This is the current draft (0x023) of the survey as of 26 Oct 1998. My appologies for missing anyone's contribution - please let me know and I'll add it. This survey has been change less frequently of late, but with the work to edit the survey in full swing, it should be changing fairly often (if only slightly). The URL will be posted in update notices, or you can bookmark this page. Of course, those of you subbed to the Commits list will know about changes as soon as CVS integrates them. :-) We are now going through the questions and deciding which ones we with to add, change, or simply get rid of. Some fairly large changes are about to happen - at some point we'll have to rearrange the questions and sections, perhaps losing a few sections. I've also started putting in the expected data types. For more info on the data structures I'm refering to here, please consult the sdoc discussion page. | Notes |
| Changes since last |
The goal of the SEUL-Research group is to evaluate the wants and needs of mainstream computer users in order for them to consider using Linux as their primary operating system. The information is collected as a service to the Linux community to facilitate the development of existing distributions as well current and future software development. Hints, tips and suggestions for these and other questions are welcome, and can be sent to the addresses below. Better yet, contact Arma if you would like to help out with this survey or other tasks on the SEUL site. | Mission Statement |
User Demographics
| Survey Map |
Part A: Please Describe Yourself... Which one of the following would you say best describes you as a computer user: ____ <Option Group Single: byte> Which of the following would you say describe you as a computer user (Choose all that apply): <Option Group Multiple: byte> 1. General (Home) user
Are you a laptop user? (Y/N) <Yes/No: boolean> What's the highest level of education you have attained? <Option
Group Single: byte>
How old are you? <Option Group Single: byte>
Please tell us about any children living with you:
More than 5 kids? Please Click me! [] <Checkbox: boolean> What is your Marital Status?
What sector do you work in? (this is a mish-mash of several emails ...
it still has to be fleshed out a bit)
What range would you say the total salary of your houseyhold falls in?
[-Karsten's suggestion via Roger]
What part do you play in computer hardware and software purchasing decisions?
<Option Group Single: byte>
What is your gender? <Yes/No: boolean>
What is your Country of residence? <Option
Group Single: (this can be built from a list; a short text descriptor can
be stored) 3 char text>
Is your house/dwelling urban or rural? <Multibutton
(2): boolean>
Part B: Your Computer Experience... My primary (most familiar, most frequently used) OS is _____. [choose one] <Option Group Single: byte> Which of the following operating systems have you used, and for how
long?
< 6 mos, 6 mos < 1 yr, 1 yr < 5 yr, 5 yr < 10 yr, 10 yr +
Where do you normally find out about software (Check all that apply)?
<Option Group Multiple: byte, but just barely>
Part C: Your System Info... Some questions in this section will be different depending on the user-type
How many computers does your household, small office or business have?
<Option Group Single: byte>
| User Demographics |
Please rank the following in terms of importance (Critically Important, Very Important, Important, Nice but I can live without it, Not important, unsure): [define 'important' as 'would influence decision of using'. This way we get things they need to do their work currently, and we also get things that they don't currently do but would want to.] ![somebody want to integrate the above ideas into a good sentence, please?] <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> - Cost of hardware for your computer, including initial purchase price and upgrades - Cost of software for your computer, including cost of pre-installed software - Cost of software upgrades for your computer - Cost of becoming proficient with new application software - Cost of becoming proficient with new system software - Being able to buy and / or use brand name hardware - Being able to buy and / or use no-name brand hardware obtained from a reputable retailer - Being able to buy and / or use brand name software - Being able to buy and / or use no-name brand software obtained from a reputable retailer | Pricing |
How important are the following when deciding to purchase a computer? <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> - Plug-and-Play (PnP) support in hardware - Support for USB - Support for FireWire - Speed of graphics rendering - Overall speed of machine | Hardware |
How important are the following when deciding on which operating system to purchase? <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> - Having the operating system already installed and configured when purchased. - Having a graphical interface to applications and system - Having a command-line interface to applications and system - Intuitive user interface - Consistent user interface (things behave the same way even comparing between two separate applications) - Having the flexibility to use both graphical or command-line interfaces. - Availability of a wide variety of software - Availability of educational software - Dumping error messages to a text file as well as to the screen - Having a program which explains error messages - Intuitive error messages from the OS and applications. - Being able to access context-sensitive help information - Being able to access a index of functions so that an experienced user can find information quickly (needs reworking) - Multi-processor (the operating system can use multiple CPUs at once) - Multiple-languages (support for several languages) - Multi-language (support for several languages simultaneously) | User Interface |
