“I don’t know what Linux is but I don’t like it”
In college, almost everyone has a personal computer. More and more people are using Macs - it seems that 10% of the class of 2007 uses Macs, whereas it appears that roughly half of freshman (class of 2010) are using Macs. I’ve used PCs, Macs, and lately a lot of Linux. I’ve even written my own operating system. However, it seems that when it comes to discussing operating systems, everyone’s an expert, even though most people won’t be able to tell you what an operating system is or what it does.
I, along with millions of other people, have recently fallen in love with Ubuntu Linux. Ubuntu is (1) a free operating system, (2) a collection of free software, including an office suite, music players, and email, chat, and web clients, and (3) a lively and engaging community of people who cooperate to help each other use and improve these tools (”ubuntu” means humanity towards others).
What do I mean by “free?” When I tell people that Ubuntu Linux is cool because it’s free, they say “so what, I already own Windows and I got a free copy of Photoshop from some kid in my frat.” First of all, you don’t own Windows - you only license it. You probably didn’t even choose to use Windows, because it just came on your computer. Second of all, just because you didn’t pay for Photoshop doesn’t make it free - that’s called stealing. Do you know what happens to people who steal software? Nothing, usually, but it could get you fired or fined, and it ruins your karma. Ubuntu Linux is “free as in beer” and “free as in speech.” For example, you may already use Firefox, an open source web browser. Firefox, much like the software composing Ubuntu Linux, is free as in beer and free as in speech. You can use it without paying for it, and you can take an active role in a community of people who contribute to Firefox to improve it as they see fit (that’s the free as in speech part).
With these things in mind, I often find myself in discussions like this one:
Friend: I hate Windows. I just have all this crap on my computer - spyware, adware, and it makes my computer run so slow!
Me: Have you heard of Linux? Maybe you could get rid of Windows and give Linux a try? I could help you try it if you want.
Friend: No, I like Windows and I don’t like Linux at all.
Me: Didn’t you just say you hated Windows?
Friend: Yeah…
Me: Do you even know what Linux is? Have you ever even tried it?
Friend: No…
Me: So you hate Windows but still like it, and you don’t like Linux even though you’ve never tried it and don’t know what it is?
Friend: Leave me alone.
If you like Firefox, you might like to just give other free software a try. You can download Ubuntu, burn it to a CD, and try it without installing it by restarting your computer with the Ubuntu CD in the drive. This is absolutely free to try, and will not harm your computer in any way (if you want to stop using Ubuntu once you are running it off the CD, just restart your computer - the CD will be ejected and you’ll be running Windows again). What do you have to lose? It will take you about an hour to download Ubuntu, and a blank CD costs about a quarter. What do you have to gain? A secure, reliable, community-supported, free, up-to-date, fun, easy-to-use, ad-free, virus-free, spyware-free, fast, flexible operating system with all the tools you need to play with photos, music, movies, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents, and many more exciting things. Just give it a try, and if you don’t like it, feel free to post angry comments below.
66 Comments
April 27th, 2007 at 1:06 pm
This man speaks great wisdom. Ubuntu Linx retrieved my thesis paper from my pc that crashed. All I had to do was insert the CD and my really hip, cool, awesome friend was able to locate the doc. on my computer. Ubuntu linx saved my life. How can I ever repay the creators of this ingenious program?
By the way, Dave, your friend who uses a stolen copy of Photoshop ought to be shot. Stealing is a felony as is murder. Murder is punishable by death. Therefore stealing photoshop merits the death penalty. I hope you like my logic…I did really well on the LSATS.
-Carnac
April 27th, 2007 at 2:58 pm
Dave –
You changed my life by simply getting me to switch to gmail. What cataclysmic changes will occur if you get me to switch to Linux (first I have to understand what the heck it is. But I have learned how to speak Swahili, skydive and make my dog’s leg do funny things by scratching her belly just so… so maybe I could learn how to use Linux too. So many mountains, so little time). Thanks for sharing. Hey, am I sorta like… blogging??????
April 27th, 2007 at 6:36 pm
Well said.
I have a similar experience with a colleague at work, but over and over again.
Every now and then we have the same conversation. He lays on me all the usual Windows user complaints. I suggest an alternative. He goes on about how that would require some effort and all he wants is for his computer to just work. I then point out that his computer is not currently “just working”, and that he is already expending significant effort keeping the thing limping along, which generally marks the end of the conversation.
Of course there is the other conversation we regularly have, where he complains about all of the high-level tools and suggests that it was so much better when everybody worked in assembler.
Last time that happened my head exploded. It was quite uncomfortable, not to mention messy.
April 27th, 2007 at 7:39 pm
I agree with what you are saying, in fact I am using an Ubuntu system right now and never, ever touch windows unless I am making money off it. But, I must say, getting “free” copy of Photoshop is NOT “theft”. It is not “stealing” - it is copy right infringement. For example: If I stole your computer, you would no longer be in possession of it - it would be gone. BUT if I some how copied it, you and I would both have it - two completely different laws. It bothers me when I hear “you wouldn’t steal a car would you?”. Even the RIAA cant seem to tell the difference.
April 28th, 2007 at 7:39 am
I am writing from an Ubuntu 6.10 system, my 4 years old has a Xubuntu 6.06 system configured with fully Open Source software except the NVIDIA drivers and my wife’s system is equipped with Opensuse 10.1. The move to 100% Linux of my household happened in November 2005.
