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24 Comments
- deadbaby, on 01/28/2008, -7/+24The #1 thing I learned using desktop Linux is the software quality just isn't there yet. The functionality is there but the interfaces & integration between applications is abysmal.
- PierceUK, on 01/28/2008, -2/+11only 8 points... if it were 10 this would be on the front page by now!
But very good article and nice to know not everybody on here is a fanboy! - Barbosa, on 01/29/2008, -4/+8That may be your experience, but I beg to differ. It's not like the expensive, DRM'd, EULA'd software for Windows is problem free. You may be wrong, but at least you didn't get buried though...
- SilenceGold, on 01/29/2008, -2/+6You can make money being a Linux Administrator.
- Dihuko, on 01/29/2008, -0/+3I love Linux. I have dabbled for hours in various distros including Ubuntu (Slax got me started into Linux-I thought the whole concept was amazing) and have gained lots of knowledge through problem solving with the help of their forums and various online resources. However, I keep coming back to Windows. I don't want to use Windows-I think Ubuntu 7.10 is a lot better than Windows, but the reasons I continue to use it are:
-iTunes (I have an iPod Touch and I just can't replace it with Amarok or another player in Linux because I have a lot of protected songs and videos I like to watch/transfer)
-Games (I run Steam (Orange Box) and UT2004, and eventually probably COD4, and UT3. I recently bought a new 8600GT for games like those-additionally, I don't want to pay to use Cedega)
-Office Apps (I used OpenOffice.org for a while around a year ago-it is a great suite of programs, but when I would frequently switch between Microsoft Office and OpenOffice.org, I would run into problems where text would be not formatted correctly)
I know a lot of people would recommend a dual-boot, but in my opinion, that just defeats the purpose when you could have "100%" compatibility with one of the OS's on your HDD. I even got a recommendation once to run Ubuntu virtually inside of Windows....
I really want to switch to Linux, but it is just these few, but major obstacles that are preventing me from permanently making the switch. I have sometimes compulsively made the jump for a week or so on one of my systems, only to go back because of some problems and knowing Windows already 100% worked for me.
I really hope Linux gains enough market share to become more mainstream so that more programs can be developed for it. But in my opinion, if you were to mention "Linux" to a normal electronic consumer, he or she would freak out about command lines and stuff. - christophski, on 01/28/2008, -1/+3Numbers 4 & 5 are so true
- stackered, on 01/29/2008, -0/+2As apposed to the rest...? Unless your calling him a liar... are ya? Huh? ARE YA?!
- Roger, on 01/29/2008, -6/+8Well said and 100% accurate.
Now prepared to be buried. - mearom, on 01/29/2008, -0/+2Why is he dugg down?
- StanStutter, on 01/29/2008, -0/+2Something else he didn't mention: Linux is not an alternative to Windows, it is an alternative OS. There are a lot of people trying to make Linux a Windows without Microsoft. It doesn't work that way.
As a Linux user, there is one thing that I've come to understand: The only thing that does Windows worst than Windows is Linux.
If you prefer the software which is specifically designed for Windows, then just run Windows. The single most determining factor in choosing a platform is the applications that is supported by it.
Linux comes with a lot of great software, just check your repos. If the free software that is supported on this platform isn't good enough for you, then you will never be happy with Linux. The effort that you put into making Linux an alternative Windows will only lead you back to Windows. Why bother at all? - jake6730, on 01/29/2008, -1/+3More people need to be like this guy. Some people need to chill with the OS wars, and try other things to see what they like best. I know a lot of Vista people that absolutely love it, a lot of Mac people that are not afraid to tell everyone that they are running the best OS in existence, and I love to boot up my Ubuntu every day knowing that I am in control.
- dmourati, on 01/30/2008, -0/+1Great post. I like the Linux Multimedia and Perl books propping up your monitors.
- SilenceGold, on 01/29/2008, -1/+2Not really...Comptia Linux+ and Redhat's own certifications have been around for years. Redhat Enterprise series, Solaris and few others are commerical Linux products. If you want to find a high paying Linux administrators, look in datacenters who are working as tech support administrator for those who sell managed services.
I'm not a Linux nor a Windows administrator..I'm more of a FreeBSD guy. Yea, I don't make as much as I would like to... - ruiacp, on 01/29/2008, -1/+2I don't know his earnings but mine were 0€ , the same I would have done with windows/mac. But for me savings are sometimes better than earnings.
- obliviousfool, on 01/29/2008, -0/+1Real money, or virtual money?
- InfodivaMLIS, on 01/29/2008, -0/+1one of these days... I will cross over... I am so tired of being at the mercy of Bill.
- BrainInAJar, on 01/29/2008, -2/+2if you stick to K* apps it's not bad... KDE is pretty self-consistent.