How important would the following be to your choice of operating system to use: <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> - Multi-users (several people have being able to use one machine at different times) - Conncurrent users (several people can use one machine simultaneously) - Multi-terminal support (multiple keyboards and monitors can be used at the same time on the computer) - Is it important for you to be able to use multiple monitors with your computer? - Is it important for you to be able to use multiple keyboards and mice with your computer? | Multiple users / single computer |
How important would the following services be to your personal or work-related computing: <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> - Being able to use your computer as an email server - Being able to use your computer as a web page server. - Being able to use your computer to share files over a local or company network (file server) - Being able to use your computer to share files over the internet (file transfer protocol "FTP" server) - Being able to connect to your computer from another computer (telnet) - Local networking (connecting computers to each other at my office, home, or other location). - Having your computer automatically configure and test your local ethernet connection - Networking two or more locations (home to office, office to off-site location) - Being able to connect to the machine from a remote location - Being able to run graphics from a remote location (rather than just text) - Using a direct connection (eg ethernet, cable modem) for connecting to the Internet. - Using a modem for connecting to the Internet - When using a modem, having the connection established automatically when needed | Networking |
Please indicate how important would the following be to your use of the Internet: <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> - Speed of internet connection - ISP support for technical questions - Usergroup support for technical questions - Having technical support from your internet service provider to resolve technical problems. - Being able to automate the sending/receiving of email via ISP frequently during the day - Being able to automate the sending/receiving email via ISP outside of work hours | Internet |
Please indicate the importance of the following to the management of your system: <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> - Being able to secure your systems against use by unauthorized people - Secure banking and commercial transactions - Privacy (being able to keep other users from reading/deleting your files) - Automatic virus protection (the system takes care of it for you) - Manual virus protection (you run a program to scan or detect) - Being able to obtain up-to-date virus information - Using a system which protects the user from making potentially dangerous changes to system configuration - Being able to make a backup of your system - Being able to make backup copies of large data files - Being able to undelete files - Operating system (OS) stability (computer runs without crashing or requiring restart) - Access to OS source code (for modification, configuring, etc.). - Access to application source code (for modification, configuring, etc.) - Freedom to redistribute OS/application source code and modifications (moved from Internet) - Being able to transparently encrypt data going to and from your computer via the network. - Having your data encrypted automatically when stored and decrypted automatically when you open the file - Being able to obtain bug fixes in a timely and effective manner - Being able to add and remove software in an easy and familiar way - Being able to find and obtain upgrades easily - Being able to install upgrades easily - Having the installation stage of a program verify that all necessary components are present and functional - Compatibility with existing hardware and computers (Being able to use the operating system with existing (older) hardware and computers?) - Compatibility with existing software, including older versions - Being able to switch easily between running applications - Being able to run many large applications at once - Being able to run a dynamic disk compressor (for example, doublespace) - Being able to run a hard drive defragmenting program - Being able to automate regular backups - Being able to automate regular virus scans - Being able to automate regular backups - Being able to automate regular mirroring - Being able to automate regular updates of system software database - Being able to automate regular disk defragmentations - Being able to rapidly obtain a list of resources used by the system and hardware (IRQ's, DMA's, I/O ports, device names, chip type, speed, RAM present, etc) - Being able to obtain information about the operating system and running applications (amount of RAM used by system, by processes, free, current VRAM, max VRAM, average VRAM used) - Being able to get a list of running services (daemons) - Being able to use a GUI-based manager to configure system services. - Being able to list installed software in terms of version number, patches or fixes. | System Administration |