1) I condemn stealing. But stealing is not as murder.
2) Stealing which includes damages to people, goods or privacy (robbery, burglary) is much worse than stealing software.
3) Stealing software is a crime, but I think that it should be considered an administrative offence and I also think that is of a lesser importance than traffic offences like speeding. The potential damage to people is much less.
4) Corporations do not have to have the same rights as individuals.
5) Software Patents are immoral and must be fought by all means. They are more like murder because they assume that free thinking can be limited.
6) It doesn’t matter what you do. Friends running windows will always bother you and you will have to lose (your) countless hours fixing their PCs after a virus (or a 100) have got in there.
April 28th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Thank you for enlightening your fellow students.
April 28th, 2007 at 3:10 pm
Nice post….I’ve had similar conversations.
I am currently using both, as I am trying to catch myself up on all I have missed in the Linux world (spending hours fixing Windows boxes). I am working on getting my wife to use the Unbutu box more often so I can start to ween her off Windows, but haven’t gotten the bugs worked out of getting her game (Sims2) working. Well, I will eventually, then she will be more than happy to switch, til then *sigh, back to killing spy/adware!
April 28th, 2007 at 3:33 pm
David,
Like you, I studied Computer Science and Philosophy in college. Like you, I love Ubuntu. 7.04 Feisty is powering both my computer (which I’m typing this on) and my wife’s computer.
I’m an IT Manager and use Ubuntu (6.06, 6.10 and 7.04) for our file servers (Samba), web servers and FTP servers. When Samba 4 is released, I’m going to replace our Active Directory servers with it.
For anyone wondering if you can live without Windows–you can. Next time your Windows computer is infected and you have to reinstall, try Ubuntu first. You have nothing to lose.
April 28th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
You sound just like guy #2
April 28th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
I don’t recommend people try out the Live CD. The performance is usually very sub par compared to an actual Ubuntu installation. I recommend you just install it for them, setup beryl, and one or two “free as in beer” games like Urban Terror or Mupen.
The real way to evangelize Ubuntu is to get a Beryl cube up and running, put a game on one side of the cube, Firefox on another, Rhythmbox, Gaim, and Open Office on a Third, and then TVtime, or a movie playing in Totem on the fourth. Then hit ctrl+alt+left about 20x and ask them, “No, seriously, what DO you want to do today?”
April 28th, 2007 at 3:36 pm
I produced a video about Ubuntu Live Cd’s and how to make bootable flash drives.
http://internetfreedomdisk.blogspot.com
It is meant to be a resource to point noobs to when I get tired of answering Ubuntu 101.
Ubuntu != Mac != Xp != Vista
It is UBUNTU!
Surf the Internet safer than ever thought possible, Click on all the NASTIES! BE FREE!
From Raymond on, the World is in you dept.
April 28th, 2007 at 3:36 pm
Great article, but two things I would have added:
1. A link to the Ubuntu web site at http://www.ubuntu.com/
2. Cool videos of how nice Ubuntu is at YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_G5NrhZ7ynY
April 28th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
Yeah, when I was in college back in the mid-90’s I used to have the same ol’ discussions. Some things never change!
April 28th, 2007 at 3:45 pm
Well ok, I buy into this idea of trying Unbutu as I too am tired of fighting with windows, and go to the download page and I’m confronted with two versions with two periods of support! One 2008, another to 2009 What is all this about why the difference which one do I pick?…I’m already confused because of unfamiliar (and silly ) names with abbrevations and jargon.
Its the usual expert users with there lack of awareness of the novice computer user…no wonder we are scared off.
April 28th, 2007 at 3:52 pm
Can Ubuntu stream video to an Xbox 360?
April 28th, 2007 at 3:55 pm
Lleu, try the Ubuntu forums, http://www.ubuntuforums.org Chances are, someone has tried this. You will at least learn whether they failed or succeeded.
April 28th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
Brian, sorry if I didn’t explain enough. Try the link in jim’s comment - it looks like it has more explanations for how to do what I’m suggesting.
April 28th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
OMFG LINUX IS TEH SUXORS!!!
not really, I’ve used Linux operating systems for nearly 10 years and once I started using them, I never looked back. Windows always had some problems for me and when I found Linux… I found more problems. But that was in 1998 when the OS was just barely getting started with the desktop movement. I will admit however that linux can have some complications if you’re trying to do some leet linux stuff but if you’re trying to do that, then you’re ready to fix Linux if you break it. No experience has endured me more than fixing a broken linux box, no matter how broken it may be. i say the thing doesnt break enough
April 28th, 2007 at 4:27 pm
The following was posted on the Ubunto forum today for “noobs” as we are called. I rest my case. Linux is only for college students in computer courses.
