Do you run Linux - if not why?

Andy_L

wongataa wrote: »

I don't use Linux as the software I want to use requires Windows. I have no problem with Windows.

This +1
filler

motorguy

Norman_Castle wrote: »

I focussed on the price.

Any machine i've had either came with Windows "free" or if it was a used machine (3 out of my 4 were bought used) had a Windows Key with it that allowed me to install / upgrade to Win10 free.

motorguy

ThemeOne wrote: »

I think most people just aren't sufficiently interested in IT to explore anything other than what their computer came with.

Added to that most people now use mobile devices more than laptops or desktops, and very very few mobile users will jailbreak their devices and try and install a different OS on it.

+1

I have a car. I want to drive it. I dont need to know how to build it and i dont care how it does what it does. It performs a function for me.

MS1950

My PC is set up to boot to either Windows 10 or Linux Mint - selected from an initial menu that defaults to Linux unless Windows is selected.


I prefer Linux Mint - I find Windows slow, bloated and forever chundering away running processes that I've no control over.

Johnmcl7

motorguy wrote: »

If you get your kicks by using it then fine, but please dont tell me i'm "wrong" or am "too stupid to know otherwise" just because i dont want to be bothered with a "solution" for problems i dont have and that will leave me less than 100% compatible for the purposes i need it for.

Well put although personally I find Powershell is more than workable for command line work and while I couldn't build Windows from a kernel if I wanted to, it still has a huge amount of flexibility.

I don't believe for a moment these people claiming that while they can spend endless hours getting Linux working the way they want, they can't get a functional Windows install. I use a mix of Linux and Windows and all these terrible descriptions of Windows simply aren't true, I don't see the point in lying about it.

Netbooks should have been the turning point for Linux as that was when it was ideal, Windows at that point was sluggish on the underpowered netbooks and price was crucial as well. Except it highlighted that Linux simply isn't for the masses, the lack of standardisation meant each one was different and far too often I had to fix them by going into the command line and config files which general users are never going to be able to do.

I have nothing against Linux and will use it where I find it suits but I can't see it will ever be the wide scale operating system people always think it can be. Never mind though, next year is the year of Linux right?

motorguy

Johnmcl7 wrote: »

Well put although personally I find Powershell is more than workable for command line work and while I couldn't build Windows from a kernel if I wanted to, it still has a huge amount of flexibility.

I don't believe for a moment these people claiming that while they can spend endless hours getting Linux working the way they want, they can't get a functional Windows install. I use a mix of Linux and Windows and all these terrible descriptions of Windows simply aren't true, I don't see the point in lying about it.

Netbooks should have been the turning point for Linux as that was when it was ideal, Windows at that point was sluggish on the underpowered netbooks and price was crucial as well. Except it highlighted that Linux simply isn't for the masses, the lack of standardisation meant each one was different and far too often I had to fix them by going into the command line and config files which general users are never going to be able to do.

I have nothing against Linux and will use it where I find it suits but I can't see it will ever be the wide scale operating system people always think it can be. Never mind though, next year is the year of Linux right?

Well said.

I've nothing against it either. It has its place, but it will never be mainstream.

If someone wants to install it and play around with it and it works for them and their needs then great but that doesnt make them right and everyone else wrong.

I had a look at my Desktop PC today and did a check of its age from Dell's website. Its build date was March 2012, so its 6.5 years old. Runs some sort of old i3 processor and has 4GB not the 8GB i thought it had and a 256GB SSD. I'm running twin 27 inch monitors off it on a decent resolution. Running Win 10 pro that i got as a free upgrade from Win7 which came with the machine.

Today i was running probably 10 open Chrome tabs and excel and a couple of other things and RAM using was sitting at around 67%, CPU around 5% and disk usage was close to negligable.

I've no reason to think it wont hit the 10 year marker before i would need to think about replacing it, if at all. I only gave £100 or so (£97 delivered - just checked) for it a couple of years ago (back in May 2016 as it happens so 2.5 years ago). All i've done is stick an SSD in.

I just cant see any advantage in running Linux on that, but can lots of potential disadvantages.

prowla

I happily use Windows, Linux, and MacOS daily.

The only niggles I have are:

• The keyboard on the Mac and its poor support for a middle button.
• The uninspiring user interface of Windows 10.

tronator

motorguy wrote: »

• Better package management - Win10 does periodic updates and i leave it to it. No need to manage "packages"

For someone who claims to have worked in IT for a long time you have very little knowledge, what "package management" means. It is more than just your OS updates. It is much easier to keep all your software up-to-date in Linux. All your updates for the OS and all programs are in one place. In Windows you need to download updates for most programs one by one and install them manually.

Herzlos

I'm a fan of Linux but I don't see the point for most people - they just use what their machine comes with and get on with life. Windows is usually "free" and supports everything most people need.

Linux is nice but it's a pain if things don't just work.

pmartin86

motorguy wrote: »

Instead of "Why do you not use Linux?" what i'd like to know is why you do use Linux? What does it give you that Windows, iOS or Android doesnt?

I think this is it in a nutshell. I work in IT and regularly use Windows of countless varieties, Mac since the dawn of OSX and Linux both on servers and desktops, so I have a wide range of experience at multiple levels


At home, my main PC is Windows 10, my main Laptop is Windows 10, i have Linux installed on an older Mac Mini that runs purely as a game server.


My reason for Window 10? It does what I need it to with the least amount of hassle and has fewer limitations than Linux. Granted, i COULD find a distro of Linux that works just how I want and with what I want, but why would I? I've already got Windows that does what I want and how I want it with almost unlimited support when something goes wonky.


I think the key questions that need to be asked when people "slate" windows and say "you must have Linux" is "Why? What can it offer that's new or better that what I already have?" Unfortunately, I've yet to come across a broad answer to that question.