Closing the door on Windows: A guide to changing operating systems

PC World ^ | 16 December 2013 | Tony Bradley

[ShadowAce]

Is it time for you to dump Windows XP, or maybe to abandon Windows altogether? Windows 8 has improved significantly with the 8.1 upgrade. Nevertheless, for many users, Windows 8’s ...major changes like Live Tiles and the removal of the Start menu—remains an object of scorn. And security has always been a bigger headache for Windows...

If you’re still running Windows XP, making the switch to Windows 8.1—or to Windows 7, if you can find it—will probably involve replacing more than just the operating system. Your...hardware may not be able to handle a newer Windows OS; and even if it can, you’ll likely need to replace software and peripheral devices, as well.

If you’re going to invest money and time..., you might as well consider all your options. Microsoft’s stranglehold on the desktop market has loosened over the past few years. Mac, Linux, and even Chrome are sophisticated operating systems... Here’s what to expect if you embrace one...

Mac

There’s a reason people (and not just Apple marketers) say “once you go Mac, you’ll never go back.” Apple defined the GUI we know today and set the bar for user-friendly computing. Macs have a reputation for being expensive, but that’s not entirely accurate these days. You can certainly find cheaper Windows-based desktop and laptop options, but in bang-for-the-buck terms, Macs are on a par with—and sometimes cheaper than—similarly equipped Windows machines...

Linux

If you want to install a new OS on your existing hardware, Linux is the obvious alternative. The open-source operating system has many variants, one of the most widely used of which is Ubuntu Linux. Generally speaking, Linux has less-demanding hardware requirements and is much more forgiving of older PCs. Laptops are available from Acer, Asus, and Dell that run some version of Linux.

[ShadowAce]

Pros

The biggest benefit of choosing Linux is cost. Most Linux distributions are free, as are the applications available to run on it.

Linux tends to be less of a resource hog than other platforms, and it can perform admirably on older processors and with less RAM or hard-drive storage than Windows or OS X. You can choose from various user interface desktop environments, such as KDE and GNOME, and if you like you can install or create a desktop environment that is virtually identical to Windows XP.

Linux has made great progress from its hobbyist roots and now comes preloaded on some machines from Acer, Asus, and Dell.

Like Mac OS X, Linux can run Windows in dual-boot or virtual-machine form. Tools like WINE (Wine Is Not an Emulator) can run Windows software natively within Linux. (Note: WINE is a compatibility layer that converts Windows “calls” rather than emulating them; hence its name.)

Cons

You’ll have to replace all the applications you use, and you’ll have to hunt down software and drivers for your printer, wireless network adapter, and other peripheral devices—or replace them with Linux-compatible equivalents.

The fact that Linux is open-source can be a double-edged sword with regard to support and troubleshooting. In most cases, you simply download software from an open-source project, and there’s no “parent company” to turn to for support. Some Linux variants do offer support options that you can buy. The upside is that everything you need to know is available online—and plenty of forums exist, populated by Linux experts who are willing to lend a hand.

[ShadowAce]

[Cringing Negativism Network]

Windows 8.1 is good.

Just saying.

I’m using Ubuntu as a knock-around, but just saying.

[ShadowAce]

That’s what I’ve heard—the second sentence in the article agrees with you as well.

[tacticalogic]

If you want a Linux-type experience with Windows, there’s always Sever Core.

[Da Coyote]

Whaaa?

You tellin’ me that Gates, that genius who developed nothing save the art of sleazy business practices, while foisting upon us the Yugo of operating systems with more security flaws than the White House, gave us a pile of excreme...er..Obamastuff?

May the flies of a thousand camels come to rest upon Gates and the clueless minions that gave us Windows.

And - in our company - we do have choices on our computer OS now...and you can guess which company is rapidly losing representation.

[kosciusko51]

Windows 8.1 is good.

What is so good about it? The fact that I can't find all of the software on my machine with a simple "Start" menu, the fact that I have to install the same app for each account (shared family computer), or the fact that even though some apps are installed, I can't get them to show up on every account?

[Terry L Smith]

I dragged myself, to begin using Win 7 in ‘09.

This machine is gonna have to survive for quite a while.

[EricT.]

you’ll have to hunt down software and drivers for your printer

HP printers are the way to go with Linux. HP's Linux drivers are actually much better than their Windows drivers, which tend to be bloated resource-hogging messes.

[LibLieSlayer]

Windows 7 works and can be made to emulate XP if wanted... and I hate win 8 more than I did ME. Amazon will sell you all of the copies of 7 that you want.

[Zathras]

My task for xmas break is to get my pc desktop running both osx and win7.
Should be fun

[Cringing Negativism Network]

I’m just saying.

I had to upgrade by PC recently, it was just getting too slow on any site but FR. So I finally broke down and upgraded. Nothing too fancy, but it had the newer operating system.

I like it quite a bit, the interface seems much more like Linux, than traditional Windows.

All that said, I’m using Linux now, but I think Windows really hit a winner with 8.1.

It seems ... well I like it is all.

You are welcome to take issue with my experience, but I think it is a big step forward for Windows, and I compliment them.

YMMV.

[867V309]

If you want to “try it before you commit to it” you can use Oracles VirtualBox virtual machine. I think there are blobs that preclude installing Linux, just download, click and go.

[USNA74]

bump

[E. Pluribus Unum]

If you have a computer running XP, it probably doesn't have the hardware required to run Windows 8.0/8.1.

You can either throw it away or give an alternative operating system a whirl, especially if all you do is email and web.

[kosciusko51]

WinXP was a great OS. Win7 has been OK, and fairly stable. Win8/8.1 is for hobbyist who have one account per computer.

I find it frustrating to do anything serious with Win8, so it is just a web surfing/e-mail checking/game-playing toy. The real work gets done by my WinXP/Win7 machines.

What really ticks me off is that there is no way to configure Win8 to look/operate like Win7. Since Win95, there were always some options to have the look and feel of different versions. But now we are stuck with crappy phone OS overlayed on a crippled Win7 OS.

[Stentor]

For anyone who has an orphaned netbook gathering dust in a corner because it runs like a dog using Windows Crippled, I suggest Lubuntu. Makes it very usable. I put it on using Universal-USB-Installer.

[kosciusko51]

If you don’t mind me asking, what sort of programs do you run with Win8.1?

[Cringing Negativism Network]

Sorry I’m just a piker, and have used Linux mostly since my upgrade.

I just like it is all.

[VanDeKoik]

Most of us manage just fine.

Go find a tutorial or ask questions, because that is what you will be doing with a Mac or Linux machine, despite the nonsense from people making it seem like it is fool proof.