Quote:
I installed Ubuntu Feisty over Windows XP on my laptop. I am completely frustrated with Ubuntu. EVERYTHING is just soooooo much work. Nothing is easy, unless I use the basic add/remove program. I can’t believe I’m saying this but I miss the Window’s Installer. I have installed stuff with Synaptic and the application either (1) disappears into the abyss or (2) won’t launch when I finally find it in the file system. My other rambling questions: why did I have to go to terminal to use WPA2? Why is the outdated and completely useless and hackable WEP the default? Why can’t I simply download files from the internet, double click the file to install it, and have the option include alias in my Applications menu? Why do I have use Add/Remove Applications for convenient, but very limited, program installs? Why do I feel like I’ve gone back to the 90’s using Add/Remove Applications or Synaptic after having to download something 10-15 times because the connection is 56K or less (I have high speed internet). Why is installing simple things like Java a royal pain the *** (I have 2 different Java systems installed now b/c Add/Remove applications didn’t install Java 6 Firefox plugin, so I had to install Java 5 plug-in)? Why does Synaptic say I have R installed (a statistics package I really need to use but can’t since I wiped out XP), but terminal says it is not? Why do I have to type a password into keychain manager every time I connect to my home network? Why doesn’t “search” find files in my file system that I know for a fact are there? Why when I drag an alias to the Applications menu does it not add it to the menu despite appearing as though it will? Why are internet connections called ath0, ethO and other useless names? Why can’t I configure my wireless internet to connect to our school server which has no authentication and no encryption (try it, you can’t.. turning off encryption is not an available setting)? Why isn’t firewall turned on by default? Why do I have install 7 different packages for one application (ClamAv)? Why not have 1 application = 1 installation package? Why are applications named after seemingly random strings of letters and/or numbers? Why, Why Why??
I don’t expect anyone to respond to all this. I think it is more a frustration post than anything. I wish I would have waited a while to make this switch. I am busy doctoral student and don’t have time to go search forums every time I need to do something basic like install a program. I am going to try to stick it out, but I don’t know if I am going to make it. I found myself staring at the Windows XP box earlier today when I was cursing Ubuntu.
April 28th, 2007 at 4:40 pm
I too, just started using Ubuntu and am completely impressed and pleased. I will need to continue to try out the rest of the open source software that came bundled on my free C.D. But I’m hooked so far.
April 28th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
Dont get me wrong, GNU awesome, free, awesome, but almost no proprietary driver support and learning an entire new way of doing what i already can for free downloading a student edition iso with a vlk, not worth it. I have used many distros of linux, including fedora, red hat, mandrake, even ubuntu and kubuntu. But there is just so much more software that you can aquire for windows. Now tell me about your uhm , operating system. Gui? Kernel? what TYPE of kernel did you use. Monolithic? i would hope so, you being a prophet and martyr of linux. What do you think of vista? What about macs? I personally think macs would be incredible if they would continue getting away from the entire MACS RUN ON ONLY MACS philosophy and would just sell osx as an os. I would greatly appreciate any information about your operating system, and maybe some source code since you seem to be an open source vigilante.
April 28th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
By the way, Ubuntu is one of the most targeted linux distributions out there, just because you install linux doesnt make you immune to ANYTHING, same for macs. They get a false sense of security and ignore any security precautions.
Isn’t that right Mr Jobbs
April 28th, 2007 at 5:20 pm
Ubuntu, fast, secure, free, amazing! It will save your life and…wait I play games, nevermind.
April 28th, 2007 at 10:41 pm
I`m a Windows user for a long time but I`m open minded too, so i use linux as well. But in the last month my ISP introduced a .exe little program which is giving us internet access by login and other crap so i have to use windows because i can surf the internet.
April 28th, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Thats how the world goes, People get afraid from hearing the word Linux.
April 28th, 2007 at 11:25 pm
Ubuntu? Secure?
Impossible!
They killed the secure possibility when they disabled the system administrator account. [ no active root account is equal to windowx xp home, with no updates, for security. ]
A better distro for those just starting with Linux is PCLinuxOS
Me, I’ll stick with my LFS systems. no useless bloat like GNOME or KDE or smbclient then.
April 29th, 2007 at 12:44 am
Watch out folks, Brian is a Microsoft spy!
April 29th, 2007 at 4:57 am
How come all ubuntu-demos are so alike? They show how you can have like 10 different cool showoff ways to switch between apps or desktops. Where are the demos how easy it is to set up your scanner, camera or how to daisychain several firewire 10-in-10-out audioboxes?
Also mr Siegel, you mentioned Photoshop. Some people, including me, run their computer OS (OS X in my case) just to run certain apps. I spend 95% percent of my computer time playing with the application itself, not fiddling around desktops (where one desktop plays movies and one is in the internet, one is playing solitaire etc). It’s the application and support for it that matters, the OS itself plays very small part after all.
I am not willing to put hours to learn this new jargon “distro”, “to compile”, just to surf the internet with firefox and watch movies.
Also to show my mac fanboi roots, look how simple ubuntu is in its concept. It does nothing new, only copies what windows and os x have done before it. Where is true innovation? In my opinion, you need big € to innovate in this field, therefore sticking with OS X and all the future possibilities that have been rumored, is far more better option for me than any of this nerdy geek linux stuff.
April 29th, 2007 at 5:12 am
I’ve tried Mandriva in its current incarnation, as well as when it was Mandrake, I’ve tried Red Hat (some years ago, when it came with Linux for Dummies), I’ve tried Fedora Core Zod, and I’m typing this message from within Ubuntu. This is the only distro that doesn’t leave me wanting to boot back to Windows every few hours, and I’m strongly considering repartitioning my drive to toss Windows entirely. The package manager is fantastic, all my hardware just works, the operating system is smaller and quicker, and the level of control, even for someone who isn’t going to be writing or modifying applications any time soon, is fantastic. Finally my machine does what I want, when and how I want it to, and nothing else. I couldn’t be happier with Ubunty Feisty.
April 29th, 2007 at 11:25 am
Great blog! I do this all the time in my own blog. Have a look, link up and I’ll start linking to your blog. I hope you use Technorati and FeedBurner! Have a good one!
