Tony Cooper
Why should I, or anyone, give a rat's ass about how he got to where he did? My assessment is based on the final result, not the steps taken to get there.

Sandman
As is mine.

But I repeat - this thread hasn't talked about Floyd's skill as a photographer until you joined.

Savageduck
There are several Floyd centric elements to this sub-thread:

1. Floyd has knowledge & experience in the technical World in areas few of us could challenge.

2. Floyd has been outspoken on his choice of OS and the tools he uses for image post processing. He holds negative opinions based on misinformation regarding at least one alternative OS, OSX, opinions he has formulated without admitting having ever been exposed to, or having used OSX.

3. Floyd claims he can do all that can be done in Photoshop and ACR using his methods, and yet he remains ignorant of what can actually be achieved with other than his methods, because he has not(or claims he has not) ever made the comparison between his methods and alternative graphics software such as Photoshop. Even with my strong opinions I have attempted to use and compare GIMP with my other choices. It is Floyd who claims his method is superior to all others, it certainly gets the job done to his satisfaction. I suppose that is all that matters.

4. We know that Floyd actually owns and uses some very good photographic equipment. Some of Floyd's kit mirrors equipment used by Sandman (a selection of Nikon cameras and lenses). He uses this equipment to shoot images in some of the harshest conditions on the planet. However he is not exactly producing NatGeo qualifying images, he is certainly not producing any better work than most of the regulars contributing to this NG.

5. He maintains a web page where a selection of his images can viewed by any of us. What is evident is the images Floyd produces and shows us are not much better than many shown here by others, and many are for reasons beyond the equipment used, not particularly special. The environment and many of his subjects are unique to his locale. His images range from "great capture" to an "OK snapshot", to "why did he bother with that?" In that He has produced much the same quality of images that most of us have, some great, but most ordinary and not particularly special other than the lock he has on location.

So the conclusion that I have come to is Floyd can talk circles around me when it comes to Linux and writing scripts, an obvious void in my knowledge and experience.

He takes criticism of his methods as "gratuitous insults" where they never existed. ...and finally Floyd discounts the knowledge & experience that any of the rest of us have (including knowledge that nospam undeniably has) to the point of issuing insults of his own. If you disagree with him you have no credibility, or integrity.