Is it true that Linux is better than Windows?

[sweater]

Someone says that Linux is 100% more better than Windows and lots of available freewares are available already for linux. He even advises me to read a Linux magz to learn more about it...but I hesitates in doing so coz I don't like to be tempted that I might become frustrated with my Windows XP Pro system.

What can you say on this, and have you already tried using the two OS for several months compared and found their pros and cons clearly ?

[bigc73542]

To be 100% truthful you would have to try it your self to decide. It is not that it is better it is just a different OS and as such it has it's good and bad points. You should try one of the Linux live cd's. They allow you to try Linux without installing it to your HD, it runs off of the cd instead of having to install.

I've completely switched to Linux and I wouldn't ever go back to Windows. There is tons of free/open source software and lots and lots of help and tutorials. Learning linux isn't too difficult but it does require some effort, once you're over the hump it's smooth sailing. The key is once you start ... keep at it ... it'll take some time - but the light will eventually go on.

I discovered this Magazine thanks to Iceni and eyes-open - it's free - PDF format and ideally geared towards beginners but a good read for all levels. http://www.tuxmagazine.com/

Good Luck if you decide to get into it.

[BlueZannetti]

Originally Posted by sweater

Someone says that Linux is 100% more better than Windows and lots of available freewares are available already for linux. He even advises me to read a Linux magz to learn more about it...but I hesitates in doing so coz I don't like to be tempted that I might become frustrated with my Windows XP Pro system.

What can you say on this, and have you already tried using the two OS for several months compared and found their pros and cons clearly ?

Sweater,

It really depends on how you use your PC's If you're a gamer, well to me it's pretty obvious, stay with the native platform.

For simple isolated (i.e. not related to a workplace where MS Office might be the defacto standard) office tasks, surfing, and email, either works fine with OpenOffice being a basic free drop-in replacement for MS Office.

If you want to try your hand at learning programming, there's probably a broader set of free tools on Linux.

BigC's suggestion to try a live CD Linux is a good one. If you like it, you could try a multibboot configuration - one of my machines multiboots between Suse 10.1/Xandros 3.0/Windows XP Media Center without difficulty - this is a step behind full conversion to Linux. You can also always pick up a relatively small drive inexpensively, keep your Windows XP system drive as is, and just pop in the new drive as a replacement system drive, install a Linux system, and see how you like it. This way, you have a fast path back to the familiar.

Blue

[MikeNash]

Originally Posted by sweater

Someone says that Linux is 100% more better than Windows and lots of available freewares are available already for linux. He even advises me to read a Linux magz to learn more about it...but I hesitates in doing so coz I don't like to be tempted that I might become frustrated with my Windows XP Pro system.

What can you say on this, and have you already tried using the two OS for several months compared and found their pros and cons clearly ?

Hi Sweater,

It comes down to what you want to do. I've a linux machine here at home, and a winXP machine. Most business users are on Windows - MS Word, MS Excel, MS Powerpoint, MS Access.

While Open Office (think free version of MS Office) is very good, if you want to have smooth communication with other businesses then I would forget about it. I had problems with even Basic MS Word documents losing their formatting, Excel sheets saved out of Open Office not working on Windows.

However, all our servers run Linux. Our version control system is running on Linux, as are the firewalls that we use both at TEHQ and on various client sites.

Our website is all on PHP/Linux (we chose Redhat) and we use open source databases (two different ones, for various purposes).

Mainly on my Linux box I use Firefox and GAIM... its just a machine for the boy to use to surf the net while I work on the XP box... or, when my wife is using the Windows box with software we dont have on the Linux box (or, she just needs the Russian Keyboard to chat with mum) then I use it for email access.

As Dog says there is a bit of a learning curve. Linux culture is more interoperability and security focused. You can do a lot with the command line. Expect to login (or su to root) if you want to do admin stuff.