April 29th, 2007 at 2:10 pm
No Oppe, just a retired teacher from Canada hoping to move to an Apple but thought salvation may come through Linux. But I think I will pass.
April 29th, 2007 at 4:29 pm
I feel obliged to respond to Brian’s post (4:27, Apr 28).
The post you cited doesn’t manage to provide many details, so I’ll do what I can, with what is provided:
“Nothing is easy, unless I use the basic add/remove program” - well then, use that. It is easy. Synaptic is also very easy.
“Why can’t I simply download files from the internet, double click the file to install it?”
It is inherently insecure, but since you ask, it is actually possible with Ubuntu- without even the extra double-click to install. Similarly, updates are available with a couple of clicks.
“…56k or less” - I have no idea. Many factors will affect your download from remote internet sites. What does /etc/apt/sources.list say? What are you trying to download?
“Why is installing simple things like Java a royal pain the ***?”
Because Java is proprietary software, which cannot be legally distributed by anybody who just fancies doing so. Your problem here, is with proprietary software, not with free software.
“Why doesn’t “search” find files in my file system that I know for a fact are there?”
Again, I have no idea; could you provide examples?
“Why are internet connections called ath0, ethO and other useless names?”
Define “useless”. “eth0″ describes the first Ethernet connection. “eth1″ describes the second, and so on. It may be a connection to any network - not all networks are “the internet”, after all.
“Why can’t I configure my wireless internet to connect to our school server which has no authentication and no encryption?” - I thought you complained that it enforced encyrption? What is the question?!
“Why isn’t firewall turned on by default?”
- I believe that it is turned on. What are you firewalling against? What services have you actively configured to be open? Or are you assuming that the OS is insecure and needs a firewall? This is not the case with Ubuntu.
Why do I have install 7 different packages for one application (ClamAv)?
- Again, do you need AntiVirus? What Linux virus are you afraid of? (Not “today’s virus”, but what virus, in particular? bliss?!!)
Regards,
Steve.
April 30th, 2007 at 3:29 pm
Brian’s comments mirror my experience, although I have tried Kubuntu because I have never cared for the Gnome interface. There are just too many things that won’t install properly, or where you can’t find an equivalent program to do what you want. I will grant that Linux is light years ahead of where it was five years ago, but I think that at this point many Windows users will be frustrated by the limitations and aggravations of Linux, beginning with the difficulty of installing Linux software that doesn’t happen to be in the repository. I remember actually killing an earlier version of Kubuntu dead simply by trying to install the latest version of Krusader, in order to get around a known bug that had been fixed it the latest version, but since the latest version wasn’t in the official repositories I had to try and install it manually - what a disaster, and what a waster of time! And all the time I was doing this I was thinking that I have never had this sort of problem with the typical windows .exe installer, you just click on it and it magically installs (and personally I can only could a handful of times in the last decade that I’ve had ANY problem installing Windows-based software - at worst, it doesn’t work right and you uninstall it and that’s that, but I have never had a software installation bring down the entire OS!
The best thing the Linux people could do would be to keep improving Wine so that you can run Windows software in Linux. Take Winamp, for example - it will run, sort of, but the display is really trashed. And you might say, why would you need to run Winamp when there are so many audio player programs designed for Linux? Simple, because Winamp has hundreds of plugins (including an excellent crossfade plugin) that aren’t compatible with any Linux-based program. That’s just one example of a program that’s important to me, but I’ll bet every Windows user has one or two programs that they can’t live without, or that they don’t want to have to relearn (for example, Paint Shop Pro - I know, The Gimp is probably better, but Paint Shop Pro was always easier to use than even Photoshop, and anyway after ten years of learning how to use it I don’t really want to have to learn a whole new program now). And no, I am not going to buy some fancy commercial Windows emulator, if I have to do that why not just buy Windows and know it will work?
I don’t work for Microsoft nor any of their ad agencies or anything like that - there are many times I really hate Windows and if it weren’t for a very small number of applications that I consider very important, I would switch to Kubuntu on my main system in a heartbeat. But on the other hand, I am not one of those people who sees spending two days trying to figure out how to make a piece of software work as a challenge; a puzzle to be solved. No, I’m probably in the 95% of people who’d consider that a damn nuisance that should be avoided at all costs - I don’t need that kind of stress in my life. The strange thing is, if all the people who are spending so much time developing competing Linux distros would instead put some of that time and effort into making Wine compatible with every Windows program out there, I think you’d see the acceptance of Linux shoot WAAAAY up. Please remember that not everyone out there thinks that figuring out how to install some piece of software and make it run properly is fun. Most of us want stuff to just work, and that’s why people are buying Windows machines and even Macs instead of Linux.
April 30th, 2007 at 9:52 pm
Hi,
What flavor of GNU/Linux you use is not a matter I guess. I am Windows (at work since this part of the world where I am living doesn’t recognize GNU/Linux) and GNU/Linux (at home, completely, for everything I do) user and so, I guess when I say GNU/Linux is a better OS, I mean it.
I have a question though! just curious question. If Windows becomes Open Source and it comes under GPL, will you be using it? (It will never become Open Source for sure, but still… since so much people hate Windows and they cite MS not being Open Source and not GPL’d OS as reason).
My personal choice of GNU/Linux is: openSuSE 10.2 on Laptop and Ubuntu on my P3 Desktop and openSuSE 10.2 on Dual Core Desktop. But I do try almost all available GNU/Linux distribution on regular basis on my Virtual Machine (Vmware for GNU/Linux) since I am not short of resource and I love to find out best out of each GNU/Linux distribution.
