Linux vs Windows????

bassist

Hi,
just want to know if anyones made the switch from windows to linux.
been reading and sounds cool but im a bit computer stupid so wondering if there was any big probs that I should be aware of.

Knasher

Hey. Yeah I've switched almost exclusively. I keep a windows partition around for gaming, but at the moment there are enough games on linux to keep me satisfied, and if it wasn't for gaming I would have probably gotten rid of windows entirely.

My advice if you are starting out is to first decide what desktop environment you want to use. There are a bunch, some are aimed at newer hardware, some at older, some at people who like flashy desktops, some at people who prefer minimalism. Some ones I'd advise you to look at are, KDE, Gnome, Cinnamon, XFCE, LXDE, Unity and Enlightenment, you'll find videos of people using them online.

After that you can install. If you really want to get into linux, my advice would be to keep a windows partition around for now, but to have linux as the default when your computer boots. Other than that, I'd just say that there is a really good community around most distros, so if you run into any specific issues, feel free to ask here or on the distro specific forum.

Johnboy1951

bassist wrote: »

Hi,
just want to know if anyones made the switch from windows to linux.
been reading and sounds cool but im a bit computer stupid so wondering if there was any big probs that I should be aware of.

Yes, did so about 10 years ago.

Problems:

If you are not prepared to learn how to do things in a different environment, then you will have trouble and likely give up.

If you absolutely depend on some software that is Windows only, with no equivalent in Linux, then you have a problem. Most software has Linux equivalents .... and in a lot of cases many equivalents.



Choosing the correct Linux distribution for your needs is often fraught with trouble.
I downloaded many different distros and trialled them on my hardware before I decided which one suited me and the way I wished to work.

The big benefit is that each distro could be run without interfering with the existing operating system so that I could test each to help make a decision.
It also allowed me to get comfortable with how things work.

Initially I would suggest the following distros to check out

Linux Mint
PCLinuxOS
Ubuntu

You also need to be aware that there are several 'desktop environments' available, unlike Windows which has but the one.

So you will need to do a bit of homework to decide which suits you best. Examples of desktop environments are

KDE
Xfce
Lxde
Mate
Gnome

I guess the biggest difficulty is the wide choices available, and how best to narrow those choices down to what suits you best.

excollier

Add in that old computers can be given a new lease of life (just installed lxle to an old Win XP PATA/IDE drive desktop - runs very fast) and drivers for hardware are rarely a problem.
Linux all the way for me!

Plopli

My mother switched more than 5 years ago (OK, I pushed her a bit - she's ~70 now) and I did more than 15 years ago.

If you're an avid gamer or have needs for Windows only programs, you'll have to keep a windows partition around.

My mother has fairly basic needs - internet browser, email client, small wordprocessing, image viewer - and this work well in any distribution.

She's running Ubuntu and I usually have a look at it once a year when I go back to visit, take care of the non automated security update and here she goes for one more year.

She can do her internet banking, play games in the browser, see picture and videos of the family and so on.

Of course if you have very specific workflow you are used to on Windows, it will take some time to adapt but in general you will find some equivalent of what you are using on Linux.

A area that is still lacking these days is support for specific hardware. Sound cards, special keyboards and so on will not often have complete support in Linux (e.g. I've a Logitech G19 keyboard (the one with the LCD display and although the keyboard works great, the LCD display support was a bit of a hack - at least the last time I checked).

Deciding what you want is probably the most difficult given the large amount of choice you have in term of distribution and programs.

YMMV and so on ...

syklops

Plopli wrote: »

My mother switched more than 5 years ago (OK, I pushed her a bit - she's ~70 now) and I did more than 15 years ago.

If you're an avid gamer or have needs for Windows only programs, you'll have to keep a windows partition around.

My mother has fairly basic needs - internet browser, email client, small wordprocessing, image viewer - and this work well in any distribution.

She's running Ubuntu and I usually have a look at it once a year when I go back to visit, take care of the non automated security update and here she goes for one more year.

She can do her internet banking, play games in the browser, see picture and videos of the family and so on.

Of course if you have very specific workflow you are used to on Windows, it will take some time to adapt but in general you will find some equivalent of what you are using on Linux.

A area that is still lacking these days is support for specific hardware. Sound cards, special keyboards and so on will not often have complete support in Linux (e.g. I've a Logitech G19 keyboard (the one with the LCD display and although the keyboard works great, the LCD display support was a bit of a hack - at least the last time I checked).

Deciding what you want is probably the most difficult given the large amount of choice you have in term of distribution and programs.

YMMV and so on ...

Plopli's Mum: Plopli?
Plopli: Yes
Plopli's Mum: You know that thing they're talking about on Sky News?
Plopli: Yes
Plopli's Mum: Am I at risk?
Plopli: No.
Plopli's Mum: Oh good. How much does it cost again?
Plopli: Nothing Mum.

Speaking for myself made the complete change about 10 years ago. In work have Linux as my main OS and a windows VM for Outlook and Office. At home, purely linux. I have all fedora and Rasbian and she has Ubuntu. Im not a big gamer, so I dont need windows for that. Waiting for Portal to be released for Linux though...

Kinet1c

Portal is already out for Steam on Liunx...

moc moc a moc

syklops wrote: »

Plopli's Mum: You know that thing they're talking about on Sky News?
Plopli: Yes
Plopli's Mum: Am I at risk?
Plopli: No.

Unless you're talking about Heartbleed, phishing attacks, database compromises, etc etc...

Switching to Linux can certainly help with security, but let's not pretend it's a panacaea.

jcorr

I love how fast things install in Linux (sudo apt-get install <insert software package here>). I have Ubuntu 12.04 LTS with a Unity Desktop. Loving the workflow......though err......I've kept Windows 8 so I can use Microsoft Office. Not totally comfortable with Libre Office though....

bassist

Thanks guys for the great help, ill bare it all in mind.
Yeah was just put on to it by a pal and he swears by it over Windows or Apple, not a gamer as I have a games system (PS3).
The general reviews on the web seem to suggest that everything runs smoother and is more adaptable with software (but I wouldnt know anything about those complicated things).
My pal is gonna do it for me in a week or so, so ill be baby sat with the change over.
cheers again guys for the advice

syklops

Kinet1c wrote: »

Portal is already out for Steam on Liunx...

It was only in beta the last time I looked. I'll check again once I get some spare time.

CrinkElite

I run my 'nix in virtual machine.

https://www.virtualbox.org/

Also on the raspberryPi / xbox original / Ancient P4 256mb

The virtual machine is a great way to just get up and running with a linux distro.

Just be aware that you'll need enough ram to support both systems simultaneously.

Some quite reasonable linux distro's are very lightweight and only need 256mb of ram. (some much less)

Linux is difficult and frustrating in the beginning but if you stick with it, it becomes second nature.

It all makes sublime sense so once you push through the initial barrier you'll be amazed at what you can achieve intuitively at the command line.

I'd highly recommend giving it a go.

Best of luck with it.