Linux No0b - should I switch? Why?

[LukeLinusFanFic]

I know some of you are really hardcore Linux users, and you look at windows users like they look at apple users. 

 

I know nothing about Linux, but am genuinely interested - what am I missing out on? 

[EG!]

2 minutes ago, SwagMaestro said:

I know some of you are really hardcore Linux users, and you look at windows users like they look at apple users. 

 

I know nothing about Linux, but am genuinely interested - what am I missing out on? 

For normal use like browsing, watching video's and gaming you don't miss anything, if you are a developer the linux terminal is superior over command prompt and the best reason in my opinion is that most Linux distributions are free and Windows 10 can easily set you back €100. 

Usability and that stuff is all personal preferences, I like windows file explorer.

[Denned]

Throw it on an old laptop or on Virtualbox and test it out. You can also me live CDs of most major distros to test it out on your main pc.

[Radium_Angel]

13 minutes ago, SwagMaestro said:

I know some of you are really hardcore Linux users, and you look at windows users like they look at apple users. 

 

I know nothing about Linux, but am genuinely interested - what am I missing out on? 

List what you do on Windows, research if you can do that on Linux, then try out a VM (if your system is new enough) or a LiveCD/LiveUSB.

 

[FlappyBoobs]

11 minutes ago, EG! said:

if you are a developer the linux terminal is superior over command prompt

 

That's a sys admin thing, not a developer thing. You are confusing "scripting" with "programming". 

 

Also it's not command prompt that people use to do anything relevant, most use powershell, and for some Bash. 

[Umberto]

5 hours ago, FlappyBoobs said:

 

That's a sys admin thing, not a developer thing. You are confusing "scripting" with "programming". 

[FlappyBoobs]

5 hours ago, Umberto said:

To put it another way, why would someone with the capability of modifying the entire OS (a developer) care about the superiority of an interface, they can make their own if the included tool doesn't do what is required. 

[EG!]

18 hours ago, FlappyBoobs said:

 

That's a sys admin thing, not a developer thing. You are confusing "scripting" with "programming". 

 

Also it's not command prompt that people use to do anything relevant, most use powershell, and for some Bash. 

Linux has built in ssh capabilities, it's better optimised for using less ram than windows which makes lesser computers run smoother, this also makes it why you can run so many linux vm's.

But indeed I use gitbash on my windows pc at work and I've grown quite fond of Windows 10 so you won't see me switchen but there are a few devs here who would if we could.

[wasab]

On 1/23/2019 at 5:52 PM, FlappyBoobs said:

To put it another way, why would someone with the capability of modifying the entire OS (a developer) care about the superiority of an interface, they can make their own if the included tool doesn't do what is required. 

Because that is like mad work? 

[shahaan]

Scenario 1: Idealism

If you are using Windows and it meets your daily computing needs, then you are not missing out on anything in particular and I cannot think of a reason for encouraging you to try Linux, except that giving your OS market share vote to Linux (free, open-source) instead of Windows (paid, closed-source) will help tip the balances ever so slightly more in favor of the principles that drive the development of free and open-source software, eventually leading to a healthier (community-driven, democratic, transparent, open, free, etc.) global software ecosystem for the future. If you cannot be bothered with that kind of thing, then your choice is clear.

 

Scenario 2: Human Nature

If you are curious and want to explore for the sake of satisfying your curiosity, then by all means do as many of the previous posts have suggested and try it out either by booting from a live USB (limited experience but a decent introductory trial) or by installing in a virtual environment like Virtualbox.

 

Scenario 3: Old PC

If you have older hardware on which the latest Windows does not run well, speed- or compatibility-wise, then you might find a Linux OS like Debian 9 Stretch with Xfce desktop environment or Xubuntu 18.04 LTS may work better with that hardware.

 

Scenario 4: BSOD

If you face stability problems with Windows for reasons other than hardware failure, then you may find that Linux tends to be more stable than Windows, in general.

 

Hope this helps.

[Dat Guy]

On 1/23/2019 at 12:53 PM, SwagMaestro said:

what am I missing out on?

Alternative, more mature operating systems like Solaris and BSD, mostly.

[captain_aggravated]

21 minutes ago, Dat Guy said:

Alternative, more mature operating systems like Solaris and BSD, mostly.

Neither of which are Linux-based.  They are Unix-like, but they are not Linux.

 

First thing I'll mention is what you are not missing:  Applications.  Linux manages to have a negative number of killer apps.  I know of basically no one who says "I switched to Linux because it has ___."  Because of the nature of open source, just about anything that runs in Linux can be run in Windows as well, but not the other way around.  Switching to Linux means giving up Adobe, Autodesk, a half dozen game studios, and yes indeed, MS Office.  For a lot of these, there are open source alternatives...which are usually in perpetually low version numbers not ready for actual use for anything.  It's very common to hear people say they avoid using Linux because their favorite game or app doesn't work.