On my opinion, the number one desktop is Ubuntu (best for Laptops) and then openSuSE (resource consuming part aside) and then Fedora (Kind of balanced, but dull) and DreamLinux (try this, it’s entertaining) and finally XUbuntu.
Have blessed day. Keep trying distros and share your thoughts through blogs and help people know more.
Adios.
April 30th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
This is a comment aimed at Brian as well.
Any new system will require at least some minimal reading and minimal patience, even in Canada.
The naming conventions and numbering system scares you off.?. Have you found out what it is, or are you wallowing in self pity and stupidity. Since you are too lazy to find out I’ll tell you:
The names like Dapper Drake and Feisty Fawn are simple naming conventions. They are not some secret code. Each new release has a two part name both starting with the same letter.
The numbering system is even easier. 6.06, 6.10, and 7.04 is nothing more than the year.month convention. So with that in mind Feisty Fawn 7.04 was released in April 2007.
LTS was explained on the page, and yes, they are not supported till the end of time. They have a cut off date. Why have a cut off date? Won’t I be left out in the cold after that? The answer is NO. There is a new tested release ever 6 months or so. You get to update as soon as you want, as often as you want, or not at all.
But I suggest you do a little reading, and have some patience with something new and different. If you have any more uneducated remarks, check out the following web site before doing so because your comments make my ears bleed.
http://ubuntuforums.org/
April 30th, 2007 at 10:20 pm
“Why is installing simple things like Java a royal pain the ***?”
Because Java is proprietary software, which cannot be legally distributed by anybody who just fancies doing so. Your problem here, is with proprietary software, not with free software.
Actually Sun-java is built-in with the newest release 7.04
April 30th, 2007 at 10:24 pm
Can Ubuntu stream video to an Xbox 360?
yes. it is quite easy.
for this and for all other questions (or brian-like idiocy) go to
Ubuntu Guide
like i said. easy.
April 30th, 2007 at 10:34 pm
Note to Brian:
I hear ya, buddy. But I find your complaining about two versions of Ubuntu to be a little odd since there were two versions of Windows XP, and now four versions of Windows Vista.
Installing applications? It can be a bit on the awkward side, but I sure love not having every install cram entries into a registry and refuse to uninstall because it can’t locate the necessary msi file.
As for articles about how bad someone’s experience was with Linux installs or such, you’d see a lot more articles of a similar bent about Windows if it wasn’t pre-installed for most users (which has the fortunate side effect of making the PC manufacturer ship it with hardware they know works). If Dell ever does start pre-installing Ubuntu or another bundling of Linux and related software, and other manufacturers follow suit, the articles on hard it all is will dry up.
Is Mac for you? Maybe. I’ve watched a few people make the switch and with maybe one exception, they haven’t looked back. Most have still forked over money for Microsoft or Adobe applications, but they really enjoy their daily experience. That said, there were the early days when they first went to connect to a network and had to learn the Mac way. Change does carry it’s share of pain.
The limiting factor in any move away from Windows is what software you rely on. If you were a lawyer and depended on a program like Time Matters, you’d have little choice but stick with Windows.
For the present, I tell non-technical Windows users who are fed up with their experience that, if money is not a limiting factor, to go Mac. If they’re on a severe budget, or enamored with the philosophy of open source, a trip to Ubuntu-land, or other “friendly” Linux is worth a try (Novell?).
Hope you find the best solution for your needs. Thank you for sharing your experience and opinion.
April 30th, 2007 at 11:01 pm
To the man with all the WHYS, my 2 and 5 year olds whine less than you. I have been a linux user for 8 years or so ( my hubby’s choice at first). But when he spent good money on windowsXP I was ready to file for divorce. It took me several months to learn some things. But I -a non computer literate, high school graduate, stay at home mom- can add or update software on a linux machines. I learned when there were no blogs to help me. So I ask you WHY can you not be willing to learn? Do you think everything should be handed to you? Did you answer all the questions for your students? or did you encourage them to learn and find the answers for themselves?
In closing I am not the greatest fan of Ubuntu, I prefer older versions of suse and mandrake. You don’t have to have the latest version of anything to have a happy computer experience. I can do anything a windowsXP user can do, usually better because I know how to use the software not just point and click. Age has nothing to do with it either, my mother-in-law is 68 and has used linux for 5 years (also by my hubby’s choice).
April 30th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
OK, use Linux and Ubuntu but not the 7.04 version.
Use 6.04 or 6.10.
May 1st, 2007 at 5:02 am
I have grief with Ubuntu. and it’s on 3 points. Outside of these 3 points, I love it without fail.
1- Adding, removing programs. I have program x. I downloaded it to the desktop. I open add/remove programs to install it. It doesn’t see it. I don’t have the option to use add/remove programs to install it. I am given a dang terminal to use. I don’t care about the terminal. I don’t want the terminal. I want my program to install. I double-click the program, and it goes to install, I think. After it “installs” I cannot find the software. Where did it go? (this is a rhetorical question)
2- How the crap do you actually use NDISwrapper, anyway? I have this usb wireless module in my Shuttle XPC (wireless model PN11) It’s an older, simple 802.11b doo-dad. It isn’t recognized by Ubuntu. I can’t make it recognized by Ubuntu. I installed NDISwrapper, and installed the right driver (.inf file), but the darn thing still isn’t there. Again, what gives?!?