I'd suggest that you have a play with something like a liveCD and see what you think. Or, if you're confident - try a dual boot. I installed Mandrake (Mandriva now) on my PC at home about a year back. I found the setup process was superior to XP. It partitioned the disk and did the dual boot stuff very, very well. I like KDE (it doesn't operate quite like windows) but for me, it just looks in some ways elegant.

That said, some things are rough around the edges. Primarily, it's produced and written for people who understand technology. This is changing, but slowly. This means that you will find irritations that you would not find in a microsoft product. Things are not necessarily consistent. People will "break" things in the name of doing it the right way (whereas MS deliberately reproduce bugs that third-party software relies upon to avoid this)/

When you first get started, you will be frustrated - it does not work the same way as windows, but it's similar enough that you can work it out.

The best way to learn more is to play. Your mileage may vary - but book learning comes a pale second to wanting to get something done... the first thing I got working on Linux was a software PBX system. I wanted to play with it - everyone was busy - so I spent hours and hours trying to get it to work... and I didn't even know how to copy files!

At home now I have fedora core 4 on my play box. One of the cooler things about it is to SSH to the box, shut it down remotely and tell the boy that "the computer's tired, that's why it's gone to sleep."



Mike

[bktII]

Sweater,

I currently dual-boot Win XP and Linux on my desktop and triple-boot Win XP and 2 linux distros on my laptop. I plan to eliminate one linux distro from my laptop as I am feeling too much like a system administrator. I like both Win XP and Linux.

Here are two sites for free Windows software, if you are not already aware:

http://www.techsupportalert.com/best..._utilities.htm

http://nedwolf.com/Freeware.htm

Linux offers much more free apps through individual distros than these two sites and various links posted at these sites. How much software do you need on your PC?

With regard to security, I suggest you look at the archives and sign up for weekly newsletters (SecurityFocus News, Linux Security News and Microsoft Security News) here:

http://www.securityfocus.com/newsletters

Do some web searches on Linux vs. Windows to get a range of opinions and to help you shape your own opinion.

I "fourth" bigc's recommendation to experiment with some live Linux CDs.

Most of the programming I do, not that I do a lot, is with Java. I have both Netbeans and Eclipse installed on XP and Linux. Eclipse supports additional programming languages beyond Java. Both Netbeans and Eclipse are free.

Have fun!

bktII

[sweater]

oks... this means, re-learning again and beginning in square one if we'd like to use Linux... coz this was bit different from Windows OS.

Thanks for the info... all of you are great..

[matousec]

Both OS are as good as the one who administrate them. If you understand your OS and you feel comfortable then it is the best for you. The same holds for BSD which was also under my control a few years ago, it was very nice.

As a programmer I can say that Windows community offers everything I need and almost for every commercial software there is a free or even an open alternative.

Those who say that some OS is 100% better than some other just do not know the other very well. So, try everything, keep your favourite.

[WSFuser]

blue, dog, and matousec all have excellent points.

learning linux and fluent use of it can take time and patience but its worth it (at least i think it is).

also consider your typical programs and tasks. linux isnt teh greatest for gaming (tho some games do work) but its handles basic tasks with incredible ease.

lastly, u should think why youre considering linux. just because someone recommends it? try a livecd first. for me, i stick to what i know and what works. Windows.

[bktII]

Quote from matousec "...try everything, keep your favourite."

Or if you like more than one OS, consider dual booting. Nothing wrong with using > 1 OS side-by-side.

bktII

[TonyW]

If it works for you is probably the right way to answer this.

[squash]

I have used both Windows and Linux, and I have to say although Linux is okay for normal everyday uses such as web browsing and document editing and also for server use, it will never ever compare to Windows as an everyday O/S. There is some uses that Linux has an edge over Windows such as definition file permissions though.

Windows just works, compatibility with drivers
In Linux, there the most basic drivers like Hard drive SATA and IDE, but it may be a different story for your non-standard hardware such as TV Tuner.

The reason why Linux users are so "advocate" and promote their operating system as a religion, is because those people have been victim of severe "brainwashing" . One person, pushes one person to switch to Linux using persuasion, then the next person does it... etc.

