The operating system practically everyone of us uses is Windows XP or Windows Vista produced by Microsoft with its headquarters at Redmond USA. We even hardly know of any alternative. Some of us have heard about Macintosh by Apple and even fewer about Linux. There is a widely held notion that Linux is for hackers and we have to work on command line. Gone are those days and year 2008 is considered the year of Linux desktop. Thanks to the wildly growing community of passionate and innovative Linux users who have brought the stability, security, beauty, freedom and ease of use of Linux to our home computers. This article is an attempts to enlightened you how Linux is different and perhaps better than conventional operating system.
Fasten your seat belts as we are going to delve deep into some of the amazing facts.
Forget about viruses : If your computer shuts itself down without asking you and all kinds of advertisements appear when you don't ask for them, if emails get sent to all your contacts without your knowing it, then your computer probably has a virus. The main reason for this is because it runs Windows.
Linux hardly has any viruses. And that's not like "Oh well, not very often, you know". That's like "If you've ever heard of a real Linux virus, please tell me". Theoretically a Linux virus is not impossible to get. However, practically Linux makes it very hard for this to happen, for several reasons:
Most people use Microsoft Windows, and pirates want to do as much damage (or control) as possible: therefore, they target Windows. But that's not the only reason; the Apache web server (a web server is a program located on a remote computer that sends web pages to your browser when you ask for them), which is open source software, has the biggest market share (against Microsoft's IIS server), but it still suffers from much fewer attacks/flaws than the Microsoft one.
Linux uses smart authorization management. In Windows you (and any program you install) usually have the right to do pretty much anything to the system. If you feel like punishing your PC because it just let your precious work disappear, you can go inside the system folder and delete whatever you want: Windows won't complain. Of course, the next time you reboot, trouble begins. But imagine that if you can delete this system stuff, other programs can, too, or just mess it up. Linux doesn't allow that. Every time you request to do something that has to do with the system, an administrator password is required (and if you're not an administrator on this system, you simply can't do it). Viruses can't just go around and delete or modify what they want in the system; they don't have the authorization for that.
More eyes make fewer security flaws. Linux is Open source software, which means that any programmer in the world can have a look at the code (the "recipe" of any program), and help out, or just tell other developers "Hey, what if blah blah, isn't this, a security flaw?". On the other hand closed source operating systems rely on security by obscurity.
Viruses, trojans, adwares, spywares... Windows lets all these enter your computer pretty easily. It is not exactly a matter of how many flaws a system has, compared to the others. If there are many flaws, but nobody has discovered them yet (including pirates), or they are minor (they don't compromise an important part of the system), pirates won't be able to do great damage. It is really a matter of how fast a security flaw can be solved once it has been discovered. If a security flaw is discovered in an open source program, anyone in the open source community can have a look and help solve it. The solution (and the update) usually appears within a few days, sometimes even a few hours. Microsoft doesn't have that much manpower, and usually releases security patches within about a month after the flaw has been discovered (and sometimes published): that's more than enough for pirates to do whatever they want with your computer.
“Well I have heard about antiviruses for Linux!” You better read further pal as all of them scan for viruses for windows. Isn't it ridiculous to make solutions for problems that don't even exist. Whenever there is any security vulnerability in Linux, it is taken care of by making appropriate modifications in the system itself rather than by covering it up by another bloatware.
Despite these facts, in all your wisdom, you cannot help believing that in the future an antivirus will be needed for Linux, then be assured that it will also be free like rest of the operating system. So you don't have to crack, patch, find keys or fear getting blacklisted.
Forget about drivers Linux doesn't need separate drivers. All the drivers are already included in the Linux kernel, the core of the system. You may need some external driver if you use proprietary hardware like NVIDIA or ATI graphics card. Again the operating system will look it up for you. So don't worry about drivers even if you have lost your driver cd.
Update all your software with a single click Windows has a pretty convenient tool called "Windows update", which allows you to update your system with the latest updates available.
But what about all your non-Microsoft software ? Adobe applications ? ZIP compressor ? Burning program ? Non-Microsoft web browsers, etc.? You need to update all of them, one by one. And that takes time, since each one of them has its own (auto-)updating system.
Linux has a central place called the "Package manager", which takes care of everything installed on your system, including every single piece of software your computer has. So if you want to keep everything up-to-date, the only thing you need to do is press the "Install Updates" button down there
Enjoy the stability Have you ever lost your precious work because Windows crashed? Do you always shut down your computer the proper way, or do you sometimes just switch it off because Windows has gone crazy and doesn't let you do anything anymore? Have you ever gotten the "blue screen of death" or error messages telling you that the computer needs to be shut down for obscure reasons?
