It's official: Windows 7 is THE best Windows version ever!

LibO, and I also use AbiWord.



I think Ubuntu is even starting to look better, especially dark mode.

 

i like libo. abi, otoh, is another story. i gave it a try a few times but didn't like it. proved problematic for me.
dark mode looks really nice.

 

You can also check your Telemetry Data in browser.
Open browser and in address bar type: about:telemetry

Browsers:

Firefox
SeaMonkey
Pale Moon
New Moon
MyPal

 

AbiWord had a few problems with Ubuntu OS's after 14.04. It works properly again for me on 20.04. Dark mode not only looks good it's easier on the eyes lol.



And AbiWord looks good in DM!

 

it does indeed look good. better than ms word i must say.

 

Indeed. I haven't used Word literally for years. I started running OpenOffice in 2008 and never looked back.

 

Looks are fine and dandy, but will OpenOffice, AbiWord and LibreOffice render a Microsoft word document correctly, all the time? This is rather important in the real world of business correspondence.

 

Absolutely not. That's Linux's biggest problem imho. Closely followed by the Windows propriety Gaming.

 

And that's exactly what I'm getting at. It was quite some years ago when a contractor installing structured wiring in our home sent me the details of the work in an OpenOffice document, it looked like absolute garbage when I opened it in MS word, and the only way it would render properly was to launch my Linux USB stick (sorry I can't remember the live Linux distro) and open it in OpenOffice. The average person simply doesn't have or know about this option at their fingertips.

 

Here's the thing; I don't care. Although it's possible to save AbiWord and LibO so they'll render in Word. As the 'real world of business correspondence' doesn't particularly affect me it's a bit academic. As I stated earlier, I've used OO or a fork of some sort since 2008, either on Linux, Mac or Windows, sometimes a portable version on a USB stick, and it's not been a problem for me personally. So it's fine and dandy for me.

 

I think M$ Office & Gaming are the only things keeping Linux from dethroning Windows. People say there's too many Distros but if those two problems were fixed manufacturers would step in & ensure seamless interoperability between lots of Distros.

 

If only the masses would have followed suit. MS was dastardly clever knowing full well with their corner of the market on laptops, few desktops etc. They had a whole new generation of buyers into Windows 10 as the latest greatest and to most the only O/S short of MAC they would be able to peddle it to. Government bought into it too. And it worked for them like a charm laughing all the way to the bank.

 

unfortunately, i had issues with abi and with other ms office alternatives. most of the time ms documents aren't rendered correctly.

 

I think the MS hegemony is crumbling a bit. They don't dominate the mobile market. But you can live without Windows. It isn't really that much of an effort lol. I don't regret moving to unix at all.

From a security standpoint it makes a lot of sense. I really do feel more secure online.

From a day to day running standpoint it makes a lot of sense. I find macOS and Ubuntu much easier to operate, use and especially update.

I really do feel liberated.

 

IF Linux were ever to be a serious replacement for Windows this would absolutely change. Nobody is putting the effort into exploiting a desktop operating system with a single digit percentage market share.

That said I do wish there was an acceptable alternative to Windows, but at this point there is not, no matter how much anyone wants Linux or macOS to be it. They have had actual decades to do so and haven't pulled it off.

 

Unix is integrally more secure than Windows anyway, but I agree with your point about security. Ironically the plethora of Linux distros/flavours is both its weak and strong point. A disparate minority operating system isn't a good potential target for malware but at the same time precludes real compatibility between systems.

As for acceptable alternatives; I think this is more subjective for the individual user. Ubuntu and macOS are perfectly acceptable, and in fact highly preferable, for me personally.

 

Agreed, it is entirely subjective. As an individual user you can use whatever you like and what works best for you is the best thing to use. As an IT director I have to approach this as someone that has to roll out and maintain multiple PCs for a group of mostly novice users. In that situation I have to go with what is mainstream, because people.

 

Yep, them's the problem lol.

 

There is actually a competitor for Windows, and I've read several articles that said MS is taking notice. Unfortunately, for better or worse, it's Google and their Chrome OS. I've seen Chrome laptops in Walmarts, Staples and Office Depot. I can understand Walmart, where regular (and some pretty weird not so regular) people shop. That they're selling in Staples and Office Depot who cater more to business type customers was interesting, and they are being bought according to clerks.

I've never used Chrome, so have no idea how viable it is. My assumption is it's something like Android on steroids, but I don't know.

 

I'm pretty sure Chrome OS is based on Gentoo (Linux).

 

I have never talked to anyone that was willing to switch the Chrome OS from any other OS. I'm sure it has its fans but unless everything you do is web based it just won't work.

 

Looks like Chrome OS is beginning to change with the latest, or next, release. It grabbed 27% of the laptops sold last year, and they want more.

Chrome OS 89 groundbreaking update gets Chromebooks ready to take on Windows and Mac | Laptop Mag

 

A couple of years ago my mom's Vista laptop basically became unusable. She only liked the Chrome browser anyway, and that wouldn't run on Vista eventually. I said I'd buy her a new laptop but it wouldn't be Windows. Although she protested when I bought her a Chromebook, after using it for five minutes she looked up at me and asked: "Why aren't all computers like this?".

Of course, she just uses it for email, reading the papers and streaming. She still loves it and has no plans to return to Windows.

 

I guess surfing is the biggest feature for the Chrome OS, although from the article above, it appears they're beginning to become more like other OS's, while trying to keep the Chrome OS simplicity. Again, I've never used one and only seen them in stores, so haven't much of a clue about them.