The real cost of switching to Linux - Is TCO really lower than Unix or Windows?

Info World ^ | 08.29.2003 | By Dave Margulius

[Dimensio]

With the proper setup, most of the tasks that people do in Windows can be just as easy to preform in Linux -- you just might need a more savvy admin to do the initial setup. Unfortunatley, this won't solve the problem of users still not "getting it" even when the instructions are idiot-proof.

[general_re]

Mash here - yes, it works ;)

[Dimensio]

Is it possible to find Zork on the internet? Awesome game!

Try this link.

Not sure where to get a "downloadable" version, though.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Like an F16!

[RedBloodedAmerican]

COOL!!! THANKS!!!

[First_Salute]

Switching to the Mac with Mac OS X is much cheaper than either using Windows machines or Linux machines.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

Thank you!

[FormerlyAnotherLurker]

LOL!

I haven't played it for a while and one of my links is dead...
There are several different options, the one I use is something called "Z-Code" - http://www.csd.uwo.ca/Infocom/zork1.html

There are interpreters for LOTS of old and new OSes. Yes, Trash-80!

Try also;
http://zork.nl/
http://www.thezorklibrary.com/
http://www.tbzp.co.uk/index2.html
http://www.balmoralsoftware.com/rtz/rtz.htm
http://www.balmoralsoftware.com/games.htm#Z

[Mean Daddy]

Do you miss Edlin?

[FormerlyAnotherLurker]

http://www.wurb.com/if/game/2
"This is the forbear of the Zork trilogy, written at MIT before Infocom was formed. The first game to feature a full-sentence parser, albeit a crude one by today's standards. Very derivative of Adventure, from the maze of twisty little passages to the orange smoke that accompanies ressurrection. Basically, a treasure hunt in a cave. Two mazes (counting the coal mine), a little randomized combat, and a nonsense puzzle or two. Much historical interest, however. Nearly everything in this game can be found in the Zork trilogy, although some crucial details are different. Available in various stages of its development; unlike Adventure, which used a very rigid database, this game was designed to be easy to modify, and got modified a lot."

Downloads in things as varied as Amiga, MSDOS, Fortran, C, Mac, though I don't see TRS80. Sorry.


Also:
http://www.angelfire.com/ut/henryshermitage/zork1.html
"Welcome to The Great Zork I Page! The page where you can even download ZorkI! "

Play Online: http://www.ifiction.org/games/play.phpz?cat=&game=2&mode=html

[MarkL]

Win2k eliminates the need for Netware.

BWAAHHHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Thanks, I needed something to cheer me up! lol

Are you sure that you want to go down this road?

Again, simply put, I'm a strong believer in using the right tool for the right job. And for file and print services, NetWare is superior in many respects to Win2K, especially if you don't have a dedicated IT staff to continually patch and reboot the servers. MS is finally getting things moving in the right direction with Win2003, as far as security goes, but Active Directory doesn't compate to eDirectory, as far as ease of management or scalability goes.

Mark

[Mean Daddy]

The one thing that they don't mention in the article, but I feel will be a driver to push people to Linux is the exposure to viruses.

Linux is becoming more and more user friendly. I've been recommending to people to try Knoppix, which is a version of Linux that you can boot up on CD and operate without having installed it on your harddrive.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Have you tried the windows-based NWAdmin utility?

[Pan_Yans Wife]

Thank you very much. I will enjoy trying it again, in the late weekend hours.

[N3WBI3]

The idea of your post is spot on, everything has its place I disagree with the specifics

If high levels of security aren't needed, SAMBA works just fine. You can actually have a samba share (or for that matter a Linux workstation authenticate against a windows domain. You can even have it *BE* a windows domain (and save mad software fees). Samba is just as if not more secure than a windows file server.

Linux is perfect for small shops because the need to dummy proof systems goes down (if you have 400 users you cant do that to your tech support). I tend to agree with the firewall go with hardware, not software, but if you are going to go with software BSD is the way to go.

[lelio]

?Backups have been a nagging problem,? says Duncan, who notes that the medical center had been using a hot backup agent for Oracle databases on AIX and NT as part of IBM?s Tivoli Storage Manager but that this agent was not yet available for Linux.

He should look into using a NetApp file server appliance. Use the best tool for the job, and this will save you headaches in the future.

[MarkL]

Have you tried the windows-based NWAdmin utility?

Is this a trick question?

Mark

[RedBloodedAmerican]

No, 2k server comes with it. No need for Novell.

[MarkL]

No, 2k server comes with it. No need for Novell.

Oh, Please, enlighten me...

With this one utility, we no longer need a reliable, secure OS for a server?

Mark

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Is this a trick question? :o)