The 'What operating system(s) do you use poll Version 2.0

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Mac OS 10.4.

I wouldn't mind using Linux, but I'm more familiar with Macs.

Amiga 4000T Kickstart 3.1 with WB 3.9 (my loved)
HP/UX PA/RISC with HPUX9 and X
SUN clone SPARC32 w. Linux and X
Powermac w. MacOS 9
Powermac w. Yellowdog Linux
Amiga 1200 Kickstart 3.0 with WB 3.5
Powermacs with MacOS
PCs with XP which i HATE.

XP, I plan on getting Vista when it becomes relevant to my computer games.

Ubuntu 6.06, older version, but it works stable with my computer, as opposed to 7.10.

Linux primarily - Debian 4.0/etch/stable. I also use Window$ 2000 for games, but that's it. Linux doesn't really get old - heck, you can still compile UnrealIRCd on a 2.2 kernel.

Someone should make an ad: "If you downgrade to Vista, you're a bloody idiot."

If you're saying that Windows Is better than linux, I'd like to see you do some of these:

tar -cvzf ~/backup.tar.gz ~/docs
- Makes a backup.

cd ~/docs; tar -xzf ~/backup.tar.gz
- Restores a backup.

apt-get install kbarcode
- Installs kbarcode, which allows you to make your own barcodes.

man fseek
- Gives you information on the fseek function.

gcc *.c; gcc -o app *.o
- Compiles all *.c files in a directory.

grep InitSound *.c
- looks for all instances of "InitSound" in all the *.c files in a directory.



Especially that apt-get one. apt-get can get almost anything for you, if you have the right repositories.

How can you say Linux is "better" when it just has a different target audience?

This poll really lacks options. I would include more:

• MS-DOS/PC DOS/DR-DOS/FreeDOS/etc.
• Windows 3.xx
• Windows 9x/ME
• Windows NT/2000/XP/2003 Server
• Windows Vista
• OS/2 2.xx
• OS/2 Warp 3
• OS/2 Warp 4
• Mac OS 7-9
• Mac OS X
• Debian-based GNU/Linux distributions (Ubuntu, Knoppix, Kubuntu, Debian itself, etc.)
• Fedora/CentOS/Red Hat-based distros
• Slackware Linux
• Novell/Caldora/SCO Linux
• AIX
• HP/UX
• Solaris
• Windows CE
• PalmOS
• NewtonOS
• Amiga OS
• RDOS

Saying Linux is better than Windows is like saying that a free lifetime pass to the ISS is better than a weekend in Disneyland - it just has a different target audience.

Win 2k on the home machine, XP pro at work (personal), win2k Server (for the servers I manage..

Someone brought it up on another site, but I counted, and I'm on my 11th operating system (starting with Dos 2.1..

Errr that is exactly what I said (Obviously not word for word), why are you repeating me?

As you ask, you asked a question, so I provided an answer.

I was explaining one reason why I, personally, felt that Linux was better (with no quotes). I did so by analogy. I feel that there are several parallels between my analogy and a comparison of Linux with Windows, which was the subject at the time.

You had quoted a lengthy post by Greasemonkey, in which he posed a question. You ignored all that and added a one line question of your own, addressing nothing in his post. I thought I'd answer your question with what I felt was a slightly humorous comparison.

The parallels I was thinking in terms of revolve around your earlier post, as well, where you stated that your rationale behind a future upgrade from XP to Vista would depend on it addressing your games requirements. Hence in my simile I was contrasting a short, ephemeral, and expensive, visit to Disneyland with something of lasting value, but free (and just a tad unrealistic, too).

Another facet is the reality of the space station, versus the fantasy in Disneyland. The real strengths of Linux, with a future, versus the obsolescent, dinosaur-like qualities of Windows. (Think IBM, who got a little complacent, when they had 80% of the world's computer hardware market - and let is slip away from them.)

I'm sure my comment had a few more levels of meaning that I now forget. Oh... I suppose one more would be a hint that the primary target audiences would be children, rather than adults. However, in this case, maybe my comparison is actually backward. Adults seem much more entrenched in their spoon-fed Windows environment, than children, who like to pick up Linux and run with it.

