Basically, there are many reasons why
Linux is considered better than windows, but it wasn't always so.
Time was, Linux was an operating system for hobbyists, and was too
difficult to use because most of it's use was through the command
line interface (CLI). Those that were able to use of master Linux
reaped the benefits. The advancements of Linux, and the community
that pushed Linux to be “cooler” has brought Linux to what you
see today: a free, robust and secure operating system that is easy to
use, but still has those core elements that Linux users of the past
still appreciate.
A few things that make Linux better
than windows:
The Linux file system does not need
periodic “Defragmentation” as windows requires. To characterise
this simply, the following table represents a simple windows hard
disk:
| The operating system resides here |
A
document you created
|
A photo you stored | Free space | Free space | Free space | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
One day, you delete the document and
create a new one. Here is how windows handle the work you did:
| The operating system resides here | Fragmented space | A photo you stored | A new document you created one day | Free space | Free space | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
Another day, you delete the
embarrassing photo of you and take a more pleasing photo:
| The operating system resides here | Fragmented space | Fragmented space | A new document you created one day | A more pleasing photo | Free space | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
Today, you create a presentation for
work:
| The operating system resides here | Fragmented space | Fragmented space | A new document you created one day | A more pleasing photo | Presentation for work | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
The presentation has taken up some of
the swap file space. Now your PC is slower, and constantly freezing.
You must defragment the drive to recover the fragmented space.
With Linux, with the application of the
same scenario:
| The operating system resides here |
A
document you created
|
A photo you stored | Free space | Free space | Free space | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
With the deletion and creation of a new
document:
| The operating system resides here |
A
new document you created one day
|
A photo you stored | Free space | Free space | Free space | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
The deletion of the poor photo, and the
addition of the better one:
| The operating system resides here |
A
document you created
|
A more pleasing photo | Free space | Free space | Free space | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
And, the presentation:
| The operating system resides here |
A
document you created
|
A photo you stored |
Presentation for work
|
Free space | Free space | Swap file space (used by the OS like RAM) |
There are fragmentation issues in
Linux, but they are handled by the OS, and in the background.
Another difference is that Linux has,
in most cases, a smaller hard drive space footprint (usually 1/3rd or
smaller) than windows.
One of the most important differences
is that from year to year, and windows OS to windows OS, Microsoft
will publish a required hardware list (usually consisting of newer
hardware) for a newer OS, and stating that the newer OS is not
compatible with the older hardware. For whatever reason, whether it
may be a deal between Microsoft and it's hardware partners, or some
other dubious reason, the consumer is asked to buy new equipment.
Linux's minimum hardware requirements
have a much, much slower hardware upgrade curve. In fact, the distro
I use (Fedora 19), in the previous version, the minimum processor
requirement was a Pentium processor, which is a processor from 20+
years ago.
Switching from windows to Linux can be
a bit of a decision to ponder. “What will I gain?”, What will I
lose?”, “What will be the same?”. The answer is quite simple.
For the most part, for the things that you do with windows, there is
usually a Linux equivalent. For the windows exclusive things you do,
there are workarounds, but they require a learning curve that is
steep at this time.
Here is a table of the things most of
us do with our PCs, and windows and Linux equivalents:
| OS | Browse the web | Send and receive emails | Participate in Skype conversations | Create and edit office documents | View and manipulate photos | Watch internet video |
| Windows | Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome | Outlook, or any web based email | Skype | Microsoft Office | Microsoft Image viewer | Adobe Flash |
| Linux | Firefox, Chrome | Thunderbird, or any web based email | Skype | LibreOffice | Shotwell, GIMP | Adobe Flash, WebM |
As you may see, you really don't lose
much of what you normally do in windows, with the exception of
spending money. 99% of Linux software is free.
Of course, any proprietary windows
software wont work in Linux. However, there are workarounds, like
installing Wine, a program that allows you to install windows in a
virtual space within Linux.
Linux is very secure. Windows is very
insecure. To this date, there are over 200,000 viruses created for
windows, and the triage time for vulnerability repair is usually 6
months behind. Today, there are approximately 48 viruses written for
Linux, and none of them work because they require root access.
This is something I wrote for a friend, so I'm sure that there may be some backlash from windows and Linux communities. What I have written here is accurate to the best of my knowledge.
No comments:
Post a Comment