Posted on 12/06/2012 7:52:51 AM PST by ShadowAce
I’m not saying Linux is the best thing to use for everyone. I am saying, however, that it may be better for you than what you’re using now. Linux is different from Windows or Mac OS X in some fundamental ways. For thousands of people, these differences are a reason to choose Linux over its alternatives. Are they for you? Read on to find out!
What is Linux?
If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you already know, at least a little bit, what Linux is. For the purpose of this article, we’ll view it as an alternative to Windows and Mac OS X. However, it also runs on most of this world’s smartphones (Android is a flavor of Linux), and most of this worlds web servers (Google, Facebook and Amazon use it in their web infrastructure), and on a great many other things. Even this very website is served by a Linux server.
Before we start looking into differences, let’s not forget this: Linux is a collective term. There are many flavors of Linux, with Ubuntu probably being the most well-known one for PCs and laptops. Ubuntu is Linux, but Linux is not necessarily Ubuntu. Think of “Linux” as “a car”. Saying that you’re considering to switch to Linux is like saying you’re considering to buy a car. It can still be any brand and any model. Ubuntu is like a brand, and the version of it is like a model. Other popular “brands” include Fedora, Arch Linux and Debian.
Now that we know a bit better what we’re talking about, let’s start looking into why Linux may be better for you than Windows/Mac!
Boss of your own computer
Have you ever read those long and boring legal texts you have to agree to when you just bought a new computer or (re)installed one? Probably not, but if you did, you’d know that you don’t own Windows or Mac OS X, even if you paid good money for them. Instead, the texts say you get a bunch of files that you are allowed to use (on only one computer) but not share. You’re also not allowed to reverse-engineer them. This means that you’re mostly stuck having to use the software the way the programmers intended it to be used. If you don’t like that, you don’t have a lot of choice. However, most people are used to this lack of freedom, and don’t feel too restrained by it.
Imagine, however, a computer where you could change the way it worked in any way you liked. You could finally get rid of those annoying warning messages! You could set a keyboard shortcut for that simple thing that costs you 10 clicks to do right now! You could stop the computer from doing things you don’t want it to do, and the computer could finally work with you instead of against you like it sometimes does! Well, with Linux, this becomes reality. Mind you, not all changes are easily made, and you may need a book on C programming and/or help from a community member here and there, but at least you are allowed to!
You see, Linux also comes with a long and boring legal text, but this one tells you that you have a right to the source code behind what you’re using, that you can use Linux on as many computers as you want and share it with anyone you want! With the help of the source code, you can change Linux to your heart’s content, and you’re allowed to share your changed version. But even if you don’t actually change anything yourself, you can benefit from other people who do. Many people in the Linux community like to share their improvements, and the good ones tend to end up in a next version of the software.
Benefits of freedom
This freedom to do what you want with the software that runs your computer has some nice benefits:
Command line
Besides all the good reasons above, there is another reason why people choose Linux over (especially) Windows or Mac OS X. Virtually all Linux flavors come with an extensive command line environment. You know, the old green characters on a black background terminal interface, but in a modern jacket. Entirely text based, controllable with only your keyboard, and not very intuitive. You might ask why including ancient ways of controlling a computer is beneficial.
Truth is, once you get used to it, the command line often becomes indispensible. It might not be as intuitive as looking about the screen and clicking your mouse, but it allows you to express in a direct and powerful language what you want the computer to do. Anything you can do for one file on the command line, you can do for thousands just as well. Anything you can start by hand on the command line, you can schedule for regular intervals as well. Also, the command line hasn’t changed its interface in years. It remains the same between versions of Linux, between flavors of Linux, between platforms on which Linux runs. Learn once, use anywhere, and forever. And it’s fast. Not requiring your mouse, it allows you to keep your hands at the keyboard and make the computer do what you want without being interrupted by the distractions of a graphical user interface.
Mac OS X also has this command line, though it requires some tweaking to make it as powerful as it is in most Linux flavors. And Mac lacks the benefits of freedom above. If Apple decides to limit access to the command line in the next release of Mac OS X, it would be hard to get around that.
Before you jump…
Now, suppose this article got you warmed up to try Linux and see if it really is better for you. That’s great! But before you try, let me highlight some of the problems many people taking the plunge have run into:
. Outside the more standard things like web browsing or sending/receiving e-mail, you will find that every button has a new place and/or works slightly different. Give it some time; you would face the same frustrations when switching between Windows and Mac for the first time. Believe me, once you get the hang of it, you may find yourself to be able to work more effectively than you were! And to get to that point faster: Get some help learning the ropes
Learning to work with Linux can be hard, and fortunately the web is full of helpful articles and screencasts to show you how to do things the Linux way. This very website is a good resource, but many articles require you to already run Linux to be of much use. If you want to get some hands-on experience with the command line mentioned above, without the hassle of installing Linux first, give the free trial of linuxacademy.com a go. You’ll get understandable lessons and a free server to practice on. Happy learning!
