Linux Vs. Microsoft
- Thread starter Athol
- Start date
Recommended Videos
As a rule of thumb if you have never used Linux before the only advantage you have is that it is free. By contrast, you have an enormous list of disadvantages to deal with that I won't bother listing here at any length. Suffice it to say however that getting your laptop to do anything will generally require more work than you are used to and the list of things it can do is either shockingly short or surprisingly lengthy depending upon your perspective on the matter.
Depends on which distro you choose. Also there are many more advantages that it just being free.Eclectic Dreck said:
OP, I would advise starting off with something simple like Ubuntu; it's the most popular distro by far with a lot of support, and really easy to get into.
...one caution about putting it on a laptop, specifically... wireless support is almost non-existent. The first time I tried Ubuntu was on my laptop. It ran great, with the exception of the wireless card. Eventually I got that running with Wine and a Vista driver... a week later I needed to reinstall.
Linux is much friendlier on a desktop.
Linux is much friendlier on a desktop.
Do you play games
if yes then install Windows 7
Do you need a stable controllable working environment? Are you willing to spend weeks finding out what everything does and how to get it to work the way you want it?
If yes then you may want to consider installing a Linux distribution(good luck finding out which suits you best).
P.S. Linux is great once you get familiar with it. If you can code it gives you the freedom to customize pretty much everything. It is however a lot less user friendly than Windows, and most hot games won't run on it (though you can emulate windows or even run a virtual one if you have enough power under the hood)
if yes then install Windows 7
Do you need a stable controllable working environment? Are you willing to spend weeks finding out what everything does and how to get it to work the way you want it?
If yes then you may want to consider installing a Linux distribution(good luck finding out which suits you best).
P.S. Linux is great once you get familiar with it. If you can code it gives you the freedom to customize pretty much everything. It is however a lot less user friendly than Windows, and most hot games won't run on it (though you can emulate windows or even run a virtual one if you have enough power under the hood)
The only thing I know about Linux is that they have an awesome mascot which made me consider installing it once.
There are many linux distros that are so small even ancient machines can sprint with them.Nenad said:
Look into distro's with LXDE, the Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment. They will all be small, have enough features for the average user, and be very fast.
Ubuntu is easy to install, and it won't damage your Windows install, plus you can choose which to boot. Installation takes less than an hour, so there's no harm in trying it. That said, you will have to learn a different way of doing things, and that's going to take time. There's no harm in giving it a go, but don't feel pressured into doing so.
Also, on the sound issue, OSSv4 is miles better than ALSA (the default), even though it's deprecated it's still used on most Unix-like OSes (Unix is the daddy of Linux and a load of similar OSes like the BSDs, Solaris, etc.). It isn't available in most distros without some legwork though.
If you run into problems with Ubuntu, make sure you check its forums. They're very active and generally helpful.
Also, on the sound issue, OSSv4 is miles better than ALSA (the default), even though it's deprecated it's still used on most Unix-like OSes (Unix is the daddy of Linux and a load of similar OSes like the BSDs, Solaris, etc.). It isn't available in most distros without some legwork though.
If you run into problems with Ubuntu, make sure you check its forums. They're very active and generally helpful.
if that's all you need it to do and you want a shinier and more modern looking OS without paying for it then try Linux. If your friends are using it then they'll hopefully help you set it up. If they do a good job it will run faster than XP and you won't have to restart it quite so often.Athol said: