Why are you afraid of Big Bad Linux

Hello,
I think the title says it all. The question is: all those people who have not yet at least partially merged into Linux, what are your greatest fears, reservations? What keeps from trying?
Mrk

 

I'd not exactly say this is a fear issue.

For me it's an advantage/disadvantage consideration. Linux on the desktop has a single advantage for my use. It's free. Since I'm not broke, that's just not much of an incentive.

The disadvantages are, for me, pretty major in comparison. Games not working is a big one (spending a few evenings mucking about with Wine or Cedega to make some of my games sorta-work doesn't count). Having to waste time on a tarball/configure/compile if whatever piece of software I'd like doesn't happen to be packaged for whatever distro I'm using is another. Windows doesn't have to save me more than an hour or two before it has paid for itself in time saved.

I do run Slackware on my server.

 

when i first was trying linux, what most detered me was the terminal and installing software. not all software comes in a nice rpm or deb package, especially drivers. as for the terminal, i just wanted a GUI for everything.

after having tried linux several times, its not so scary anymore but its not an OS i can use in the long run. i need my games.

 

What keeps from trying?
Well, I dial up to connect internet, buttttttttttttt haven't found the way to do it with HSP56 MR(SIS)modem(or it is better to say have modem), so that...no linux here!!!(no driver for the new kernel of linux).
Maybe sometime in the future.Incredible, basic things are dificult, very very basic.

 

Well, games are a problem and what about the paid software on my windows?
Will go into Linux once the license expired.

 

Is it a winmoden?

 

It is from "microChips", I have tryed the drivers for lower kernel, but doesn't work, and I think I'm not goint to waste more time, I'm tired for doing that.If you install windows every modem works, but...for linux it is a headache.(I have only used linux out of the net, and I like many things, sound, open office for linux and many others, but as I say basic things doesn't work, I even tryed many distributions but...forget it).

 

Hello,

The problem is not with Linux but with the developer.
Here is a personal example:

I recently bought a computer with Asus M2V mobo with K8T890 chipset. Now, this thing is relatively new so that even my Windows XP did not have the drivers even for network, and I had to install them manually.

Then, I installed Ubuntu 6.10. No drivers recognized.

Luckily, and fortunately, Asus packs Linux sources on the CD.
So I followed the instructions in the readme.txt and successfully installed my network. Then, I tried the audio - but the source was broken. So I googled my driver from the manufacturer's site, downloaded the good source and complied it. And then I added the drivers to load at startup.

Took me about 20 minutes. The satisfaction was HUGE!!!! Linux is the most fun you can ever have with any software.

Now, if all manufacturers packed .rpms or .debs or any package on their CD, with good validation that they actually work, you'd enjoy the same quality of support as with Windows.

Mrk

 

You hit the nail on the head to some extent. Grandma that can't even figure out to insert driver CD and click "next" on every dialog thereafter, has no chance in hell of doing what you just did. It's a major stumbling block for Linux desktop adoption.

And for me, I considered what you just described as fun 10 years ago. Nowadays it's no longer fun, but rather a major annoyance keeping me from what I actually want to spend my time on. I'd rather pay for XP and just have things work.

 

zorro zorrito stated the 2 most important reasons ime. Wintel modem here. Had a tar or gz file that was supposed to work. But I couldn't make it work. And the no drivers or not enough of them. I wish I could just send Ubuntu my hardware specs. For a nominal fee of $5 they'd send me a customized install disk. I mean they give it away free now including shipping. That would be so cool!

 

Hello,
Grandmas aren't supposed to install everything.
But think ... once you setup your linux, it's hassle free. You can give it to any granny and she'll enjoy bulletproof online experience without hips, anti-this and anti-that. For rookies, linux distros come with far more applications than windows and require far less maintenance. It's really plug and play.
Mrk

 

keyword right there. setting up linux is likely the biggest obstacle towards using it.