Linux support chat excerpt:
[Susie Smith]: I need a driver for my Brother Laser 4040
[Tech]: Write your own you stupid NOOB!
pinging myself for later reading.
> ...You’ve got the source code for the kernel, so you
> can configure and recompile it specifically to....
:)
Linux fanatics (oops I mean Linux fans) have a habit of naming things after fantasy characters and mythical beasts. Dream stuff.
Quite apropos!!
Options are good. You don’t have to use all the options.
The biggest problem with Linux is the various flavors.
Windows is bad enough with 4 or 5 variations of each version. Linux has dozens.
Several years ago, I tried a few. They were okay, but sluggish, had limited applications, and didn’t recognize some of my computer hardware and peripherals. No version recognized my PCTV card and one version failed to recognize my wide-screen monitor.
One almost has to become a Linux expert just to figure out which variation is the more usable.
Linux is still a toy for geeks who like to play with Linux toys.
Windows has also always come with a command line. In really old versions of windows you invoked it by running command.com. Last 10 odd years, you invoke it by running cmd.exe. It’s not as powerful as the unix shell, but you can get a lot of things done on it & with cscript, it becomes quite powerful. And for the last 5 odd years, you also have Powershell on windows which is as good as any command line.
PowerShell is an extremely powerful CLI. Windows Server 2012 (or whatever they end up calling it) is managed entirely through PS. Even the GUI is just an interface to PS. That means you can manage a WinSrv 2012 machine from any other machine, of any flavor. Looks like MS is finally playing major league ball, and playing it well.
We understand it. We've done it. We may be MS-to-Linux migrants or vice versa but we understand the technology and the process.
The average mouth-breathing home user would no more try that process - complete with text editing of config files and IP addresses - than they would walking on their hands. It's nearly incomprehensible - even the helpers are confused - and that thread had a successful outcome! Just imagine multiplying that by millions of users, computers, printers, etc. especially on Christmas morning. Madness.
Option 1: call Microsoft support or the OEM support line
Option 2: go to puppylinux.com and rely on the kindness of strangers as well as their punctuality and patience
Is Option 2 really a panacea in terms of widespread adoption? Don't worry, Aunt Sue, just register for the forum ('How do I register?' etc.), post your question, sit back and wait and hope, then wade through gibberish like '/usr/lib/cups/filter/cpdftocps failed.' Aunt Sue may have no clue about /usr/lib/cups/filter/cpdftocps but she certainly can understand the failed part.
HP laser printers are ubiquitous. Aunt Sue goes to hp.com where she has downloaded Windows printers many times. Get the file, install it and off you go.
Aunt Sue chooses a Linux driver. She gets this: 
N/A don't stand for North America!
But Sue perseveres. She clicks to the next screen:
She frowns at 'HP does not provide telephone support for Linux printing.' But she clicks again:
Sue is agreeable. She is willing to learn about HPLIP but at this point she still hasn't tracked down a driver and isn't sure she wants to become the family Linux trailblazer when all she wants is to print the digital photo she took of her nephew before he leaves.
I am not a Linux hater nor am I a Microsoft apologist given their shocking track record. Lord knows it seems like they've cost me as much money as I've earned through their products. But the flexibility of Linux and the nearly infinite distros ensure that market fragmentation is a fact of life even for good versions, smart users and user-friendly software (apps/drivers). On the other hand, the Linux devotees seem married to the idea that because Linux isn't Microsoft all its other idiosyncracies are immaterial.
Admittedly Red Hat and some others have made inroads in the standardization/support arena but open-source, ironically, cripples branding because Joe Sixpack can't pick up a box at Best Buy and see one, two or three recognizable logos to check for compatibility with his systems as long as the market continues to pursue highly specialized, individualized configurations.
A very "broad brush" to paint
windows and OSX as the SAME !OSX is certified Unix® with a
"Benutzerfreundlichkeit" interface.
Most of those strengths are only strengths for power users and programmers. Most people want their computer to work like their microwave, they don’t want to be recompiling anything, they want to push some buttons and get work on their document. “You have the code and can change it” is not only not a selling point to regular folks, it’s a turn off, it’s really telling them “you get enough power to screw things up beyond repair”.
I did read that thread—nowhere in there was a “Write your own” comment. There was plenty of evidence of people actually trying to help. I never claimed that it would be easy, or a 1-minute fix.
More work gets done under Linux than with any flavor of Windows.
Bump!
On the server side? Yes, I can agree with that. On the desktop? No.
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