JaseP
Posts: 4
Joined: 4/6/2002 Status: offline
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by MacCready [B]What possible atvantage would there be in anyone running linux? Ok its supposed to be(or is)a more stable operating system. Problem is not many users=not much software. I can understand a die hard linux person wanting to change that though. Linux to me is a viable way to Rebel against the corporate giant Microsoft. But my addiction to quality software keeps me on Win 95 (233 mhz system) and Win 98SE (1333mhz system). Im loathed to even go with a newer windows enviorment, 2000.ME'or the new one XP. [/B][/QUOTE] Not many users??? Try 20 million worldwide and growing. Granted, many of them are i the server market, but Linux is gaining momentum worldwide. I hear France and Germany are switching to Linux for Gov't uses. As the system gets easier and easier to install, users are popping up all the time. Soon, most Linux boxes will be able to run most Win9X software using either Lindows, Wine, WineX (none of which are really emulation, so much as intercept and translation of system calls) or an emulation software like vmware. Not much software??? Granted the commericial software is limited, but there are titles to be found for virtually everything else. Quake1-3, Castle Wolfenstein 3D, SimCity 3000, FAKK2, Tribes2, Alpha Centuri, The Sims, and several other titles are available in Linux native. Other titles will run under WineX (Jedi Knight, Fallout 1&2&Tactics, etc.) by Transgaming (go to the transgaming website to see a list of games that people have gotten to run under Linux). Word processors and web browsers can be found for free, as are programming tools (full APIs for various open-source things such as OpenGL are available). CD burning software is generally free, and many times it is superior to its Windoze counterparts. Database software is free, as are database serving software,... Linux has built in firewalling (something that wasn't available until WinXPee). Linux is a multi-user operating system by default (so a different login for each family member,... no more screwing up your settings). There are virtually no native viruses that attack Linux (maybe 12 to Windoze's 200,000),... and no way to get software to install itself automatically like in Windoze, so no web based infection. E-mail under Linux has features only found in expensive business productivity products, such as filtering of e-mails (if it's not addressed to you specifically, you can have it automatically be dumped to the deleted mail bin). Linux distros usually come with a choice of about 5-6 web browsers, 2-3 word processors, 1-3 e-mail programs, 20+ games (tetris clones, mahjongg clones, some 3D stuff). Games under Linux generally run 20% or better more efficiently than their Windoze counterparts (less OS overhead). Linux is generally more secure than Windoze. Linux boxes can be set up to be anything from servers (print, e-mail, fax, file, database) to desktop machines. Linux is gaining in the embedded device market as well (PDAs, Cell Phones, the PlayStation2,... etc.). Linux is more likely to have working emulators for consoles than Windoze (again, the PS2 connection may bear fruit soon). So, yeah, I can't see any advantage to switching to Linux either,... :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
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