I have been asked a lot these days "Why do you use Linux?"
There are several questions that arose in my head by such a simple question. First of all I wonder why people keep on asking? An operating system is just an operating system, after all! You don't ask which OS your TV set runs, do you? Or your microwave-oven? Well, an OS is just a more or less complex software that allows you to run other software. So today, where Linux can be seen as at least as stable as Windows, choosing Linux is just a personal choice, or is there more?
Second point, why did people notice that I use Linux? Well, yes…Linux isn't perfect yet. There is still a lot of software around that either works only half or keeps crashing very often. For example, Flash and Skype, are only two of there tools which today are essentia, but are still not ready for Linux. Flash, puts my CPU to over 100%, and Skype is working fine, except video mode. Skype's video mode should work, but all depends on the used Window Manager…well that's another story. So people around me noticed that I am using Linux, because some of my apps didn't work as excepted.
The third point I keep asking me, is the following, using Linux is kind of like shopping at the next door supermarket run by a normal guy. Using Windows is kind of like shopping at WalMart (or Auchan in Europe). The one-man shop (or maybe a community) puts his own effort into the good functioning of the whole, he choose the items to sell well, or maybe he is specialized in a field, like selling african items or french Water? Walmart just offers the whole, several hundreds of different olive oils, ….
Using Linux, is therefore like supporting the local supermarket around the corner. Using Windows, you can be sure to get a good product used by millions around you, and software on it is generally working better as there are more users(or testers).
OsX?? You really want to know?? Well using OsX is fine, but that's like Walmart selling their salads and other food, with the notice that you are only allowed to eat this food(it does not matter that you paid for it) only if you buy Walmart plates, forks, knives,….Ah and if you use other knives and forks, of course the salad will make your knives and forks unusable and will immediately loose taste:)
But after all Using Linux or Windows is just a personal choice and I don't want any one out there feel offended by this message, and no-one should feel sorry or guilty.It is just a personal choice:)
sweet post
Thanks…..Muriel…Are you nervous???-> regarding your visit???
Is it really a choice??
It’s hard to compare operating systems to food stores (ah, everyone loves to remind us that Apple drives a monopolistic vendor lock-in).
If you buy a decent 2008 laptop and try to run Tux on it, WLAN won’t work because most N-range wireless cards don’t have Linux drivers. In other words, if you buy a Windows Vista laptop, you’re stuck with Vista (if you’re lucky you can install Windows XP on it if the manufacturer released the drivers). Linux can only be installed on a new laptop if the new technologies are higher capacity peripherals that don’t need new drivers (or with major tweaking, and one would still end up with substandard performance). If you have an old computer, however, Linux is the only supported operating system that will run decently on such machines (because their bundled operating system would now be obsolete, even if it’s old versions of Linux).
Your choice is to search forums prior to buying a comp to see if it will run the operating system you want to use and meet your expectations. Linux is not “the local shop” at all. In fact the commercial distros are done by big corporations who want market share and offer technical support. They make big bucks on servers. You use a free product and you automatically become a spokesperson for it. On the other hand, those who see you frustrate over the stability of Flash and Skype in Linux are the ones crying during their Windows virus infections, defrags, cronic reboots, intrusive notifications, etc. If Flash and Skype are too unstable for you, you can always try Gnash and Ekiga!. If you absolutely need Skype, you may even find it more stable if you’re running KDE.
Open source in all businesses within a year - Gartner.
http://www.tectonic.co.za/?p=3660
wonderful post dude
i had an exam on this and its nice to see some other opinions on that topic!
Wonderful blog! I found it while searching on Yahoo
News. Do you have any suggestions on how to get listed in Yahoo News?
I’ve been trying for a while but I never seem to get there! Thank you