3-Gaming on Linus is a joke. I don’t want to play Sauerbraten, I don’t want to play Tux Racer. I want Sims2 to play on Linux. I want this badly. I can’t change over until it plays at least as good as it does on XP. If I change early, my wife kills me. Period. So until I can play games on Linux like I can on Windows, it isn’t ready for everyone, or even most home users.
3b- Don’t even mention WINE or CEDEGA. Neither work as well as they’re supposed to/advertised to. I can install the darn game , but it doesn’t play.
If you have a fix for at least the last 2, tell me. It would be awesome. Until then, Ubuntu Linux is just another work/internet machine for me. no frills, no fun.
May 1st, 2007 at 5:04 am
I know Linux, I don’t like it that much because some issues still haven’t been solved (still no single file layout or toolkit: drag and drop still doesn’t work reliably in 2007…), and there’s just much less apps for Linux than Windows, and those that are available are typically not as good (pain to install, ugly interface, less features, no or crappy documentation, etc.)
It’s the apps, stupid!
May 1st, 2007 at 5:25 am
Brian: If you like Windows and don’t have time to learn Linux, why the heck are you trying to use Ubuntu? Linux is for 1) people who know and like Unix, and want a free, powerful, Unix-like system 2) people who are really, really fed up with Windows and don’t want to buy a Mac.
If you can click a mouse, you’re qualified to use Ubuntu.
May 1st, 2007 at 5:40 am
Way to go champ!! Bring some clarity into those obfuscated heads!
May 1st, 2007 at 7:25 am
Ubuntu = a so-so distro with a lot of money behind it. I don’t really have anything against it, but it is certainly not the Holy Grail of Linux. If you have harware that it likes (quite normal, actually) it can be an excellent experience. If it doesn’t like your hardware, and you’re not a geek, it can be a nightmare. Of course, the same can be said for any distro.
IMHO, 7.04 was released too early, and/or with insufficient testing. That’s a problem with many distros: releasing on the projected date, and not waiting until the product is “finished”. It’s not like most of them are commercial distros, and have to get the product out on a specified date, or else they will lose their profits.
My favorite distro (PCLinuxOS) is currently four months “late”, based on the original schedule, because the development team is not yet satisfied with it. (OTOH, the first Test Release was more stable / had fewer bugs than the “final” 7.04 Ubuntu release.
)
At least as important as pushing “Ubuntu” is pushing Linux in general. If Ubuntu doesn’t work, try PCLinuxOS. If PCLinuxOS doean’t work, try Fedora. If Fedora doesn’t work, try Suse. Etc.
May 1st, 2007 at 8:00 am
Great article, David.
I wish many of my friends could be as open concerning the use of their computer as you are.
There is still one little thing I would like to add : Ubuntu is just one of the many flavours of Linux. There are LiveCDs and distributions for almost anyone.
Linux makes it possible for you to have your own individual computer experience. Linux is freedom because of the choice between the ways you can get things done.
to Brian and so many others like you:
I’ve been working with Windows for many years now and I can’t believe anyone who tells me that its use is intuitive. Any operating system is an other paradigm to cope with. So learn and know what you are talking about instead of starting to complain.
May 1st, 2007 at 8:13 am
Forgot to precise that I posted my contribution thanks to a Sabayon Linux LiveDVD.
May 1st, 2007 at 8:29 am
You don’t give drugs to an addict or beer to an alcoholic both are people engaged in a destructive behaviour which they have built a dependency on.
Using windows is a destructive behavior. It wastes hours of everybody’s time. Anyone who has given it up will confirm that fact.
I hereby repent of fixing windows for my friends and family. From now on they can learn what a destructive thing they are engaged in!
STOP FIXING WINDOWS FOR PEOPLE!!!
Then they will have to try something better!
May 1st, 2007 at 9:23 am
Excellent blog entry, Dave. And don’t feel like the lone stranger on the “friend discussion” situation- I’ve been using Linux for YEARS now and get that one all the time…
Joe in Suffolk: In response to your comments…
1) Most of the programs out there are handled by a package manager, not an installer, like under Windows. Notable exceptions to this would be commercial games, Java from Sun or IBM, and a few other applications. It doesn’t work the same way you’re used to and I’m going to be blunt with you about this. What you’re used to is not “easier” it’s what you’re used to- and it’s not precisely better (and is a source of many of the problems people encounter with Windows…)- and is actually a bad idea to begin with.
2) NDISWrapper is actually rather easy to use. The biggest problems with it’s use is with trying to use the wrong drivers for something or not finishing the configuration. In Ubuntu 6.10, I was able to install the Broadcom drivers (I’ve a Broadcom 4318 chipset in the laptop, which has some issues that are being worked on- all the other Broadcom chips are actually rather nicely supported by the reverse-engineered drivers that ship with the current versions of Ubuntu and other Linux distributions.) and simply go. However, reading online, it seems that you’re shooting yourself in the foot here… It’s a Prism 3 USB device you’re trying to bring up- you’re bringing up two different WiFi drivers at the same time, it’s no wonder you’re not able to get it running… A google search for PN11 and Shuttle provided a link to a page about your Shuttle and had this to say about it: “This is an accessory available separately from Shuttle, and connects internally via USB. Being based on the Prism3 chip, you can use the linux-wlan-ng driver to get this to work.” I suggest you ditch the NDISWrapper for right now and try the native Linux support for WiFi instead.
