Linux Advntages
- Thread starter TheGeek
- Start date
linux is a different OS, short answer is no your software won't work.... its like moving to from an intel to an apple, your programs dont work and are not compatible. You can however find replacements for all your programs. Search around, alot of these questions are asked with very detailed answers
Start off with a dual boot system running windows and Linux. And make sure you force yourself to spend some time learning Linux basics. Get a Linux book or magazine the information is on the web but it can be useful to have a print reference to refer to when starting out.
Some people say Linux is too harder to use but since you are intelligent enough to post on these forums you should have no problem. IMO there are two reasons people find linux harder at first, it doesn't have so many annoying wizards instead you actually directly control what you want to do and second most people learn how to use windows first ie. at school etc. You need to get out of the idea of how do I do this Windows operation in Linux and more how do I do this in Linux?
Linux is not for everyone but IMO it is far superior and more powerful to me than Windows.
When you start off with a dual boot use windows when you need to get something done and don't know how to do it in Linux yet. You should be able to find open-sourced (therefore won't cost you anything) programs to do everything you use windows for and you may even prefer them. I stopped booting into Windows after less than a month.
One of the biggest weaknesses in Linux is Games, so if you are a heavy gamer you may not like it. This is not beacause Linux can't run them but because they are specifically written for windows. But there is a growing number that are supported either natively or by projects such as winex. So you may find all the game you play are supported.
As for your original question Linux is more stable and secure (that is pretty strongly agreed upon although there are some Windows supporters that will try unconvincingly to dispute it) and for me Linux is more intuative. Your programs won't be supported in Linux but as I said there should be an opensource alternative. Or you may be able to run them with wine, which is a kind of emulator although Wine Is Not an Emulator.
Some people say Linux is too harder to use but since you are intelligent enough to post on these forums you should have no problem. IMO there are two reasons people find linux harder at first, it doesn't have so many annoying wizards instead you actually directly control what you want to do and second most people learn how to use windows first ie. at school etc. You need to get out of the idea of how do I do this Windows operation in Linux and more how do I do this in Linux?
Linux is not for everyone but IMO it is far superior and more powerful to me than Windows.
When you start off with a dual boot use windows when you need to get something done and don't know how to do it in Linux yet. You should be able to find open-sourced (therefore won't cost you anything) programs to do everything you use windows for and you may even prefer them. I stopped booting into Windows after less than a month.
One of the biggest weaknesses in Linux is Games, so if you are a heavy gamer you may not like it. This is not beacause Linux can't run them but because they are specifically written for windows. But there is a growing number that are supported either natively or by projects such as winex. So you may find all the game you play are supported.
As for your original question Linux is more stable and secure (that is pretty strongly agreed upon although there are some Windows supporters that will try unconvincingly to dispute it) and for me Linux is more intuative. Your programs won't be supported in Linux but as I said there should be an opensource alternative. Or you may be able to run them with wine, which is a kind of emulator although Wine Is Not an Emulator.
AnonymouseUser
Diamond Member
- May 14, 2003
- 9,943
- 107
- 106
I concur! Many Windows apps now seem...archaic.
As for advantages, here are a few:
* Linux is a secure OS, not an OS with security thumbtacked on.
* Linux is modular: If you don't need it, you don't have to have it installed/enabled.
* Linux is all about choice: Some users prefer KDE over Gnome, Fedora over Mandrake, Evolution over KMail, Konqueror over Mozilla, tty1 over GUI
, ReiserFS over ext3, MPlayer over Xine, etc, etc...* Linux doesn't have to be installed to be useful: Knoppix, Damn Small Linux, MandrakeMove, etc
* Linux is free (cost): While most distros offer packages (with some support) for a fee, such as a server or workstation package, they also offer basic, downloadable, packages for free.
* Linux is free (use): One copy can (legally) be installed on many machines.
Will your current software work? Maybe, though some may require the use of wine if they work at all. Is there comparable software to do the same/similar work? In most cases, the answer is yes. For a comprehensive (though by no means exhaustive) list of comparable/equivalent software see this page.
Of course the applications you use aren't crap. If they were, you wouldn't use them.
And I can generally agree with the FOSS attitude. There's love there.
Advantages Linux:
Cheap.
Security. Very very high security if your willing to put the work in.
Easy to install software (if your using a OS that supports Apt-get or Yum. Otherwise it's a major pain.
Customization (take the weirdest, most flexible Explorer shell replacesments for Windows and multiply it times 5)
Industrial server technology, stability.
(Then Open Software in general has these):
The system is open to you to mess around with and optimize/minimize.
Plethera of developement tools, best text editors around.
Free office tools, choice of office tools (Org vs Abiword vs KDE stuff).
Frequent updates, frequent release dates.
Liscencing restictions are almost non-existant. Promotes sharing of information/programs/media instead of punishing it.
Offers many chances to study and explore software and hardware technology if your a computer type of guy.
Mplayer.
CHOICE, veriaty, individuality is encoraged.
Command line tools and "hackerish" mentality. For instance using ghostscript tools and scriptin I can hack appart most PDF files and then transpose the text and images into HTML relatively easily.
Python is native.
