Why do you use Linux?

[Guest Nawal]

I am doing a project for a class and wanted some feedback as to why you choose Linux over Microsoft especially for a desktop operating system. Thank you.

[ianw1974]

Welcome to the board

 

I started using it for my job at home before I got my job (was a requirement to get the position that I knew Linux).

 

So I spent six months learning and using it at home, and also participating in this board and helping others. I then started my job, continued helping here, doing my job of course and using Linux in a lot of the system I implement. I use it every day, and very rarely use Windows unless I have to because of some VPN client or Management Software that doesn't run under Linux.

[Gowator]

Now that's a whole big question!

 

I first used Linux out of curiosity ... back in the distance past and I think it was Slackware 2.x

My work involved using a lot of proprietry UNIX and Linux seemed a good thing to try... I tried it, didn't find anything interesting and went back to windows for home use....proably back in the mid 90's sometime.

 

Roll forwards to about 1999 and my job was a bt more techy and involved a lot of Solaris 2.5

On one of the training courses the instructor mentioned linux and also the first Solaris x86...

I tried the Solaris x86 but couldn't get anytihng but 640x480 and 16 cols on my graphics card under XSun and the answer seemed to be using XFree ...

I hacked Xfree into Solaris and then figured I'd try the whole linux thing and installed RH5.1

This was lots of fun... and it did a whole lot more than slackware 2 and I started using it more than Windows.. in the end Windows was just on one PC... and I went through all RH6.x and then RH7 was a total mess.

 

Still at this time I was mainly using it for nerdy stuff as opposed to leisure, word processing etc. and i still used Windows for a lot... but I switched to mandrake 7 as my primary distro....

 

Over time things like printers worked under linux, webcams worked without a weeks hacking etc. and I was doing less and less in windows. I also got a load of scrap machines from work which were P90's with 64MB RAM and couldn't really run 2000 effectively and ended up playing more and more with linux and the more I played the more it helped in work.

 

Ultimately I was left with my laptop running windows and everything else running Linux...

i simply found there was almost nothing I needed windows for.... and most importantly all my software was eventually legal and also without stupid and very restrictive EULA's ...

 

Then eventually I just wiped XP off my laptop and since then ive used Linux exclusively (well *BSD and *NIX) ...

 

Technically ... well its just far simpler than windows ... there is nothing you can't learn about and nothing that is hidden. As an example I can see every process on my computer but more importantly I can see what that process is doing and find information on it.

 

For example

root 1523 1 0 Oct11 ? 00:00:00 dhclient -e -pf /var/run/dhclient.eth0.pid -lf /var/lib/dhcp/dhclient.eth0.leases eth0

 

I can simply man dhclient

The Internet Software Consortium DHCP Client, dhclient, provides a means for configuring one or more network interfaces using the

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol, BOOTP protocol, or if these protocols fail, by statically assigning an address.............

 

or I can look at the readme's or the source.

I can see the config files and edit them and learn....

[theYinYeti]

I first used Linux, because that was the only OS I could afford for my new PC.

Then I got used to it, and asked more and more from it, until the no-return point was far behind: there's absolutely no way that Windows could do what I do on my PCs at anywhere near a reasonable price.

 

Yves.

[ilia_kr]

I started using linux because i was curious about it and infected by it since 2005. I use windows occasionally too, mostly because I have to use some proprietary software that doesn't run on Linux. In general - linux covers all my needs.

[Guest Nawal]

thank you all

[jboy]

In my case, it's not Linux over Microsoft, it's Linux in addition to Microsoft. I need to use Windows for work.

 

Originally, I started using Linux as a learning tool when I went into a UNIX job. I found that I really like the OS and I want to keep up with it out of professional interest, plus I find it very useful. I learned a lot about networking configuration, networking apps, difffernt programming languages, and web site development using it. Also some of the utilities and open source software are terrific. So it's a combination of professional and hobbyist interest that makes me want to keep using it.

[Ixthusdan]

I started using Linux when I realized that Microsoft was charging customers for garbage and to fix their problems. (ME, 98SE) I then discovered their deplorable business practices and their despicable business ethics. Giving money to a cancer patient cannot justify conning someone else. B)

[arctic]

In my case, it was a friend that guided me to Linux. I was using Windows ME and Mac OS8.2 as a free-lance journalist and both systems crashed quite frequently. On windows there were also those nasty viruses, troyans and such stuff. Simply ugly.

 

After reformatting once again, I talked to a friend about my probs and he said: Why don't you try Linux?. I knew only OS2 Warp as an alternative OS until then and it had failed miserably (hardware not supported).

