Posted on 02/01/2014 1:57:57 PM PST by ShadowAce
The Windows XP death clock is ticking away. While Microsoft has extended support for malware protection, do not be fooled -- XP will be officially unsupported on April 8. If Microsoft has its druthers, these XP users will upgrade to Windows 8 and maybe even buy a new computer.
However, there is a problem with this -- the Windows 8 UI is radically different from XP and people do not like change (especially people clinging to an operating system from 2001). Also, they may not need to buy a new computer, because their existing is probably fast enough... for Linux!
Yes, Linux is far less intensive than the arguably bloated Windows. And so, if a user wants a supported operating system that should work well on their existing, but aging hardware, a Linux-based OS may be the best choice. The problem is, what distribution should a user choose? What software is available? No worries, I'm here to help.
Introduction
First things first, what exactly is Linux? Well, technically Linux is a kernel -- not an operating system, but an aspect of one. However, there are operating systems, called distributions, that utilize that kernel. It was invented by a man named Linus Torvalds in 1991. Yes, Linux is hardly new -- it has a long history and a large user and developer base.
It is used in many things such as web servers and even Android phones. Believe it or not, if you own an Android phone, you are already a Linux user and probably didn't even know it -- nice job! Don't confuse this to mean that Linux distributions will run Android apps, they are not exactly compatible.
Why
So, why should you switch from your comfortable Windows XP operating system to a Linux one? Besides Windows XP support ending on April 8, here are some other compelling reasons:
Backup
Before you do anything, I urge you to backup your files -- pictures, documents and anything that is important to you. You can do this a number of ways, but the easiest is to use a fat-formatted flash drive or external hard drive. You can copy the files back once the new operating system is installed
User Interface / Environment
Before you can pick a distribution, you must decide on an environment. You see, many distributions come in various "flavors", which offer different environments or user interfaces. Let's be honest, if you are still on Windows XP, you probably do not like change. With that said, the ideal environment for an XP user would be KDE, Mate or Cinnamon -- all of which resemble the classic Windows Start button philosophy.
However, my suggestion would be the Mate environment. While KDE and Cinnamon are great, they are likely too intensive for an older XP machine. Mate is a lightweight desktop environment that isn't flashy. It is easy to use and a Windows XP user should feel very comfortable with it.
Distribution
So, which distribution do I suggest? Linux Mint 13 LTS Mate. What is nice about this operating system is that it is LTS, meaning Long Term Release. What does that mean? Well, it will be supported until April 2017. This means you will have access to updates and support for many years. You will not be on the bleeding edge, but you will be very stable.
Most importantly, it is based on the popular Ubuntu distribution, which is a rock-solid foundation with access to a lot of software (packages). It is available for both 32-bit and 64-bit processors as well. You can download the operating system and user guide here. Please follow the guide to install it.
Software
OK, so let's assume you've successfully installed Linux Mint by following the user guide. Now what? You want to install Microsoft Office and Internet Explorer right? Not so fast there. All of your favorite Windows programs are not here. Don't panic though, there are plenty of fine alternatives that are not only great, they are free. Yes, you will no longer need to purchase software for your super-cool Linux computer. Below are some suggested programs and the Windows equivalent.
That is just a small sampling of what is available. There is a cornucopia of programs available in the Software Center. This is much like the app store that can be found on modern smartphones. You can search for, install and remove software using this one-stop-shop. This is unlike Windows which makes you search all over the internet, at various sites, to get programs. Not only is that time consuming, it can put you at risk of malware too.
Speaking of malware, Linux can be considered, for the most part, free of things like viruses. While some viruses do exist, they are few and far between. Besides, whenever you install something in Linux, you are prompted for your system password. If you do not know what is being installed, do not enter your password.
Conclusion
So, congratulations, your computer is now supported until 2017 and it cost you nothing. You have a powerful operating system that is chock full of useful software and is less likely to get viruses. You should be proud of yourself. While Microsoft may have lost a Windows sale, you now have extra money in your wallet -- take a loved one out to dinner, courtesy of this BetaNews guide.
I'd really love to see a similar application under Linux. Yes, you can do iptables, but I'd really like to have a program that could watch all network ports, and prompt you for an allow/deny when it notices something trying to phone home or contact google or something. I've not seen one, and I look around for something that will do that little thing about once a year.
As long as the machines are networked to the outside world, you should be OK. However, when the computers die that control said equipment, you may be in trouble, as you may have issues getting XP to run on upcoming generations of hardware.
One thing that you might want to take the time to look at now is to see if you can run any of the software through virtual machines. If you can get that to work, you may actually be in better shape than you are now. A VM that runs under something like VMWare is really just a few large files on your disk. If you copy those files to another computer then fire up the VM, the operating system that runs in that VM will have no way to know that it is running on different hardware.
So, let's say that you've successfully installed your OS and software in a VM. Now, let's say you have an issue, and somehow the OS gets corrupted, which is not an altogether uncommon thing with windows. Instead of having to reinstall the OS and your software, you just copy the VM files from a backup, and you're good to go. 20 minute restores are bloody awesome in circumstances like that. If your CNC machines use Dongles you may well be SOL though.
