Windows to Linux: Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Tuesday, 28. November 2006, 03:54:53
In the past 5 years I've tried many times to free myself of the Microsoft Windows dominated world. I currently have a dual-boot system with Microsoft Windows XP MCE and PCLinuxOS -but I have yet to go to a 100% Linux system.
Why I want to go...
Linux provides the opportunity to do everything a Windows system can do without the expense of software. With a Windows system, anti-virus and anti-spyware software are a must. This is not true for Linux. Beyond this, Linux also offers a more customizable interface. With KDE and Gnome, a user has infinite choice in tailoring their environment to suit their taste. The icing on the cake is that Linux offers a vast amount of software for anything imaginable -and it's most often free.
To sum it up, Linux is a complete operating system out of the box. It doesn't require additional software to make it secure. If additional software is needed, it is usually free to install.
Why I stay...
As tantalizing as all the Linux perks are, there are just as many drawbacks that keep me from leaving Windows. The issues that concern me most are with hardware. This has little to do with Linux and a lot to do with the Microsoft domination of the computer market. Hardware is made for Windows. If it's not, it's made for Mac. Or both. Seldom is hardware made for Linux.
I have a Hauppauge WinTV PVR-350 television card. I had the card installed and configured in less than 5 minutes in Windows. On the other side, setting it up in Linux proved to be so difficult I finally gave up. Check out the instructions for the IVTV drivers and you'll get an understanding of hardware issues in Linux. These modules do not load automatically.
I bounced back and forth between SuSE and PCLinuxOS. It's not that PCLinuxOS is any better than SuSE, I just felt it leaned a little more toward my taste in applications. I received a lot of help from the PCLinuxOS forum but the TV card issue never got resolved.
Here's another hardware problem -dual monitor setup. Seems easy enough until you try it in Linux. I'd almost given up on this as well but luckily stumbled upon YanC. I hate to think of a dual monitor setup or TV card as exotic or bleeding edge technology. However, Linux is more reliable with less extravagant devices installed.
For the reasons above, I could not part ways with my Windows MCE system. I spend most of my time in Windows because I can watch hockey on one screen while doing something else in the other -like I'm doing as I type this blog.
What will make me go...
Windows Vista is right around the corner. Microsoft, like the RIAA and MPAA, has gone to extremes to prevent piracy. In the process, Microsoft sacrificed customer service and satisfaction.
I'm particularly upset about the Windows Activation system. I've already used up the 3 installations you're allowed to activate on any particular operating system. Activation creates a key based on your hardware configuration at the time of your first installation. Subsequent activations check this key against the original and successful activation occurs if they match. However, if you upgrade your motherboard, CPU, video card, etc. you will most likely encounter a failed activation and receive a message about pirated software.
No matter how many tricks Microsoft has up its sleeve, it will only create more opportunity for people to create cracks. This is the case for the RIAA and MPAA as well. With Vista, the EULA is stricter than anything Microsoft has ever had. This paranoid level of security will more than likely result in alienating customers from the company. It already has me concerned.
With Microsoft focusing most of their effort on anti-piracy, Linux has a golden opportunity to gain some momentum. Linux really needs a standard system to ensure hardware compatibility. With the vast number of distributions available, it will be up to top distributions like Fedora, Mandriva, SuSE, and Ubuntu to lead the way.
I think users want to leave the sandbox Windows puts them in. However, it's comfortable to know that all your toys are going to work. If Linux doesn't improve hardware issues, users will return to the safety-net the sandbox provides because their toys do what they were made to do. To go along with this, Linux software needs to be functional and should not require hours of manual configuration. If I buy a new car, I don't expect I'll need to manually configure the steering alignment and put on tires in order to get it going. Quite often, Linux is like a car that starts right up but can't go forward until the steering is aligned and the tires are put on.
I will switch over to Linux for good once a distribution comes along that makes all of the following happen:
Why I want to go...Linux provides the opportunity to do everything a Windows system can do without the expense of software. With a Windows system, anti-virus and anti-spyware software are a must. This is not true for Linux. Beyond this, Linux also offers a more customizable interface. With KDE and Gnome, a user has infinite choice in tailoring their environment to suit their taste. The icing on the cake is that Linux offers a vast amount of software for anything imaginable -and it's most often free.