(Other info moved to Alternative page) <All of these questions would be Option Group Single: byte> How important are the following word processing features to your work: - ability to read other word processing formats - settings tabs easily - manual spell checking - dynamic spell checking (spell checking as you type) - using many different typefaces and font sizes - mail merge - WYSIWYG - count / search / replace for words - count / search / replace for format codes - macros / scripting - ability to use templates - ability to incorporate graphics with text - ability to output HTML How important are the following desktop publishing features to your work: - ability to read other desktop publishing formats - importing images - using many different typefaces and font sizes - WYSIWYG - ability to use templates - ability to output HTML How important are the following spreadsheet features to your work: - ability to read other spreadsheet formats - linking a formula to other cells (relative addressing) - locking a formula to the contents of specific cells (absolute addressing, ie. $E$5) - having a formula bar to troubleshoot complicated formulas - predefined formulas (statistical, financial, or mathematical) - WYSIWYG - macros / scripting - ability to use templates - ability to output HTML How important are the following database features to your work: - Query by example (QBE) grid for creating queries - data import facility (word change here) - WYSIWYG (graphical window) - being able to write SQL queries easily - data export facility (word change here) - ability to use templates How important are the following electronic mail features to your work: - ability to write plain text email or email in HTML - ability to write email using a text-only screen - ability to write email using a graphical window (WYSIWYG) - ability to get confirmation of delivery of email messages - ability to get confirmation of reading of email messages - ability to send attachments - Having an address book Please indicate the importance of the following to your use of software: - Having a wide variety of applications available - Being able to use software for a particular application? - Being able to customize software for a particular task? - Customized applications to run specific tasks - Being able to use applications which run without crashing or requiring restart - Being able to use (read/write/convert) files saved in industry standard word processing file formats - Being able to use (read/write/convert) files saved in industry standard graphics file formats - Having the freedom to study how the program works and adapt it to your needs. - Having the freedom to redistribute copies so you can share with others (your neighbor.) - Having the freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits. (Educational software info moved to Alternative page | Software |
Please indicate the importance of the following to your choice of computing equipment and services: - Being able to obtain software support from software vendor - Being able to obtain computer support from computer system vendor - Being able to obtain hardware support from hardware vendor - Being able to obtain vendor support over the Internet - Being able to access peer (news group, web or mailing list) support over the internet | Support |
Please indicate the importance of the following to - Having printed documentation that comes with the software - Being able to find documentation on the internet that can be downloaded and/or printed - Being able to find printed documentation/guides at book stores - Having software tutorials that interactively teach you how to use your computer and applications - Having software which allows you as an experienced user to find technical information about the computer and applications ('Advanced Help') | Documentation |
Please indicate the importance of the following to your use of telephony: - Being able to integrate computer with communications devices (telephone, video conferencing, etc) - Being able to use your computer to: - Dial the telephone for a voice call - Send and receive faxes - Answer calls (answering machine) - Voice mail for several people - Fax-on-demand - Being able to use your computer to communicate / conference with others using audio / and video? - Being able to use your computer for speech to text transcription (you speak, it types), or text to speech transcription (you've typed, it reads it back to you) | Telephony |
Please indicate the importance of the following to your use of multimedia equipment: - Being able to use your computer to use and control audiovisual equipment (like CD player, DVD, television, radio)? - Being able to use your computer to manipulate and edit audio and video media. -Being able to view TV on your computer monitor. | Multimedia |
Please feel free to add any comment or suggestion which you feel should be made <large text box> [SUBMIT button tba HERE!][CLEAR button tba HERE!]
| Other |
[Other issues not directly coverd by the survey, and some things that have been removed from this survey can be found on the Alternative page | Other |