3) I’m going to be even MORE blunt with you here. If you want that, you need to tell the vendors this. It’s not because Linux is incapable (I should know, I work as a consultant for Linux Game Publishing amongst other things I do for a living…) it’s that publishers are either unwilling to provide the game or are unwilling to license the right to port and publish said port for a reasonable amount. Nothing else. You want the gaming situation to change, QUIT USING WINDOWS. Otherwise they’ll just simply keep making games for it. It’s the big reason why I keep saying that WINE based answers aren’t really ones- at least you see eye to eye on that one.
May 1st, 2007 at 10:20 am
Frank Earl,
Ok, thanks for the reply. Here’s some further points:
1-My main concern is: Where did the installed app go? I don’t mind learning a new way, but I really don’t have a clue where I should be looking.
2- I’ll give the native linux bit a go. Before I installed NDISwrapper, my wireless card wasn’t being recognized, either. I guess I’ll keep poking away at it.
3- I understand this one comes down to an issue with the game manufacturers, and not the Linux community itself. Here’s my problem, which seems to be echoed everywhere I turn:
Wife and I like Linux.
Wife likes Sims 2
Wife and I hate Windows
Wife dislikes most games available for Linux
Wife wants Linux and Sims 2
Wife won’t transition to Linux w/o Sims 2
So…
Wife sticks with Windows
———-
Game Manufactures (GM) like making money
GM dislikes many Windows gaming issues
GM does not see large Linux gamer user base
GM markets to largest gamer user base to meet compatibility and target sales figures
So…
GM makes Windows games, not Linux Games
———
Older Windows Users(OWU) tired of windows problems
OWU _generally_ not tech-minded
OWU wants to see seamless transition, no effort
OWU not willing to put effort into new system
So…
OWU sticks with Windows.
——–
Young Windows Users (YWU) tired of Windows
YWU _generally_ mildly tech minded at minimum
YWU play lots of games
YWU willing to learn new ways of doing things in Linux
YWU like Wife, want game support where there is painfully little support
So…
YWU sticks with Windows
——–
How do we break this? Put the carrot out there. You’re working in Linux Game Development, so you’re on the right path. I’m working the user side, selling the idea of life without Windows. The meeting point is the App base. Where is AutoCad? Where is Sims 2? We get these met, we have ourselves the HUGE marketshare that is currently windows users.
It is interesting to note, that aside from the inclusion of price, these are the same reasons why MAC took so long to gain users. Hmmm… Is there a pattern here, I think so.
May 1st, 2007 at 11:28 am
I think I will become a Windows Cleaner. Cleaning windows from PCs, that is. Great story.
May 1st, 2007 at 12:35 pm
For all of you that have a problem with Ubuntu I would suggest SimplyMepis
http://www.mepis.org/mirrors
They recently moved from basing it on straight Debian to Ubuntu and its hardware detection and configuration tools are better than anything out there.
I personally am not a fan of “The Ubuntu way” of doing things. eg: using sudo rather than just having root active.
May 2nd, 2007 at 2:43 am
[...] muss. Nicht alles, was man auf Original CD gekauft hat gehrt einem auch wirklich! Worth a look! Side effects may include: Blog Archive “I don’t know what Linux is but I don’t… cu Gargi [...]
May 13th, 2007 at 6:41 am
madpuppy - if you run “sudo passwd”, you’ll be asked to enter a root password and the root account will be active. However, I normallu run “sudo su” when I need an extended root session. I was a Slackeare user for a long time, so I’m still getting used to the Debian/Ubuntu way
May 27th, 2007 at 6:14 am
I was a Windows user for about 13 years, but I have been trying to switch to Linux for about 5 years (Mandrake, Red Hat (in the pre-fedora days), …). But most of the time it didn’t work; my only successes were SlackWare 10 and just recently Ubuntu.
In april my Windows computer crashed finally which left me to the choice: recover all data, repartition, reinstall and spend about 3 days installing all software I use. The other choice was Ubuntu Linux 6.10. As I was fed up with Windows, it was the second choice, now I’ve updated it to Ubuntu Feisty and I’m quite happy with it. It can do things my Windows machine couldn’t do (but it also has some minor drawback: I need to use several Windows applications that don’t have ANY linux alternative, so I find myself using them in Wine/VMWare which works quite well).
I would recommend switching to Linux better than switching to Vista (which I’ve tried, but runs very slow on brand new hardware and just isn’t productive)
May 27th, 2007 at 7:00 am
Carmac - are you crazy?
First off, this article is wrong.. if you download Photoshop, that’s not stealing. That’s copyright infringement which is a civil crime, not a felony. It’s not like you stole the CD and the box from a store, that’s depriving the store of the property that they own. If you’ve downloaded Photoshop, you’ve commited copyright infringement because all you’ve downloaded is a series of 1s and 0s which make the program.
Regardless of what “Copyright Protectors” claim, it’s not stealing.
May 27th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
I haven’t tried Ubuntu yet although I have several ISOs of it. I didn’t have the necessary/recommended RAM for it then. I did try “puppu linux” for a few weeks and liked it alot. I tried and used DSL (”damn small linux”) too, -have that on a USB zip-drive (along with Firefox).
I found “PCLinuxOS” and tried that. It boasts being Linux that is similar to Windows(??). Even with half the suggested minimum RAM, it runs perfectly! I agree… it ‘looks & feels’ kind of like XP-meets-VISTA, -but it is LINUX!!