 

There are a couple things I was missing by using Windows:

• Variety. Windows pretty much looks one way.  Sure, you can change the wall paper and maybe a few colors here and there, but it looks like one thing.  The Linux ecosystem has about a dozen desktop environments to choose from:  Gnome, KDE, xfce, lxde, Unity, Cinnamon, Mate, whatever Elementary calls their DE, and a few others.  Not to mention things that might be alien to those who grew up with Windows, like tiling window managers such as Awesome.  You can pick a Linux system that is right for you.
• Power. I'm not really talking about system performance, though if you have an old computer that's running very sluggish in Windows 7 or 10, you can probably restore it to usability with a lightweight streamlined Linux distro that takes up less system resources.  I'm talking about the user effort to accomplishment ratio.  Windows and MacOS are very manual systems to use, and they make people think about using their computers in manual ways.  Linux more readily exposes the user to the terminal, which allows you to quickly automate repetitive tasks in ways that GUIs aren't really able to do.  Or to automate processes via piping.
• Ownership.  I decide when and if I update my computer, when it turns on, and when it turns off.  There is no corporation that makes those decisions for me, and I'm never told I'm not allowed to use my computer for certain reasons or in certain ways.
• Fun.  Linux is actually allowed to be fun.  There's a package built into a lot of Linux distros called fortune.  It's a fortune cookie generator, type "fortune" and it spits out a silly phrase.  Mine just said "Help stamp out Mickey-Mouse computer interfaces -- Menus are for Restaurants!"  There's another one called cowsay.  Type "cowsay phrase" and it will display a little ascii art cow with a speech balloon with "phrase" in it.  There's yet another one called lolcat, which will print whatever is typed into it in rainbow colors in the terminal.  I mentioned piping earlier--well, you can pipe them together by typing "fortune | cowsay | lolcat" and it will print an ascii art cow saying a random silly phrase in rainbow colors.  That's the kind of silliness you won't find in Windows.

[Dat Guy]

3 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

They are Unix-like, but they are not Linux.

Which is a feature in my opinion. By the way, Solaris actually is a real Unix. Why would you want to use the copy?

 

4 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

Switching to Linux means giving up Adobe, Autodesk, a half dozen game studios, and yes indeed, MS Office.

Getting rid of Adobe is fine - the major problem is that Unices and Unix-like operating systems (which are not macOS) suffer from a severe lack of graphics applications which are even good enough. I would love to see Affinity's awesome suite ported to them.

 

6 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

Windows pretty much looks one way.  Sure, you can change the wall paper and maybe a few colors here and there, but it looks like one thing.

This is a false statement. Windows has always supported to replace the standard "Explorer" (or, before that, "Program Manager") by your own executable, e.g. Blackbox, Cairo Shell or KDE for Windows. Feel free to do so.

 

7 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

Linux is actually allowed to be fun.

That ended with systemd.

[captain_aggravated]

24 minutes ago, Dat Guy said:

Which is a feature in my opinion. By the way, Solaris actually is a real Unix. Why would you want to use the copy?

 

Getting rid of Adobe is fine - the major problem is that Unices and Unix-like operating systems (which are not macOS) suffer from a severe lack of graphics applications which are even good enough. I would love to see Affinity's awesome suite ported to them.

 

This is a false statement. Windows has always supported to replace the standard "Explorer" (or, before that, "Program Manager") by your own executable, e.g. Blackbox, Cairo Shell or KDE for Windows. Feel free to do so.

 

That ended with systemd.

Solaris has a restrictive closed source license and an even smaller end-user software library than Linux does.  For a professional sysadmin, Solaris is a very compelling choice.  For an idly curious Windows user, I'd recommend a mainstream Linux distro.  Crow all you want about "real Unix" or whatever, I'll be over here playing Portal and watching Netflix.

 

Given a choice between a Linux port of the Adobe suite or GIMP/inkscape getting their shit together, I'd go with GIMP/Inkscape.  My favorite Linux graphics editor is Imagemagick, a CLI package.  Yes, really.

 

In all my 31.56 years I've never seen anyone replace Windows Explorer.  I'll believe that it's possible, but it ain't exactly popular.

 

And lay off Systemd.  It'll be a terrific operating system once they get the startup sequence right. 

[Dat Guy]

7 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

Solaris has a restrictive closed source license

* had

 

8 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

I'd go with GIMP/Inkscape

I would never have bought Affinity Designer if Inkscape was a viable solution.

 

8 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

n all my 31.56 years I've never seen anyone replace Windows Explorer.

/me waves frantically

 

9 minutes ago, captain_aggravated said:

It'll be a terrific operating system once they get the startup sequence right.

Terrible. The word you were looking for is terrible.

[Guest]

Just try to use it and make your own conclusion, since anything else are just words

[Rofo Chco]

One thing you should take note of your expectations when coming into any different OS. Use Windows like Windows, Macos like Macos and Linux like Linux. Sure you can make each operating system work like each other but it will never perfectly emulate another.

Generally pinning down what a operating system is good for is a bit of a challenge but generally speaking when it comes to any form of terminal based stuff Linux excels.

