OT: Rev's spread to the "dark continents"

[Bob Warren]

Francis Nugent Dixon wrote:

I remember arriving in Brazil to do a 2 week course, with my
course supports, and (because I have had experience with
African countries) carrying 20 note pads, 20 rubbers - sorry
erasers !, 20 pens, etc. for my students, not forgetting the board
markers in many colours.
.
.
!! BUSINESS LOGIC DON'T COUNT !!

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This topic is not technical, but it is certainly highly relevant to the 
intended spread of Rev throughout the world (which I hope is true, 
please correct me if it is not). I think it might help Rev decide when, 
where and how to spread its tentacles (not meant as a negative metaphor) 
within the (near?) future.

I have time to expand a little about more general topics because I don't 
want to program in Windows any more and I am waiting for a hopefully 
stable 2.7. version of Rev for Linux before I continue my programming. I 
am also a semi-retired "chato" with a little time to breathe after many 
busy years.

Even in the light of my own first-hand experience of how "images" and 
reality can be completely different, I still thought of Africa until 
recently as a dark, unstable, primitive continent. And then Ubuntu Linux 
popped up from South Africa! According to my evaluation it is perhaps 
the best Linux distro ever produced. The point is, that countries (or 
any reality for that matter) can have many faces, and often a single 
"image" can be entirely wrong, leading to unjust treatment and perhaps 
inappropriate business/marketing decisions.

One other aspect arising from Francis's regrettable experience upon 
arriving at the Brazilian customs is that the customs officer probably 
found the implication of the multiple pens and rubbers to be insulting: 
"How dare you have an image of Brazil like that!"

Of course, in my book Francis can certainly be forgiven, because my own 
attitute towards Brazil before arriving here (at the end of 73 in Rio de 
Janeiro) was not essentially different. I remember that I used to 
wonder, "Have they ever seen a computer before?", "Do they really know 
how to drive cars the same as we do?", etc. As a computer 
teacher/technician, I thought I was the cat's whiskers. Boy, was I in 
for a shock! The state of the computer art was FAR more advanced in Rio 
de Janeiro than anything I had ever met in London! Nor has that 
situation apparently changed very much. Brazilian computer bods 
travelling to Europe come back and confirm this. So for example, if you 
want to sell software to the Brazilian population, if it is not of the 
highest standard they won't buy it, simply because they really do know 
the difference between what is good and what is shoddy.

One other little loose end I would like to quickly clear up - since it 
involves political considerations, not appropriate for discussion here - 
is regarding Francis's affirmation !! BUSINESS LOGIC DON'T COUNT !!
I think it does, but what we were then discussing was a much more global 
business logic rather than the business logic of an individual company 
(Apple).

[I do hope that the anti-UR-List-bloaters will give me a little leeway: 
it is Saturday, after all!]

Regards to all,
Bob Warren