And it doesn't matter which kernel you shove it on, OpenSolaris, FreeBSD, etc... KDE runs great on all of them - BrainInAJar, on 01/29/2008, -2/+1"Redhat Enterprise series, Solaris and few others are commerical Linux products."
Umm... Solaris contains absolutely no Linux code... it's therefore not a commercial Linux product. Solaris is all UNIX, baby - nerddtvg, on 01/29/2008, -1/+0What I learned using Linux: Designing for browsers other than IE is a must. Apparently this was not part of #3 because it was completely messed up on my Firefox.
- BrainInAJar, on 01/29/2008, -2/+1not as much as an admin for a commercial UNIX ( ie, HPUX, AIX, Solaris, etc )
Linux admins are the new MCSE's - tabularassa, on 01/29/2008, -3/+1So bright... eyes sting...
- noname500, on 01/29/2008, -6/+3What I Learned using Linux over the last 10 years
I started using Linux as my primary desktop and operating system in 1998. After brief flirtations with FVWM 95 and Enlightenment, I settle on Gnome (with it’s various WMs over the years ) and Redhat/Fedora (until switching to Ubuntu last fall ).
1. My computer is mine. I didn’t license or borrow it from an OS vendor. I don’t want to ask permission to install or uninstall software on it, including the operating system. If I upgrade or swap out parts, I don’t have to justify it to anyone ( except maybe the Mrs. if it’s a bit pricey ).
2. I don’t want to feel guilty about using software that works. I understand that software authors need to feed their families, but there is a better choice then stealing it or doing without it when I don’t have the cash. Many open source authors are happy that I use and like their software, thrilled when I feedback useful bug reports when something is broken or could be better, and ecstatic when I offer a reasonable, well formated and documented patch. BTW - where is your WinZip license?
3. WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) is great - WYGIWYG ( what-you-get-is-what-you-get ) sucks! I don’t expect software authors to anticipate every possible use I have for their application, but if they won’t change it meet my needs, at least let me! Every time I work on an MS box and run into a shortfall with a piece of software, I feel helpless - I very likely can’t fix it even if I have the knowledge and the tools. I don’t like felling helpless.
4. The command line won’t kill you. Don’t get me wrong, I like point-n-click and next-next-finish as much as the next guy, but opening a text editor, loading a file and scrolling to the last line just to see how many lines are in the file is silly compared to “wc -l file.txt” from the command line prompt. The amount of time it takes to get familiar with the command line, man pages, and basic GNU tool chain commands can’t be close to the time I see wasted on searching for and installing single use, GUI tools like image and audio converters or text search-and-replace editors.
5. No, it doesn’t work like {insert favorite OS here}. After 10 years of Gnome, I sit down at an XP or Vista box and want to chuck the keyboard across the room in about 10 minutes. I understand that it’s hard to change from what is familiar to what is different and strange, but don’t point at what you know and say everything has to work like that or it’s broken. I have been a Gnome user for a long time, but I keep KDE installed on my desktop, and use it off and on. I don’t bag on Windows because it’s user interfaces make different choices ( Now, the fact that is loses my data under BSOD’s or gets infected by viruses/malware /trojans every time I surf the net is a different issue. )
6. You don’t have to be a genius, but you have to be able to learn. I have had people “ooh” and “aah” over my use of Linux and command of the environment. Don’t get me wrong, I like adoration as much as the next guy, but I didn’t get here by using my photographic memory on the “Linux in 24 Days” book. I learned what I needed to know, a little bit at a time, for the problem in front of me at the time. I reused what I learned, a little bit at a time, putting it with other little bits here and there to meet other needs or wants. I had to admit very early on, that I don’t know everything there is to know about Linux and likely never would - But it’s been fun trying to get there! In fact, it always bugs me when someone has been using a computer/OS for a few years and still tries to shut it off with the monitor power button and thinks the browser IS the internet.
7. No, I’m not a fanboy. Just because I found something that works for me doesn’t make me deviant, eccentric, a fanatic, or antisocial. If you hear me advocating for open source or Linux, or if I point out some of the pros and cons of your choices verses my choices, it is most likely because I have noticed that what your doing isn’t really working for you! I don’t enjoy watching other people want to throw their keyboards across the room any more than I enjoy the feeling myself. I don’t enjoy the feeling of being trapped, of just settling for mediocre, of expecting poor quality to be the norm and I don’t wish that on anyone else.
8. Penguins are cute. OK, this was the hardest lesson. Since few people understood Linux when I started, but they understood the Linux mascot, Tux the Penguin, many of my friends and family have gotten me ( and continue to get me ) penguins for Christmas, birthdays, just-because-I-saw-it-and-knew-you-would-like-it gifts. Just look at my desk at work: - ChompTheMan, on 01/28/2008, -7/+2I learned all this in 6 months, what took you so long?
- joeglab, on 01/29/2008, -10/+3So how much money do you make running Linux?
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