[wasab]

On 1/28/2019 at 7:17 AM, Dat Guy said:

Which is a feature in my opinion. By the way, Solaris actually is a real Unix. Why would you want to use the copy?

 

Getting rid of Adobe is fine - the major problem is that Unices and Unix-like operating systems (which are not macOS) suffer from a severe lack of graphics applications which are even good enough. I would love to see Affinity's awesome suite ported to them.

 

This is a false statement. Windows has always supported to replace the standard "Explorer" (or, before that, "Program Manager") by your own executable, e.g. Blackbox, Cairo Shell or KDE for Windows. Feel free to do so.

 

That ended with systemd.

UNIX just means that an OS follows the POSIX specification. Linux is 100% POSIX compliant. All Unix programming APIs like unistd.h works on linux as much as it works on macOS or any other Unix operating systems. Unix is a brand, a certification, nothing more. It is like getting a certification in a job. You can be a mechanic without a certification, your coworkers might be mechanics who are certified, that doesnt make you less of a mechanics if you work the same job. 

[LinuxGeek18]

Many Linux distributions have come a long way in usability/ease of use, there are many advantages of using Linux, such as in most cases, it being lighter, there are some linux-only tools, you can customize it exactly the way you want, (whether you are new or experienced), it can revive old PCs, and as of early 2019, most Steam games run on Linux now.

[ScratchCat]

• Stability: Windows can be pain to keep running smoothly (looking at you feature updates). Linux on the other hand will just run regardless what you throw at it. I had an install on a USB stick I didn't shutdown, when I was finished I just closed all applications, ran sync (complete writing to disk) and pulled the USB out - the install never broke.
• Installing programs: Package managers are amazing. Just type what you want and BAM, it's installed and working. No more installing 5 different copies of VC++ redistributable or manual PATH editing
• Terminal: Ever done some repetitive work across multiple computers i.e. installations? Needed some filtering/processing the GUI couldn't do? Want to try 10 different Linux distros in VMs at once? The Terminal will be your friend.

[jpenguin]

Pretty much all this has already been said- developer tools, ability to customize, can be as resource light/heavy as you want, ease of remote administration, alpha/beta software is a compile away and the Linux community.

[Linus_torvalds]

On 1/23/2019 at 4:13 PM, FlappyBoobs said:

 

That's a sys admin thing, not a developer thing. You are confusing "scripting" with "programming". 

 

Also it's not command prompt that people use to do anything relevant, most use powershell, and for some Bash. 

I am a developer and windows is shit for me. One employee at our company uses windows and he can't do basic tasks in windows which others are doing in seconds in linux. It's just not suited for it. In linux you are the god. You can do literaly ANYTHING.

[Underi]

I'm going to give really generic answers but most of the time and for me at least it comes down to the fact that you own the computer truly. Also the fact that it is open-source, free and very secure. I use Ubuntu on my laptop and I didn't really have a special reason for switching to linux. Only reason why my desktop is still Windows is that I play games. My laptop isn't meant for gaming and neither is my school, so I don't need that. So far I've been very happy with my OS of choice. It's fast, it's secure and it works well. I'm thinking about installing a linux os on my father's PC, because he doesn't need any fancy applications. He checks his email, reads news and watches youtube videos about tractor pulling occasionally. Linux is perfect for him. It's more secure and maybe even easier to use than Windows 8 that he is currently using.

[Wild Penquin]

On 1/23/2019 at 1:53 PM, SwagMaestro said:

I know some of you are really hardcore Linux users, and you look at windows users like they look at apple users. 

 

I know nothing about Linux, but am genuinely interested - what am I missing out on? 

I don't think users (of any OS) look down at other users (of any OS or other group) because their OS is better. I'd claim that most don't care at all what other people are running. Of course there are cases where people look down at other people (or more generally, become self-entitled for whatever reason), but I think that is quite a complicated psychological thing, which is difficult to answer, but does not have anything to do with any OS. These people tend to be more noisier (than those who are not self-entitled), which might (I'd say most definitely does) cause some perception bias in any user-base.

 

Think about what you need to do, and choose an OS based on that (if you need help here, you need to tell your needs). Different OSes exist because people (and their computer usage patterns and needs) are different.

 

Since I believe the users on this forum are more or less gamer oriented, I think this guide is quite a good read. One good point that guide makes is that there is no shame in using any OS that suites you best.

 

EDIT/TL;DR: I think you are generalizing too much, don't feel bad if some self-entitled user looks down on you because you are using Windows, and there is no definitive answer to what you could be missing out

Edited February 25, 2019 by Wild Penquin

[straight_stewie]

On 1/23/2019 at 4:52 PM, FlappyBoobs said:

To put it another way, why would someone with the capability of modifying the entire OS (a developer) care about the superiority of an interface, they can make their own if the included tool doesn't do what is required.  

Yes. Because every developer knows how to write system or kernel level applications... Yes. That sounds like a reasonable thing to believe.