I'll not knock Mac users, as there is some fine stuff in there, but proprietary software is not the future.

i use the most recent fedora on my workstation and Vista (yech) on my laptop. Im upgrading to xp pro soon

Ahaha, I might laugh if I was into that kind of humour, but I'm not so I didn't, I just typed it because I felt like it. Very witty though.

Well I don't see it that way, you feel that while they're both aimed at different people the ones who like Windows simply like things "spoon fed" as you put it and Linux somehow offers a better lasting experience, but I don't see how that's true if Windows controls so much of the gaming market. People have different interests and it's moronic to disrespect them just because they like to do one thing over another. I have certain things I like to do with my computer and Windows suits my needs, why should I waste time getting used to a completely different OS when I already understand this one and it works well? Why should anyone? If you knew how to drive automatic cars and you were told that manuals were better would you start learning to drive a manual (Assuming it would take a lot of getting used to and you didn't already know how to)? Anyway if propriety software isn't the future it wont need you arguing for or against it. People will just dump it when they feel it's runs it's course. So you can stop beating your chest like you do.

In my opinion I addressed his question by asking one. But seriously I do think it was witty.

About a decade ago maybe, I had the use of a borrowed extra computer. I installed FreeBSD on a spare disk, and hooked it to that machine to learn FreeBSD. My main desktop then was Windows95, and I had become familiar with FreeBSD on the old Best Internet ISP where I had a shell account.

We were shopping at Costco and I saw a RedHat Deluxe 6.1 package (I think Costco picked these up cheap because 6.2 had just come out) for $29 instead of the retail $79, so decided to pick one up and see what it was like.

The install was easy, much more so than Windows, didn't have to repeately reboot; in fact, it was frustration at installing Win95 on a new 8.5GB disk, where the re-booting was driving be batty, that led me to take a break and install RedHat on the second partition (I divided the 8.5 Gigs equally).

I started using that, and never went back, as it did what I needed without all the M$ cost and frustration.

I've compiled many useful programs for it, and use "checkinstall" to maintain the RPM database on the newly compiled programs. Once, when I was working for GE Medical systems, I installed 6.1 on an older computer when we had recieved new ones (the MIS boys said "do whatever you want with the old computers, take 'em home if you want), networked them together over a serial link (didn't have a spare hub or switch available for ethernet) and even compiled and installed an Open Source medical imaging program designed specifically for handling brain scan images. I had to seek out, compile and install a lot of libraries, which was very educational. That was interesting, and one of our bright boys saw it running on my screen and asked me for info on it.

I keep Win95 for Dos, so I can run AutoCAD 10 (pre-386 version) when I want to draw up some hobby stuff.

I still use RH6.1 for my daily desktop (using it at the moment) as it's faster than the newer stuff on my 500MHz 768MB AT. I compile my own 2.2 kernels and currently have:

Linux linus 2.2.24-7 #1 Tue May 3 15:13:04 PDT 2005 i586 unknown

I've a 80GB secondary disk, and have my real home there; Win & RH boot are on the primary disk, and several other systems are installed on the secondary. RH takes care of the multi-boot with lilo.

I had installed various distributions for practice and evaluation, mdk82, slack, suse, ubuntu, and woody, and the only other distribution, which I now use regularly when I need to use newer browsers or copy images from my S3100 Fuji digital camera, Vector Linux 5.8, a good choice for low or medium resource older systems. The older 2.2 kernel doesn't support USB mass storage used by that camera, and I'm glad it's mass storage as that's convenient, as I don't need proprietary software to access my own pix.

So, VL5.8 and RH6.1 are my two daily OS's

Same here.

Tim

ntbackup works just like tar but it also includes the ability to be scheduled from the command line, do archive backups, copy, incremental and differential to disk, removeable media or tape.

All windows applications have the "help" command which work just like the 'man' command. It can usually be accessed by appending /? to any .exe

I'd go on but I have to go back to work.


At this point and time, Linux has come a long way. It's a completely viable operating system for home use. The whole thing between the 3 major alternatives Linux (various flavors), Windows and Mac are all about what you know and prefer. You can achieve the same functionality with any of them. There are really very few true differences in the end user experience. There are differences behind the scenes but to the average user; they don't care. They just want to turn on their computer and have it work.