 

I gave Linux a try. My friend recommended SUSE, I tried Red Hat 7.2 and was quite pleased. It looked great, it felt good and was stable. But my first steps were - of course - a bit problematic. I forgot things frequently, thought still the Windows and Mac way and was frustrated at times.

 

Then I discovered distrowatch.com and tried other distros, or let's say: almost every distro I could get my hands on. Some where really overwhelming but it was fun. I dual booted for quite some time, tested Slack, Gentoo, Debian, SUSE, Mandriva, Fedora, Arch, Ark, Yoper, Slax, Knoppix, Kanotix, Ubuntu, Mepis, Vidalinux, LBA and countless other distros.

 

I switched distros for some time, searching the perfect fit, and when I used Mandriva for the first time, it somehow felt better then the rest for me. At some time I decided to ditch Windows completely and I used Mandriva and Fedora for some years almost exclusively. I haven't regretted the move to ditch Windows anytime. I got less probs on any Linux system than on Windows ME or OS 8.2 and decided to stick to Linuxes. Currently, I run Debian and Mandriva. Nothing to complain about. Both systems work really well for me (admittedly, Debian has less bugs, but ... hey, it's Debian! ;) ).

 

Now I just got a new job and... guess what: The newspaper for which I work has ditched its Macs (OS 8.2, 9.1, OSX) in favour of a new load of DELL boxes with Windows XP running on them. Well, they work okay for me (I know when XP will get probs so I don't let my box work on too many things at the same time), but the other guys in my office complain frequently about freezes and/or a dying LAN. In those situations, I only smile and say to myself: "Hehehe, my home-office boxes haven't crashed for years... Linux, you rock."

[Helmut]

I use linux because of two reasons:

1) It works very good (with the occaisional exception of premature releases).

2) I do not want to contribute to ripp-offs. I want to be able to look in the mirror without thinking "there is someone contributing to a racket".

Helmut

Edited October 16, 2006 by Helmut

[JonEberger]

i started using linux bc of comp. sci. classes during my undergrad. we were studying unix-based systems and their administration. although i never got it to work well then, it was in my blood from then on. i could always think of new ways to use it.

 

then i finally got a decent computer and installed it. i use it at work now all the time (redhat is in partnership with NC State) and at home (fedora core). i used to use mandrake/mandriva but wanted a little more control and less gui. i've used most of the big distros and solaris as well as irix. i don't have a windows install on a computer at home and only have one on my workstation bc some govt. groups require ms word docs (although LaTeX is so much better).

[Darkelve]

i don't have a windows install on a computer at home and only have one on my workstation bc some govt. groups require ms word docs

 

And can't you use OpenOffice or Microsoft Word under Crossover Office? Or even Windows running in a virtual machine?

 

(sorry to go a little bit OT)

Edited October 16, 2006 by Darkelve

[arctic]

[ot]

The problem is that OpenOffice will sometimes destroy MS Office formatting and vice versa. Thus I can understand that move, even if MS Office can be run with Crossover Office.

[/ot]

[Reiver_Fluffi]

For me personally, it first started out of interest, I wanted to try something new, and I seen a short article about Mandrake 10.1 in the tech section of the local newspaper. But then I forgot about it for a while, then approached the subject again, starting to read up on Linux again, then I bought my first mag with Mandriva 2005 as the coverdisc. That didn't go to well as I was on dial up at the time, eventually I moved to a cable connection and things evolved from there.

 

Now I use Fedora as my distro of choice, for me it is stable and does everything I need from an OS, I still have windows for games, and I have yet to test any win based accounts apps on linux (with wine), which is a killer for me as my professional career would depend on me being able to access this software. I feel in control of my computer, and considerably wiser to the business practices of a natural monopoly that has got too big IMHO. I have no qualms about paying for software, but not if it tries, or intends to lock me into their additional software over that offered by third parties, in an attempt to mitigate competition.

[Gowator]

i don't have a windows install on a computer at home and only have one on my workstation bc some govt. groups require ms word docs

 

And can't you use OpenOffice or Microsoft Word under Crossover Office? Or even Windows running in a virtual machine?

 

(sorry to go a little bit OT)

officially they shouldn't ....since I beleive OASIS is now accepted (course this doesn't help .. if you gotta do it you gotta do it)

 

 

And can't you use OpenOffice

Unfortunately even the formats if otherwise working (and occaisionally the formats are a bit screwed) still write OpenOffice into the document info part of the document... (something like created by=OpenOffice.org) .. so even if you can't tell by looking you can open it in a hex editor and see its not "genuine MS word"

 

I know this sounds trivial (and frankly stupid) but the reason for this is largely the automatic doc management systems that extract this info to classify the document.... Im sure lots could be done (like modifying the doc management system) but ......???