like to buy a new PC for your course work, but are on a budget.

Then it could be time to resurrect your old computer, replacing Windows with a faster, more resource efficient and secure Linux based operating system. The release Linux Lite is capable of running efficiently on most older or low-powered PCs, as well as on more modern ones - this is also better for the environment, reusing an old computer that would otherwise end up in landfill. Linux Lite is also more stable & secure than Windows, and won't be plagued by intrusive software, viruses and other malware.

Linux Lite is very easy-to-use, for anyone who has used Windows. Used on a daily basis for internet browsing, e-mail, playing videos, office admin tasks, and so on.


    Try Linux-Lite for yourself on one of our PCs: compatibility can be assessed directly on your PC without affecting your existing Windows installation

    Before any installation, your existing Windows documents & files will be saved

    After installation, you'll be shown how to use Linux Lite for routine daily tasks

    Help Manual & free Online Community based Linux Lite Support included

    Pay only if Linux Lite is compatible with your PC - not compatible, pay nothing

    Cost of package: £10 (normal rate) or £7 (student/unemployed/retired)



Price changed, '-' dashes gotten rid of, some re-wording.

[m654321]

Nice advert for Linux Lite, but anyone resourceful would perhaps try their own strength in dealing with giving it a go, before paying 20 GBP.

Thanks MS.
Yes, I agree - that would certainly be my reaction about "giving it a go". But then, even if I don't earn a penny, and I've merely "spread the word" about the power of Linux, then I still feel I've done a good job as an LL 'Advocate'.

But, this advert is targeted at those who are either not confident or don't have the time to give it a go (a bit like any service you pay for that you don't do yourself, for whatever reason).

Do you think lowering the price to say £10 (normal), £5 (concession) would make it more attractive? 
I suspect  the problem is not so much the price, as the advert being too long and also that those reading it don't know me. 

Keep the comments/criticisms coming ...   

[MS]

Nice advert for Linux Lite, but anyone resourceful would perhaps try their own strength in dealing with giving it a go, before paying 20 GBP.