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| Thread ID: 56774 | 2005-04-14 22:58:00 | A funny thing about linux | jcr1 (893) | PC World Chat |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 344952 | 2005-04-15 07:24:00 | ...But, after a while curiosity gets the better of me, and heigh, ho, back to trying something else with Linux (no wonder I make such slow progress with it). Are there many others I wonder who have these sort of feelings about Linux? Oh yes indeed. That's the way I learn't Linux and other open source stuff. And after you learnt it and see it work, it is so much more satisfying than point and click as with other OSs. As you learn more and more, you begin to see the effort, skill and altruism that has gone into open source. It still surprises me everyday that something so good and so useful is available to me as a gift by (a) stranger(s). One problem (benefit?) though - there is sooooo much out there it takes more than a lifetime to learn all of it. I am currently struggling mightily with MySQL, PHP and BSD release-building. |
vinref (6194) | ||
| 344953 | 2005-04-15 07:31:00 | Yeah, I think this is very much to do with what you were raised on, so to speak . I think Linux/Unix inherently requires a little more effort from the user, although this is changing somewhat with some of the newer desktop distro's, to the detriment of the OS to some extent IMO . On the other hand, if you threw someone at Windows who had learned elsewhere or in a Linux invironment, then left them to deal with installing USB devices like printers and scanners, perhaps an Unhandled Exception BSOD (or in the case of XP a spontanious reboot), you'd find someone who pretty soon was going up the wall and seeking safer waters . Computing is actually a fairly complex business, hiding the complexity has it's advantages and disadvantages, same with letting it all hang out in the open, only certain types and experience can handle that (careful) |
Murray P (44) | ||
| 344954 | 2005-04-16 22:39:00 | To me the biggest drawback for linux is the lack of driver support from the manufacturers. Maybe that'll change with the likes of Mandiva & there's bound to be others soon. With windows there's only 1distro, linux has hundreds. If linux standardised where drivers are installed it would help. Applications should have names in english, not clues from a cryptic crossword. Fonts in linux are horrible, I use the the windows fonts in linux, much nicer. Configuration is a pain in linux, but it does teach you about the finer points of your system. Once you've got the hang of it, you get a sense of staisfaction when something goes right. I haven't noticed any difference in system speed from one to the other, boot up time is similar when you haven't got heaps starting up in windows. Browsers & email start quicker in linux, unless using ie or oe. The speed of the system is dependant on my keyboard speed, if they could invent a keyboard that could keep up with my swearing speed, that would be something different. But as jcr1 says, if you want to do something and get on with it, use xp. Linux still has a way to go in the user friendly department. I'll keep on using it though and watch it mature into a proper ms rival. Hopefully open office will start displaying .doc documents correctly in the next release, then ms office'll be in trouble. |
Phil B (648) | ||
| 344955 | 2005-04-17 01:12:00 | However my MS Certified brother nearly went purple at that suggestion . He might have to listen to his (one day) RedHat certified sister :p I still use Windows mostly as a desktop as most of my customers have these jolly Windows machines installed . As a software developer my software tends to be Windows based but I always have Linux/open source products in the back of my mind . What I love about Linux, is there are a number of Window Managers around . You are not stuck with one although you have change Windows to a degree . The other thing I like about Linux is it will run without a gui (umm, I suppose the Recovery Console is not running in a gui but it tries to limit what you can do) . Yes, hardware drivers are a pain, but they are improving all the time . At the end of the day I use both Windows and Linux . |
dolby digital (5073) | ||
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