Why do you expect a paid-for (commercial) Operating System like Windows to cost money? It's simply because it's better, there is one basic GUI, no religious wars of Desktop Environments (KDE, GNOME, XFCE, Flux and more) blah blah, an Operating System is supposed tobe easy to use, not a political affair.

That is why Linux will never beat Windows, because there is too much conflicts in ideas, blah blah...

You know where I'm from... I'm a pro-Windows user for everyday OS, and only use Linux for my dedicated backup hard-drive.

I have used Linux as a desktop OS and found myself, promoting the operating system more, then actually using it.

[iceni60]

Originally Posted by squash

Windows just works, compatibility with drivers

you mean hardware. the only reason windows works with more hardware is because of closed source drivers.

Originally Posted by squash

The reason why Linux users are so "advocate" and promote their operating system as a religion, is because those people have been victim of severe "brainwashing" . One person, pushes one person to switch to Linux using persuasion, then the next person does it... etc.

Originally Posted by squash

Why do you expect a paid-for (commercial) Operating System like Windows to cost money? It's simply because it's better, there is one basic GUI, no religious wars of Desktop Environments (KDE, GNOME, XFCE, Flux and more) blah blah, an Operating System is supposed tobe easy to use, not a political affair.

That is why Linux will never beat Windows, because there is too much conflicts in ideas, blah blah...

you do know about *nix having 'won' in the server market, don't you?

competition promotes better software, but that's not the only reason Linux is better - its source code is open, meaning more people see and work on the code base. a basic Linux install is something like 1/4 of the size of Windows for that very reason. Open Source will never have the bloat of proprietary software.

one really is better then the other, and Linux is far better. it's a fact

[WSFuser]

Originally Posted by iceni60

a basic Linux install is something like 1/4 of the size of Windows for that very reason.

what defines "basic"? which distro?

a typical suse install takes over 2 gigs (it does install quite fast tho) and though u can customize teh install and use less space, how does one know what to remove?

winxp takes 1 gig normally and with nlite, a few hundred mb can be shaven off.

[iceni60]

Originally Posted by WSFuser

what defines "basic"? which distro?

a typical suse install takes over 2 gigs (it does install quite fast tho) and though u can customize teh install and use less space, how does one know what to remove?

winxp takes 1 gig normally and with nlite, a few hundred mb can be shaven off.

i suppose if you want to think really basic you could think about all the ones which fit on a floppy. this is based on Red Hat

There is an immense collection of features embedded into Fd Linux:
Built-in firewall support
IP-Masquerading
Kernel and system-level logging
User-friendly network setup scripts
ext2 and vfat (Windows) file system support
In depth set of module loading binaries
Easy-to-use Interactive Network Setup script
LILO boot loader integration into boot process
Support for various popular Network Interface Cards
Wireless support tools for 802.11b wireless card setup
Add-on package support for additional utilities
Customization of startup scripts for personalized use

http://www.fdlinux.com/about.html

[iceni60]

Linux is better but that doesn't mean it's best for everyone. Windows goes for market share which means they have to dumb down things to keep the masses happy. whereas Linux is written by advanced users for themselves. so it really just depends what you like

[bigc73542]

The trouble with Linux is that there are hundreds of people writting code for it but they can't agree which one should be the standard and it causes a lot of problems trying to get a bunch of the software available for linux to work without a major bit of programing just to get it install much less work. Of course not all of the software used in linux is that much trouble but the majority is not just download and install.

[Lamehand]

I can only speak out of personal experience, i have installed Ubuntu on my computers next to my already present XP- installs.
I did this not because i was brainwashed or otherwise pushed into this, but because i was curious to learn something new and i don't like the way windows is heading.
I've been using windows sins version 3.11 and i even owned an Apple2E and i'm still using windows every day and i am not going to abandon it right now, the two OS' can live nicely together.

