Subject: Re: Ease Of Use and Hardware Support (WAS: Linux Laptops)
From: John Nelson (john@computation.com)
Date: Thu Mar 07 2002 - 21:21:59 MST
The primary attractions of Linux and Unix are reliability, security,
wide support for developers and certain vertical markets, cost (free)
and a mature grownup operating system model. Windows, despite its ease
of use, has none of the properties that make for a mature and
sophisticated operating system. Oh sure it has gobs of
consumer-oriented "features" designed to support Microsoft's bottom
line, but from a technical standpoint, Windows sucks by comparison.
Also, one should not confuse "ease of use" with "unfamilar way of doing
things". I find Linux with KDE very easy to use. I find the Linux
shells easy to use because they are predictable and employ a terse
language. If you have a problem with Linux because "it isn't Windows"
then that's your problem. Linux is plenty easy to use, you just have to
learn how to use and maintain it, and the best way to do this is consult
the many (free) sources of online documentation.
I must also add that one thing that makes Microsoft products easier to
use is their inflexibility. Just try and make Windows do something that
Microsoft didn't think of and be prepared to bang your head against the
wall in frustration. Linux is extensible and has many ways of
approaching a problem. Try to solve your problem with Microsoft's "easy
to use help system" and you'll probably dead-end at the ever so helpful
"consult your system administrator for assistance" message.
As for Linux being a "hobbiest" operating system made for hobbiests,
there are many corporate and academic enterprises that will dissagree
with you because they use Linux (and Unix) to do serious work. They
don't use Windows because Windows can't be trusted to scale up to large
real-world problems (without spitting out a Blue Screen Of Death).
-- John
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