If you can virtualize your control systems, you'll be much better off than you are today with hardware tied directly to a specific computer.
Thanks ShadowAce. Same goes for Windows users in general.
how much testing did IT do before letting your dept use win7???
I used to upgrade to the latest and greatest at every offering, frequently having to upgrade my hardware and other software in the process. This goes back to DOS! Everything works good together now so no, I have no intention of changing anything.
The hackers won't be targeting XP any more than they are trying to break into TRS 80s. I have used Vista, 7 and 8 at work and none are as fast or stable as my old dinosaur. Thanks but no thanks.
I got a Blue-tooth keyboard and case for a few dollars and I can do most anything with the darn thing for well under $200.
My entertainment tablet.
Can do dos with it in a dos box.
Has office products that can work with MS office and you could just use Google.
I'm going to pick another one up next month I think and those two will be my treat for the year.
Sheesh! I have files bigger than 80gb. This reminds me of back in '89 when I bought a 20mb hard drive. I knew I would never be able to fill that monster up. :) It was on a screaming 286 processor! Now I'm just trying to hang another 3tb drive on my XP. If I can do that I'll be happy.
We are a branch of IT but specialized and under different management (although we adhere rigorously to their rules and guidelines and consult with them on everything) so I don’t know how much they did on their side or the tools they needed to develop for support.
A lot of times we are driven by clinical necessity to implement certain things, and it is up to us to convince IT that they should partner with us, And there are times when we have to ask them to bend or break the rules that they have in place for hardware, security, networking, databases, etc.
It is a very collaborative process. We think the world of them, because they produce good environments.
They respect us because we play by their rules and they trust us, and when they need us as resources, we treat their requests as if they were handed to us by our superiors.
If they determine our request to bend or break their rules is legitimate, they will work with us hand in hand to manage the exception to mitigate the risk and put safety nets in place.
In turn, when they decline to deviate from their guidelines, we accept it. We explain it to the people above us, and we help them understand why we could not get buy-in. To their credit, our superiors trust us and take us at our word, and very rarely resort to political pathways over collaborative technical pathways.
All in all, it is a good arrangement.
It takes longer to open the back doors to your documents.
I will say that in some medical applications I use, the performance of that application under Windows 7 is so far superior to XP that we had genuine concerns about the “word getting out” to those who had to continue to work under Windows XP.
There was that much difference. Granted, much of it was due to the applications being memory bound, but...that is still part of the overall improvement, not just a happenstance.
Wow, I can see picture files or videos taking a ton of room, but you have an 80GB program or is that work product of some kind?
I went so far back that I used to do cost accounting reports of hundreds of pages using a Durango D-Basic machine and two floppys.
http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=939
I think I had a 512k disk for the program and another 512k disk for a year of reports. LOL
Sure...as with all engineering, a tradeoff. They seem to run fine once open.
To me, the UI changes are far worse. They don’t make any sense to me.
I would like to just add a hard drive and try it out as a duel boot computer.
Some numbers about videos:
When that time comes, Pixar's render farm will have to go through another massive growth spurt. And so will its storage space, which Whitehill estimates already exceeds five petabytes, or 5.4 million gigs.
Science experiments, like LHC, are producing gigabytes of data per second. Astronomy can also give you more data than you can handle.
The most likely demand for space at home comes from backups. This includes backups of your computer storage, and backups of your DVDs (in case they get scratched.) It is very appealing to have an endless history of your filesystem that goes back for years. You can then access any file that you used to have on the box, even if you deleted it a year ago and only now (at tax time) realized what have happened.
Thanks!
Eclipse runs on Windows as well as Linux; that’s a good thing for me.
Not sure what the GNU/netbeans thing is.
Well just from travel we have almost 3 Ts filled on a external HD, but yeah that makes sense.
Movies, scientific experiments and of course all the Target store customer files as well...
Well well well . . I just picked up a new laptop to replace my computer, which I can hand down to Mrs. Chandler to replace her XP machine. It was on closeout, and after all the discounts and rebates, etc., I got it for $208. My decision not to buy at Christmas just payed off.
.
HP Pavilion G7
Intel Core i3-4000M Processor
2.4GHz 3MB Cache Processor
6GB DDR3L SDRAM (2 DIMM)
750GB 5400RPM hard drive
17.3-inch diagonal HD+ BrightView LED-backlit display (1600 x 900)
Windows 8
.
I’m going to install Mint with Cinnamon on Mrs. Chandler’s old machine to replace my FIL’s ANCIENT XP machine
You got that for $208?
dang1
lol
“I’ll confess. I fear all this monkeying with my working computer.”
One nice thing about Linux is that you don’t have to install it to try it out. You can run it off a CD or DVD and it won’t make any changes to your computer. It can also run off a USB memory stick.
If you try it out and like it, Linux can install onto your hard drive alongside Windows. When you turn on the computer it will ask you if you want Windows or Linux.
It’s always a good idea to back up everything before you install anything to a computer. (I’ve been bitten in the past, too!) But, generally, Linux is safe and easy to try out.
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