To determin which is the better OS is in my opinion difficult because the philosophy behind the two systems is totally different.
What i do like however is that in linux i have more control over the computer and what it does, in windows that will become more and more difficult i think.
For me it is not so much what you can do with an OS, because the basics are in both systems but more importantly what kind of control i can have over it and how are the safety issues handled.
If i want to play a game i use another special thingy for that,rather exspensive but it does the job (the masterchief didn't survive the last time i played )

Lamehand

[bktII]

Quote from squash: "an Operating System is supposed to be easy to use, not a political affair"

We all know that MS and its leadership are not political

iceni,

Fd linux is smaller than the mini-distros we discussed awhile ago. A micro distro. Cool.

bigc,

Application portability is sometimes an issue in Linux. I have had mixed success with the Debian alien command in converting rpm packages to deb packages.

Also, I recently had to build an executable for Fedora Core 5 that is currently well suported in both Windows and Debian. It took well over an hour.

sweater's original post (not meant to be a criticism at all) left a lot of leeway for this discussion as 'better' is open-ended. One needs to drill into this and identify specific metrics before any meaningful comparison and discussion can proceed.

TonyW's comment "if it works for you" is probably the best that can be said for sweater since sweater and not any of us knows his own requirements.

bktII

[Mrkvonic]

Hello,
Linux is nicer than Windows in several aspects:
Free
Does not phone home - your level of paranoia goes down
More beautiful - nothing beats KDE
More secure
And ... not that difficult to learn.
Truth to be told, the average use will hardly ever play with any su settings or such. BTW, we're so used to Windows that we take things like registry for granted, but it's not any different than editting config files in Linux.
It's the same thing, a different language. So if you are fairnly capable of using windows, you won't have too much trouble working with Linux. And if you have some programming skills then even better.
Just ask yourself about the difficulty of Windows - how many average users know how to play with their startup, disable active scripting in IE or setup Restriction Policies. No different than opening Terminal and writing down funny lines like: bn g -s -r make make make make fake ...
So ... Try Linux, it's nice.
Start with live cds move onto dual boot if you like.
I would recommend Knoppix or Ubuntu for starters. I run Suse 10.1 in dual boot on one of the machines, and it's a 64 OS on 64 processor, fully optimized and lightning fast. Can you have that with Windows?
Mrk

[clansman77]

thanks dog for that link about tux magazine.it really is good..

[iceni60]

Originally Posted by iceni60

Linux is better but that doesn't mean it's best for everyone. Windows goes for market share which means they have to dumb down things to keep the masses happy. whereas Linux is written by advanced users for themselves. so it really just depends what you like

i thought what i'd written was very funny at the time, but it's not true. Linux devs spend lots of time doing usability testing, so it's made for everyone.

[WSFuser]

Originally Posted by iceni60

i thought what i'd written was very funny at the time, but it's not true. Linux devs spend lots of time doing usability testing, so it's made for everyone.

idk, i think ur original statement makes good sense. linux still has ways to go before its a easy as windows.

OTOH, im very windows-savvy yet a linux newbie. theyre different and it takes time learning each one.

[iceni60]

Originally Posted by WSFuser

idk, i think ur original statement makes good sense. linux still has ways to go before its a easy as windows.

OTOH, im very windows-savvy yet a linux newbie. theyre different and it takes time learning each one.

Linux is easier then Windows. it might be difficult if you have used Windows first and that's a problem for many people.

with any OS the average person probably needs help setting it up. once Linux is setup it's much, much easier to maintain. there're no defrags, folder cleaning, malware updates or anything like that to think about - just OS updates which is preconfigured.

also with Windows i think you really need to understand abit about security otherwise you will get infected

[iceni60]

i'll tell you why i love Ubuntu so much -

1, when i used Windows i was manly interested in staying secure. now i use ubuntu i'm interested and learning about so much more.

2, when i wanted Windows to do something i'd find a program which would do what i needed. now if i need something i just ask what the command is i need, Linux is just so much more powerful.

it might take abit of time working things out, but once you have your bearings you'll be shocked what you will learn and wonder why anyone would even be thinking about installing Vista.