Advantages Windows:
Familarity.
Ease of install.
Industry standard for desktop.
Gaming.
You buy hardware it will "just work" 85-95% of the time.
Support from companies.
The "Grandma" factor (Well would you have your Grandma use Linux or Windows?)
Unified interface.
Standared/unified administration tools.
Common programs work.
Easy install of programs (compared to distro without apt-get/yum/portage type tools)
You probably are already running it and use it everyday.
Bad things about Linux:
Require re-learning many things you take for granted in Windows (you've probably been using Windows for years and are used to it's microsoft-isms)
Lack of hardware support/difficult to deal with some times of hardware.
Different tools/programs then you'll see at work based desktop.
Lack of unified administration (unless you count xterm + vi, like I do.)
lack of real gaming support.
Lack of userfriendly/end user type documentation and support.
Bad things about Windows:
Viruses
Spyware
Adware
Malware]
Virus scanners, and general "security costs extra" type mentality.
Expensive commercial apps that end up sucking.
one size fits all mentality.
artificial limits imposed on networking ability, performance, scalability.
No way to update non-core OS aplications automaticly.
lack of good scripting ability. Lack of good command line interface.
restrictive liscencing.
For cross platform apps:
Most Open source applications are cross platform. They've been configured to be compiled on a veriaty of operating system.
Two examples of popular software applications that've crossed over to become popular: Gimp and Firefox/Mozilla. However open source apps that are cross-platform generally run better in Linux then Windows. For instance Gimp is better, easier to use (at least for me), and is faster/more resposnive when used in Linux. The unorthodox interface just seems to fit better in a Linux window manager then Explorer. It's weird because it's the same, but different. There are, though, many OSS apps that were originally made to run in Windows. Most OSS java apps were Windows apps then made to run on Linux. As is a good amount of free software games.
You don't neccissarially have to be using Linux or one of the BSD's to enjoy good free and open source software. Linux has the slight advantage that it's openness encourages better quality apps, and developement/revisions tend to happen faster. At least that's the way it seems to me.
Now if you want to use Linux and have some Windows applications you just can't live without, check out:
The Wine application database. Has people's comments and tips and tricks on getting windows applications to work. Rated by how well they work in Wine, and show specific information on specific versions.
For games specificly there is Cedega
It's a commercial product. Costs 5 bucks a month, 15 bucks a minimum last time I checked. Subscription based, you have unlimited updates so long you pay the piper.
5 stars rating = great. 4= good, only slight bugs (like missing cut scenes or menu bugs). 3= ok, some usability bugs, possibly not be worth the trouble. Anything less is useless.
Also they are not completely honest about stuff. Many games that work well already have native Linux versions. Such as ut2003/ut2004. Also some games work very well, but some mods won't work at all. Like counterstrike works, but not all of it's mods. Plus you get a performance hit, slight for mostly OpenGL games, lots for pure DirectX games. (lots of games that require directX do not use it for gameplay).
Also there are specific commercial tools to make Windows apps to work. For instance "cross-over office" will enable you to run a few versions of MS Office almost natively in linux. Some things will allow Evolution (Outlook rival in Linux), to get full function out of a Exchange server. That sort of thing.
Cheap.
Security. Very very high security if your willing to put the work in.
Easy to install software (if your using a OS that supports Apt-get or Yum. Otherwise it's a major pain.
Customization (take the weirdest, most flexible Explorer shell replacesments for Windows and multiply it times 5)
Industrial server technology, stability.
(Then Open Software in general has these):
The system is open to you to mess around with and optimize/minimize.
Plethera of developement tools, best text editors around.
Free office tools, choice of office tools (O
rg vs Abiword vs KDE stuff).Frequent updates, frequent release dates.
Liscencing restictions are almost non-existant. Promotes sharing of information/programs/media instead of punishing it.
Offers many chances to study and explore software and hardware technology if your a computer type of guy.
Mplayer.
CHOICE, veriaty, individuality is encoraged.
Command line tools and "hackerish" mentality. For instance using ghostscript tools and scriptin I can hack appart most PDF files and then transpose the text and images into HTML relatively easily.
Python is native.
Advantages Windows:
Familarity.
Ease of install.
Industry standard for desktop.
Gaming.
You buy hardware it will "just work" 85-95% of the time.
Support from companies.
The "Grandma" factor (Well would you have your Grandma use Linux or Windows?)
Unified interface.
Standared/unified administration tools.
Common programs work.
Easy install of programs (compared to distro without apt-get/yum/portage type tools)
You probably are already running it and use it everyday.
Bad things about Linux:
Require re-learning many things you take for granted in Windows (you've probably been using Windows for years and are used to it's microsoft-isms)
Lack of hardware support/difficult to deal with some times of hardware.
Different tools/programs then you'll see at work based desktop.
Lack of unified administration (unless you count xterm + vi, like I do.)
lack of real gaming support.
Lack of userfriendly/end user type documentation and support.
Bad things about Windows:
Viruses
Spyware
Adware
Malware]
Virus scanners, and general "security costs extra" type mentality.
Expensive commercial apps that end up sucking.
one size fits all mentality.
artificial limits imposed on networking ability, performance, scalability.
