Linux for users?

[expat]

I'm not picking a fight with those who want a linux distro to play with (that's why I started a new thread), but does it make sense for someone to go to linux if they don't want to play with it?

I have installed linux in the past to try it out but I'm no longer interested in being a techie at home. I just want to use my PC: for email, browsing, Skype, internet radio, basic office stuff, and photo manipulation. And of course playing music, extracting MP32, and burning CDs.

I'd love to dump M$ for the tulip they've given me over the years (anyone want to buy a paid-for copy of Windows ME ?) but is there any other reason to switch to linux on my own machine?

[DimPrawn]

Yes, join the 0.1% of normal PC users who have successfully left M$ for Linux.

[Cowboy Bob]

I have installed linux in the past to try it out but I'm no longer interested in being a techie at home. I just want to use my PC: for email, browsing, Skype, internet radio, basic office stuff, and photo manipulation. And of course playing music, extracting MP32, and burning CDs.

My Linux machine does everything in your list out of the box (apart from Skype, but that's a free download) for no extra cost.

I also just want to use my machine, but I also don't want to have to keep running anti-virus/anti-spyware/anti-adware, registry clean-up utilities etc etc just to keep the machine running smoothly in the long term.

[Cowboy Bob]

Just buy a Mac. All you have to do is unbox it, turn it on, use it and not worry about it. That is all.

True that. Even my sister can use one.

[expat]

Just buy a Mac. All you have to do is unbox it, turn it on, use it and not worry about it. That is all.

I know. But you missed a couple of steps: buy Mac, buy software. I forgot to mention that money is a factor, at least when you get into 4 figures.

[expat]

My Linux machine does everything in your list out of the box (apart from Skype, but that's a free download) for no extra cost.

I also just want to use my machine, but I also don't want to have to keep running anti-virus/anti-spyware/anti-adware, registry clean-up utilities etc etc just to keep the machine running smoothly in the long term.

That's what I want. But, for example, I recently installed Mandrake, and it doesn't work like that. I have to "mount" my CD drive before using it, and I couldn't find a way of using the external USB drive at all. Sorry, but it was not so much plug and play, as plug and spend hours trying to find out why not everything would play. Would have been fun when I was younger but now it just looks like something that doesn't really work yet.

Maybe the answer is, get the right linux. But so far I haven't. Mandrake, RedHat, Knoppix: all look fun, all fail to do something I want to do.

[Cowboy Bob]

I know. But you missed a couple of steps: buy Mac, buy software. I forgot to mention that money is a factor, at least when you get into 4 figures.

That also applies to Windows (unless you're into warez). Linux is the only OS where pretty much everything comes free on the install discs.

You don't have to be a techie to use it anymore either really. My mother is happy with her Linux machine. OK, I set it up for her, but she'd be equally incapable of setting up Windows. Plus she got £100 off the machine by insisting that she didn't want Windows with it and used the extra money to upgrade the ink jet printer to a laser one.

[Cowboy Bob]

That's what I want. But, for example, I recently installed Mandrake, and it doesn't work like that. I have to "mount" my CD drive before using it, and I couldn't find a way of using the external USB drive at all. Sorry, but it was not so much plug and play, as plug and spend hours trying to find out why not everything would play. Would have been fun when I was younger but now it just looks like something that doesn't really work yet.

Maybe the answer is, get the right linux. But so far I haven't. Mandrake, RedHat, Knoppix: all look fun, all fail to do something I want to do.

I use SuSE and it mounts everything automatically - including my iPod. Everything is managed centrally via a thing called YaST - from software installation and management to the kind of things you find in Windows Control Panel.

I can't remember opening a command prompt for a long time, except for running my Ant build scripts, but that's work related rather than machine maintenance.

It was the only distribution to work out of the box with my Thinkpad's wireless networking too. I've been using Linux for at least 5 or 6 years now, and SuSE is by far the most polished version I've come across yet.

[expat]

That also applies to Windows (unless you're into warez). Linux is the only OS where pretty much everything comes free on the install discs.

You don't have to be a techie to use it anymore either really. My mother is happy with her Linux machine. OK, I set it up for her, but she'd be equally incapable of setting up Windows. Plus she got £100 off the machine by insisting that she didn't want Windows with it and used the extra money to upgrade the ink jet printer to a laser one.

I'm not into warez but I do have all the software that I want already. It's costly but the Windows version are paid for and I'm not about to upgrade. I admit that does bias the question a bit! MS Office 97 works fine. So does Photoshop 7: don't need to upgrade, but don't want to use anything else (so Windows is paid for, Mac would be £480). An uneven comparison I admit, hence the question, is there a reason to change (not just a reason to choose).

[Cowboy Bob]

I'm not into warez but I do have all the software that I want already. It's costly but the Windows version are paid for and I'm not about to upgrade. I admit that does bias the question a bit! MS Office 97 works fine. So does Photoshop 7: don't need to upgrade, but don't want to use anything else (so Windows is paid for, Mac would be £480). An uneven comparison I admit, hence the question, is there a reason to change (not just a reason to choose).

Well, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. If I was in your situation I'd probably just stick with Windows. There's no point changing for the sake of it. Though I might be tempted to just set up a dual-boot to play around.

In my case, I switched because I found myself more and more using some kind of Unix/Linux servers for my work - and Windows is a pain to use in that regard. You need 3rd party apps for everything. With Linux I get pretty much the full *nix stack as well as X-Windows forwarding etc etc. It made sense for me.