 

Hello,
Setting it up is the most fun a geek can have.
It's 10 times more fun than tweaking hips, for example. Windows is a poor show when it comes to "owning the system".
Mrk

 

i think you should ask what's stopping people from using Macs. loads of linux users who have Macs love them.

i like linux though, even though i just broke just about everything which uses a GUI no GTK stuff works anymore lol. i'm stuck using fvwm my firefox update failed too

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/3676/screenshotat2.th.jpg

should have taken my advice from this post -
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showpost.php?p=871755&postcount=54

 

For all you dialup users, there's plenty of cheap external serial modems that work in Linux.

Best Data 56SX92 SMART ONE

You can also find (computer fairs, flea markets) plenty of used USR Sportster 56K serial modems, I bought 2 for $5

For those of you with Linux fears, PCLinunixOS is a great cure

 

though not the subject of this thread, ill answer anyways:

1. custom hardware; meaning i have to purchase a pre-built computer

building (and overclocking) a computer is fun for me in the same way other people like tweaking and setting up linux.

theres also the games issue but apple's boot camp may or may not remedy that problem.

 

No matter how much the Linux lovers toute the great things about linux, the trouble remains that linux is not user friendly. If I wanted an os where I had to be a programer to get it to work I would probable still be useing Dos. As much as linux proponents talk about the evils of windows the fact remains that windows do work and and you don't have to be an expert in code or experienced in compiling to get things to work. I have personally tried dozens of distros of linux and havent found one yet that i would drop windows for. Oh and as far as the title of this thread, not afraid of linux just don't like it.

bigc

 

i don't like setting up linux, if i don't fix my GUI problems i'll probably stay with text based software. boot camp and parallels do fix the gaming 'problem'

lol bigc hates linux

 

No I don't hate linux it just isn't ready for prime time.

 

yeap, i don't hate windows either, we all have a similar interest in computers, that's good enough for me. i'm not that bothered by which os people use, i use linux because i prefer it and not because of any strong feelings against proprietary software.

 

I kind of wish I wasn't so lazy and I would probably at least dual boot Linux. But i am just to lazy to have to compile whenever I want to install something and get it to work. But that is just me.

 

Maybe you need to try the right Distro. There's a few that don't require CL, "compile" and things work right off the get-go.

 

Hmmm like a lot of the other people responding here I don't use Linux but I have used it. Windows is a better platform for my needs as it

(1) has more games support (although Doom3 and UT2004 both run nicely on Linux),

(2) Supports key applications including the amazing Exact Audio Copy, AnyDVD, and Nero Recode (I realise there is a Linux version of the main part of Nero but for me the video features of Nero are much more valuable).

(3) On my server I had a bug to do with some plugins for Slimserver so I moved it from Linux to Windows Server 2003 and resolved the problem and also benefited from a more feature rich implementation of MusicMagicMixer

So in short Windows does the things I like better and Wine doesn't do enough to close the gap. I still have a soft spot for GNU/Linux however that's because I learned my serious coding skills on Apollo/Domain, and later coded on HP-UX (for HP), SunOs then Solaris and AIX. I've been an HP/UX and Solaris systems admin too. I don't work in computing anymore though and have no need to keep Unix skills.

I think Ubuntu is an excellent desktop distribution but my life is easier under XP/2003. I haven't even mentioned device driver support which reminds me of my OS/2 days at IBM.

Phasechange

 

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?In...-_-Modems-_-56kExternalModems-_-56SX92WB-BULK
$7.50 + $8.00 est shp = $15.50 total
Including the 25-pin to 9-pin serial cable

vs. $27+ otd @ GearXS

 

I have tried over twenty five distros and haven't found one yet that is user freindly. Some are a little better than others but they are still not able to make a dent in the desktop market for the simple reason that linux is a pain in the butt to use. As far as just surfing the web linux is ok. But let the average computer user try to get a DVD burner working in linux or try to get a dial up modem working, not going to happen. The main stream comp user is definatly not ready for linux and linux is not ready for them. The Linux distro creators by trying to keep linux completely safe are effectivly locking their Os's out of the market by making them just to difficult for the average user to understand.