To sum it up, Linux is a complete operating system out of the box. It doesn't require additional software to make it secure. If additional software is needed, it is usually free to install.
Why I stay...
As tantalizing as all the Linux perks are, there are just as many drawbacks that keep me from leaving Windows. The issues that concern me most are with hardware. This has little to do with Linux and a lot to do with the Microsoft domination of the computer market. Hardware is made for Windows. If it's not, it's made for Mac. Or both. Seldom is hardware made for Linux.
I have a Hauppauge WinTV PVR-350 television card. I had the card installed and configured in less than 5 minutes in Windows. On the other side, setting it up in Linux proved to be so difficult I finally gave up. Check out the instructions for the IVTV drivers and you'll get an understanding of hardware issues in Linux. These modules do not load automatically.
I bounced back and forth between SuSE and PCLinuxOS. It's not that PCLinuxOS is any better than SuSE, I just felt it leaned a little more toward my taste in applications. I received a lot of help from the PCLinuxOS forum but the TV card issue never got resolved.
Here's another hardware problem -dual monitor setup. Seems easy enough until you try it in Linux. I'd almost given up on this as well but luckily stumbled upon YanC. I hate to think of a dual monitor setup or TV card as exotic or bleeding edge technology. However, Linux is more reliable with less extravagant devices installed.
For the reasons above, I could not part ways with my Windows MCE system. I spend most of my time in Windows because I can watch hockey on one screen while doing something else in the other -like I'm doing as I type this blog.
What will make me go...
Windows Vista is right around the corner. Microsoft, like the RIAA and MPAA, has gone to extremes to prevent piracy. In the process, Microsoft sacrificed customer service and satisfaction.
I'm particularly upset about the Windows Activation system. I've already used up the 3 installations you're allowed to activate on any particular operating system. Activation creates a key based on your hardware configuration at the time of your first installation. Subsequent activations check this key against the original and successful activation occurs if they match. However, if you upgrade your motherboard, CPU, video card, etc. you will most likely encounter a failed activation and receive a message about pirated software.
No matter how many tricks Microsoft has up its sleeve, it will only create more opportunity for people to create cracks. This is the case for the RIAA and MPAA as well. With Vista, the EULA is stricter than anything Microsoft has ever had. This paranoid level of security will more than likely result in alienating customers from the company. It already has me concerned.
With Microsoft focusing most of their effort on anti-piracy, Linux has a golden opportunity to gain some momentum. Linux really needs a standard system to ensure hardware compatibility. With the vast number of distributions available, it will be up to top distributions like Fedora, Mandriva, SuSE, and Ubuntu to lead the way.
I think users want to leave the sandbox Windows puts them in. However, it's comfortable to know that all your toys are going to work. If Linux doesn't improve hardware issues, users will return to the safety-net the sandbox provides because their toys do what they were made to do. To go along with this, Linux software needs to be functional and should not require hours of manual configuration. If I buy a new car, I don't expect I'll need to manually configure the steering alignment and put on tires in order to get it going. Quite often, Linux is like a car that starts right up but can't go forward until the steering is aligned and the tires are put on.
I will switch over to Linux for good once a distribution comes along that makes all of the following happen:
- TV card works without hours of tweaking
- web browser compatible with all plugins
- DVDs play without special software
- USB devices start/stop without issue
WIDGETIZE
Andrew Gregory # 1. December 2006, 16:11
So, for me at the moment, Linux is still best as a server-type system. My current Linux box (Fedora Core 5) is set up sharing files, and being a web server (with Apache, MySql and PHP). It took over from my previous Linux box of 5 years (Red Hat 6). Apart from some hiccups. I don't remember updating my RH6 box at all during those five years, so perhaps that's the secret?!
Now that I've got my FC5 system back in action, I fully expect it to chug along happily for years...
To comment on your last four points:
Hardware support is Linux's weakest point, but that's mostly because hardware manufacturers provide no or weak support. If you want better hardware support, write to the manufacturers! Sadly, you'll probably get about the same response as folks do writing to web sites for better Opera support