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[Tony McC]

On Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:00:00 +0000
Tony McC <afmcc at btinternet.com> wrote:

> Hi PJ,
> 
> ok, I tried (I was also trying to offer you support, just a different
> kind). There was a lot of irrelevant material in your response but the
> part I have quoted shows such a deep misunderstanding of what I was
> trying to suggest that I think I'm done. I honestly hope you do get
> past your headaches with FreeBSD, one way or another.

Replying to myself, sorry.  I think I owe you an apology for a grumpy
response.  I think it comes down to the fact our "learning styles" must
be very different.  You seem to like to try things first and then try
to understand when things go wrong.  I like to gain a reasonably firm
theoretical understanding first and then try out things according to a
plan, keeping notes at each stage.  When something happens that I don't
understand then of course I learn from that.   I think we are just
different.  So no, I'm not suggesting you learn the manual by heart
before going any further.  I am suggesting that you *start* with the
manual, take it step by step, and only try things that might break your
system when a) you think you have a firm grasp of what you are doing
and b) you have a contingency plan to revert to the way things were
before if something surprising happens.  And, again, as part of a
"learning style", when I do come across those uncomfortable surprises
(and I do), I generally assume that I must have done something stupid,
not that FreeBSD itself is stupid. That is also a learning experience
for me.

Best,
Tony