| wIndependence Day Essay: Why I Want to Give Up Windows |
by Volodymyr Vakhitov (August 8, 2002)
There are several answers, but they are all very simple: I am sick of piracy, which is blooming on this platform. I am afraid of daily viruses - I have much data to lose. I am tired of restarting my computer, which is done weekly as a preventive measure. I go crazy with the unpredictability of Internet Explorer and its amazing feature to hang my whole system (which, however, applies to neither the size of Windows applications nor system specifications of a computer. It is not about me loving or hating Windows, this platform does not meet my requirements and is too expensive.
One day I decided to make a change. I took a long time selecting my next choice. I am not a programmer, not a system administrator, not a guru and really have little to do with computers. I am not interested in ‘holy wars’ about choosing the better platform – they are often between people who have a deep understanding of computers. I am a usual user and economist, wanting to work peacefully with necessary programs and to securely surf the Internet. The circle of these programs is limited: an office suite with good electronic worksheets and spell-checker, a presentation suite, an application for typing scientific texts and mathematic formulas, a program for processing regressions, mathematical suite along with browser, media-player, and a couple of simple games.
After wandering through computer magazines and forum sites, I decided that my choice should be based on the Unix platform. In spite of the fact that my computer is an old ‘monster’, it still breathes, and is not even at death's door, -- with resurrection waiting in new versions and one of these is the Linux system. I need an efficient desktop system, and it seemed that one of ‘new’ Linux distributions would fit the bill. Making a choice took a long and painful time, selecting from several alternatives, and at last I decided that it would be either Mandrake or Red Hat. The first thing in determining my choice was simplicity of installation and a desirable GUI. Second, the quantity of literature about this distribution available in my city. Bookstores offered many books on Linux, but they were mostly describing Red Hat. And I did not feel like checking how much these systems have similar configurations. The third reason, strange as it may seem, is the availability of technical support. I decided that I am smart enough to handle everything myself, but I needed some guarantee that there is somebody I can rely on in a critical moment, somebody who knows what to do to make things work.
First I tried to install Mandrake 8.0 to a Pentium 133MHz with 40MB of RAM and a 1 GB hard drive. And surprise - it worked. Nice and beautiful, but slow. I looked at KDE 2.2 and noticed that it is much better than Explorer, but I could not continue working with this system, 40MB is too small, so I decided to postpone familiarizing myself with it. In half a year, I had a bit more powerful computer – a Compaq with an AMD 400 MHz, 160 MB of RAM and a 2 GB hard drive. There was more free space, but I wanted to play with dual boot keeping Windows for while learning Linux. I have to say that Linux allows that and it won me over right away (and its GRUB loader is an aesthetic pleasure). This time I chose Red Hat 7.3 with KDE as an interface and fell in love with it! The installation was quick and the devices were found without problems (Windows ME could not recognize the graphics card on the same computer and I had to look for drivers). The Installation Guide is perfectly written, but in some places it is too detailed, and some things could still be found intuitively.
Having installed the system, I began pressing buttons to understand the layout. I managed to find support for Cyrillic characters, interface configuration, clock, panel . . . Everything is easily configurable through ‘Preferences’. I migrated from Windows and it matters for me to work in a similar environment at least in the beginning. I will always compare, what is best and what is not as comfortable. KDE 3.0 passes the test excellently, as I do not have to crawl through the configuration files and correct them manually; everything is perfectly configurable from the GUI. The only difficulty I have encountered is the configuration of a local network and network printer. I know Samba will save me, but I still am not exactly sure how. I do not lose hope, as there are many books on Samba in the stores. Actually, the phrase that there is not enough documentation on Linux is a myth. Just like a phrase that there are lots of good books on Windows :)
Having installed the system and having played with it, we can discuss applications. I have been using MS Office as an office suite for a long time. I was happy with everything about it except the cost. However, there are plenty of suites for Linux. I do not want to describe all of them, I will just mention that K-Office manages most of my tasks, and StarOffice is indistinguishable (I have heard about some filters and converters, but I do not need them). And the chart editor in K-Office is just perfect!
For regressions, I have Stata, Linux version of which is shipped on the same conditions and at the same price as the Windows version. Besides, there are SAS, SPSS, which, like many other serious suites have Unix-versions. There are free suites, too, for example R-Project, which I have not been studying for a long time, but I know enough to understand that it is as good as S. Mathematica and MathCad which are also ported to Linux, but you can also as easily use Octavian which is in the Red Hat distribution. For formulas, there is TeX (or graphical LyX, shipped separately) and for most purposes it is enough to have K-Office's equation editor.
To count the cost of all the software for Linux, the number is much less than the one for Windows. Red Hat is good because it has so many programs that you would have to pay thousands for in the Windows world. Moreover, these programs are distributed on the Internet under the GPL, which means, practically free.
In whole, I am very happy. I have got an efficient system legally and cheap. The system lacks many weaknesses of the Windows environment. This all works on a machine costing no more than $200. Tell me whether it is possible under Windows.
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Please note: The opinions expressed in this essay are those of the writer, not of the management or staff of DesktopLinux.com.
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