I have since doubled my RAM. XP runs better… Linux? -Still fast, still reliable, no notable change. I guess it was fairing just fine from the limited RAM that I was using..
More than just ‘anything but Windows’, I sort of want to try many different distros of Linux, including (esp.) Ubuntu.
Heck… I saw a site recently that shows you how to write your OWN bootable distro of Linux! -Can it get any sweeter than that!
In a world without walls or borders… -who needs Windows or Gates??
Go LINUX!!
-Joel A. Burdick
May 27th, 2007 at 8:53 pm
Cry babies are funny.
May 27th, 2007 at 9:23 pm
I started using Ubuntu shortly before the official Feisty release and I love it! I’m coming from around 5 years of going through many Linux distros and back and forth to Windows. I consider myself a super-nerd. For a long time I stayed away from “noob” distros until I re-looked at my priorities. I finally ended up on Freespire.
I broke Freespire beyond repair after I attempted to install drivers for both ATI and nVidia in the same system. While attempting to fix it, I discovered that it is nearly impossible to boot it without X!
Next I tried Debian. I jumped through many hoops just to install the dang thing, and it didn’t come with anything (0X, KDE/GNOME) “out-of-box.”
Then I got Ubuntu.
Advantages over other Linuxes (Linices??)
1. Aside from ISO-downloading and waiting, I installed it in maybe 15 minutes, without burning a CD (don’t try this at home unless you really know what you’re doing).
2. After installing from the single CD, my new system came up with a splash screen, X, GNOME, and all the basics that the average desktop user needs.
3. I soon attempted installing nVidia drivers, compiling my own kernel with suspend2, installing Beryl, installing IE6 via ies4linux, and other things that broke some of my old distros. Ubuntu passed with flying colors.
Advantages over Windows
1. Security. I’ve never gotten a virus on Windows, but only thanks to a multitude of security programs. Ubuntu has none and needs none.
2. Faster boot times. I used to use a “heavy” distro and Puppy for different uses. Now I just use Ubuntu since it boots so quickly.
3. Faster in general. It should be slower, considering I run Beryl on it. Nope.
4. More stable. After a few months of using it full-time, I’ve probably had 2 almost-total crashes and maybe 2 more application crashes.
5. More fun. I’m not referring to games, I’m talking about tinkering with Linux itself. The average person probably wouldn’t agree, though.
That’s why I’m using Ubuntu and still using Ubuntu.
May 28th, 2007 at 6:56 pm
I know a bright guy with a PhD in physics. He hadn’t ever seen linux. He asked me if it had any GUI! Can you imagine the kind of monastic life some folks must imagine the linux world must be like?!
May 30th, 2007 at 11:48 am
I agree with you about open source software completely, it’s a little geeky and not as user friendly as it should be, but it is great software and those involved have made a great contribution to the computing community. I tried Ubuntu for about 24 hours and chickened out and went back to terrible Windows. I don’t like that you can’t see your hard drive. The menu does not show all the installed programs. I probably should have stayed with it longer, most of the problems I had probably would have worked themselves out. Giving up my 400 + window programs was just too much. I still have the disk, maybe I’l give it another shot.
June 23rd, 2007 at 11:14 am
They’ll eventually see the light
July 29th, 2007 at 9:12 am
[quote]STOP FIXING WINDOWS FOR PEOPLE!!!
Then they will have to try something better![/quote]
A-men.
After the usual yearly breakdown of my “billing” hours, I find that for the fourth year in a row, my hours lost to non-billable ‘friends & family’ windows issues* has exceed 20% of my total labor time. I’m not suffering this death of a thousand needles for anyone… anymore.
I will gladly DOUBLE that investment to help them (family) switch to a foreign operating system, complete with oodles of learning curves and the inevitable challenges. But HELL WILL FREEZE OVER before I spend another moment fixing someone’s “deliberately shoddy” commercial offerings. The same issues again, and again and again.
I’ll never forget the MCSE seminar, in which the featured speaker opened up with this line while pointing to a projected screenshot of 2000: “This is great stuff folks! You’ll soon be earning more money devising solutions to your solutions than you ever imagined.”
As of Feburary, ‘07 have flatly cut off windows support in my private life, both free and paid. Yes, the commercial support money has gone down… but the quality of my life has risen exponentially!
(and as to the money… who knows…. some of the businesses cut off by this action, keep calling anyway. *One* is now in the process of an OS switch. If one support contract finds it’s way back into my bank, then maybe… just maybe there will be others to follow).
You’ll never know the joy of looking at yet another windows user who can’t even describe their self-inflicted problem … and simply saying “I don’t do Windows. Sorry yours broke”.
September 11th, 2007 at 3:04 pm
[...] most people’s immediate reaction to the proposition of using free software, entitled I Don’t Know What Linux is but I Don’t Like It, I got many interesting comments and put the issue to rest for the time being. However, I take [...]
January 15th, 2008 at 9:26 pm
[...] The Plenitude of Arboreal Beauty » Blog Archive » “I don’t know what Linux is but I don’t li… “In college, almost everyone has a personal computer. More and more people are using Macs - it seems that 10% of the class of 2007 uses Macs, whereas it appears that roughly half of freshman (class of 2010) are using Macs.” - just 1 datapoint, but still (tags: blogs linux mac osx davidsiegel marketshare penetration) [...]
January 16th, 2008 at 7:20 am
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