No way to update non-core OS aplications automaticly.
lack of good scripting ability. Lack of good command line interface.
restrictive liscencing.
For cross platform apps:
Most Open source applications are cross platform. They've been configured to be compiled on a veriaty of operating system.
Two examples of popular software applications that've crossed over to become popular: Gimp and Firefox/Mozilla. However open source apps that are cross-platform generally run better in Linux then Windows. For instance Gimp is better, easier to use (at least for me), and is faster/more resposnive when used in Linux. The unorthodox interface just seems to fit better in a Linux window manager then Explorer. It's weird because it's the same, but different. There are, though, many OSS apps that were originally made to run in Windows. Most OSS java apps were Windows apps then made to run on Linux. As is a good amount of free software games.
You don't neccissarially have to be using Linux or one of the BSD's to enjoy good free and open source software. Linux has the slight advantage that it's openness encourages better quality apps, and developement/revisions tend to happen faster. At least that's the way it seems to me.
Now if you want to use Linux and have some Windows applications you just can't live without, check out:
The Wine application database. Has people's comments and tips and tricks on getting windows applications to work. Rated by how well they work in Wine, and show specific information on specific versions.
For games specificly there is Cedega
It's a commercial product. Costs 5 bucks a month, 15 bucks a minimum last time I checked. Subscription based, you have unlimited updates so long you pay the piper.
5 stars rating = great. 4= good, only slight bugs (like missing cut scenes or menu bugs). 3= ok, some usability bugs, possibly not be worth the trouble. Anything less is useless.
Also they are not completely honest about stuff. Many games that work well already have native Linux versions. Such as ut2003/ut2004. Also some games work very well, but some mods won't work at all. Like counterstrike works, but not all of it's mods. Plus you get a performance hit, slight for mostly OpenGL games, lots for pure DirectX games. (lots of games that require directX do not use it for gameplay).
Also there are specific commercial tools to make Windows apps to work. For instance "cross-over office" will enable you to run a few versions of MS Office almost natively in linux. Some things will allow Evolution (Outlook rival in Linux), to get full function out of a Exchange server. That sort of thing.
I find it easier to work on the websites with linux.
Ssh, sftp, are just a command away. Plus setting up Xampp, for testing, on linux is much less troublsome then it is on Windows.
Setting up some software can be pain in the... Thank god for yum, and apt-get. Althgough that varies from distro to distro. Had no problem compiling stuff in Mandrake. When I switched to FC2 had to result to using yum and apt-get. To get couple of the programs I needed to install.
Ssh, sftp, are just a command away. Plus setting up Xampp, for testing, on linux is much less troublsome then it is on Windows.
Setting up some software can be pain in the... Thank god for yum, and apt-get.
Althgough that varies from distro to distro. Had no problem compiling stuff in Mandrake. When I switched to FC2 had to result to using yum and apt-get. To get couple of the programs I needed to install.Originally posted by: BingBongWongFooey
90% of things created by humans are crap.
Your right. I do find myself on the toliet quite a bit more often then when I get around to creating a new OS, browser, automobile, or scientific breakthru.
It has to be all those bean burrittos.
Originally posted by: BingBongWongFooey
90% of things created by humans are crap.
I'd go so far as to say 90% of humans are crap
Originally posted by: Sunner
Originally posted by: BingBongWongFooey
90% of things created by humans are crap.
I'd go so far as to say 90% of humans are crap
I'd go so far as to say that 90% of humans are full of crap.
Originally posted by: drag
Originally posted by: Sunner
Originally posted by: BingBongWongFooey
90% of things created by humans are crap.
I'd go so far as to say 90% of humans are crap
I'd go so far as to say that 90% of humans are full of crap.
Well, being full of crap would probably count as a subset of being crap
the only applications im really concerned about are game. is there a way i can play them on linux, or get a emulater?
No Windows emulators. There are a bunch of rom emulators (NES, SNES, etc). There's also WINE and whatever transgaming changed the name of WINEX to, for playing some Windows games or using some Windows applications.
from my previous post:
Links to Linux gaming sites:
http://www.happypenguin.org/
<br>[url]http://www.linuxgames.com/
[/url]
game list:
<br>[url]http://icculus.org/lgfaq/gamelist.php
[/url]<br>[url]http://www.linux-militia.net
[/url]
That'll get you started. Linux gaming is lmited, and games will alway run on Windows first for the forseeable future. But it doesn't mean that you won't have plenty of fun stuff to occupy your time.
Links to Linux gaming sites:
http://www.happypenguin.org/
<br>[url]http://www.linuxgames.com/
[/url]
game list:
<br>[url]http://icculus.org/lgfaq/gamelist.php
[/url]<br>[url]http://www.linux-militia.net
[/url]
That'll get you started. Linux gaming is lmited, and games will alway run on Windows first for the forseeable future. But it doesn't mean that you won't have plenty of fun stuff to occupy your time.
You may want to read this thread about Linux gaming.
Also you will have more joy if you have a Nvidia card instead of ATi as their Linux drivers are better
Also you will have more joy if you have a Nvidia card instead of ATi as their Linux drivers are better
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