Tell me about Linux (ubuntu,fedora,etc.)

Strykerx · 11:51 PM

I was reading the two threads about Vista, and a lot of you guys suggested Linux type OS. Mainly Ubuntu. Can you please tell me the pros and cons of Linux OS. Would you recommend this for a average user ( music,movies,web surfing, dling torrents(fights/music) and chat). I was always curious about Linux, but I heard for some computers with linux doesn't make all the drivers work correctly some people's wifi wouldn't work.

Maybe things are different and better now. Oh btw I used to have a Mac before it pass away (lasted 5yrs) I heard Mac OS is another Linux but its just not free and not open source.

Suspi · 09-20-2008, 12:01 AM

Ubuntu mostly just works now, straight out of the box.

For an average user, the only things you will need to look up instructions for are:
-Installing mpeg/dvd codecs.
-Some printers and wifi cards are not linux-friendly, but there is nearly always a way to get them going.

Other than that, there is a free version of pretty much any software you may use on windows. And usually, all you have to do to install it is use google to find it's package name, then open a terminal and type "sudo apt-get install myPackageName"

And linux does the rest for you.

Honestly, the learning curve for Ubuntu is probably a couple months for an average pc user. After that, Ubuntu is much easier than windows. You don't really need to do much to maintain it like with windows. In a year it will be running just as well or better, whereas your windows machine will be slower and starting to hang on shutdown, generating occasional memory errors...

and everyone blames spyware/adware, but this happens to everyone. Even those of us who schedule several spyware/adware/virus programs to run semi-daily.

The biggest downside to linux, of couse, is gaming. You'll have to jump through some hoops to get games to work on a linux box. Programs like Wine and Cedega will let you play some popular games, but there are plenty of games you will never get working.

**Lubaolong** · 09-20-2008, 12:12 AM

For a noob, it's a little rough at first. PC-BSD is pretty user-friendly.

Suspi · 09-20-2008, 12:12 AM

One more thing...

I actually work as a windows programmer by day, but I use Ubuntu at home. When I need to fire up Visual Studio to do some work at home, I run Windows XP using VMWare. (VMWare really is fantastic, btw. Much easier to use than you would ever expect.)

Strykerx · 09-20-2008, 12:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suspi

One more thing...

I actually work as a windows programmer by day, but I use Ubuntu at home. When I need to fire up Visual Studio to do some work at home, I run Windows XP using VMWare. (VMWare really is fantastic, btw. Much easier to use than you would ever expect.)

Very informative thank you.

bunnyclaws · 09-20-2008, 02:12 AM

Quote:

Would you recommend this for a average user ( music,movies,web surfing, dling torrents(fights/music) and chat). I was always curious about Linux, but I heard for some computers with linux doesn't make all the drivers work correctly some people's wifi wouldn't work.

For the tasks you want to do, just about most Linux distros will be sufficient. As long as you are not looking to game on the box you should be fine. The biggest problem with Linux is getting the wifi and print drivers to work right out of the box. Still, it doesn't take to much effort to get them working with a little research.

Mandriva, Ubuntu and OpenSuse are probably the most novice friendly distros in my opinion. My complaint with them is they tend to install everything but the kitchen sink and can bog down your system.

Try these out for a bit and once you feel comfortable try out Debian and Slackware and eventually you should try out a Gentoo system.

Quote:

Other than that, there is a free version of pretty much any software you may use on windows. And usually, all you have to do to install it is use google to find it's package name, then open a terminal and type "sudo apt-get install myPackageName"

One doesn't even have to use apt or yum anymore now most systems come with synaptic for retrieving and installing programs. It's gotten to the point that one doesn't even have to be familiar with the CLI to use Linux on a daily basis.