Of course, no operating system is perfect, and people who tell you that theirs can never ever crash are lying. However, some operating systems can be so stable that most users never see their systems crash, even after several years. This is true for Linux. Here's a good way to see this. When a system crashes, it needs to be shut down or restarted. Therefore, if your computer can stay up and running for a long time, no matter how much you use it, then you can say the system is stable. Well, Linux can run for years without needing to be restarted (most internet servers run Linux, and they usually never restart). Of course, with heavy updates, it still needs to be restarted (the proper way). But if you install Linux, and then use your system as much as you want, leaving your computer on all the time, you can go on like that for years without having any trouble.
Most of the time, you won't leave your computer on for such a long time, but this shows how stable Linux is.
Freedom! Freedom 0: The freedom to run the program for any purpose. Freedom 1: The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs. Freedom 2: The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor. Freedom 3: The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits.
This is the heart and soul of Linux and Free Liberal and Open source software (FLOSS). It is responsible for where Linux has reached today. When you pay for a proprietary software, you pay for the license to use it...you do not own the software. When you use FLOSS...you own every bit of it, as it is of the community, for the community and by the community. You can do anything you like with it, as you have the source code. For eg. If you want a software to have new features, you can either implement it yourself, or hire somebody to do it for you or you can request the developers as they are always happy to know what users want. It is important because it ensures that the direction of technological development is guided solely by merit and people's choices rather than by lobbying by big businesses based on their profit driven motive which invariably favors proprietary formats.
Why copy software illegally if you can get it for free? So, you're perfectly clean, you have *cough* purchased a license for all the software you've ever used *cough*, and nobody can bother you about this? Well, if that's the case, congratulations :)
However, for most people, let's be honest, illegally copied software is very common. Copying instead of buying it probably doesn't let you have nightmares. But are you really confident that you won't ever have trouble for that? Not so sure, huh... Software makers are progressing and finding more and more ways to track down illegal owners, and since more and more people tend to have broadband (permanent) connections, they might add an online functionality on the software that will control and verify your copy each time you launch it.
If you run Linux and install free software, you won't have to worry about this ever again! Most of free (as in free speech) software is free (as in free beer). You can find a free replacement for most of the commercial software out there. They might lack some of the advanced functionality, but they'll be more than enough for most people.
With Linux, installing a new software is much simpler. Linux has what is called a "package manager". If you need some new software, just open the package manager, type a few keywords, choose which software you want to install and press "Apply" or "OK". Or you can just browse existing software by categories.(there is a lot of choice!)
Jump into the next generation of desktops You have been impressed by the 3D and transparency possibilities first introduced in Windows Vista, and decided that these unique capabilities were worth a few hundred dollars? You even bought a new computer so that you could meet Vista's (very high) requirements? Fooled you: Linux can do better, for free, and with much less demanding hardware requirements.
Choose what your desktop looks like Pretty much all Windows users have similar desktop. You can still change your wallpaper, or the color of your windows decorations (default is blue), but basically you'll still end up with the usual Windows interface.
With Linux, choice has been brought back to you. You're no longer forced to accept the one-and-only way to manage multiple windows: you can choose among many programs, which are called "window managers". But don't worry, you won't need to worry about that, since you'll have a pretty good default window manager. The point is you can change it if you wish.
So if you like a simple, efficient and easy-to-use desktop environment, you'll probably like GNOME. If you like a more modern and glossy look, you might want to switch to K Desktop Environment. And there are numerous others with different flavor. With Linux you decide what your desktop looks like. And you don't even need to decide once and for all : you can switch to any of these desktop styles whenever you log into your computer
Why does your Windows get slower day after day? Windows has a number of design flaws, resulting in it becoming slower and slower and not lasting very long. You've probably heard more than once someone say "My computer is getting sluggish, I'm gonna reinstall". Reinstalling Windows solves the problem... until next time. You may think this is just how computers work, they're very new technology, and still not really stable. Well, try Linux and you'll be surprised. Five years from now, your system will be just as fast and responsive as the day you installed it, not to mention that you won't have any viruses, adwares, trojans, worms, etc., that would force you reinstall anyway. Linux lets you spend more time working, less time reinstalling over and over again.
No backdoors in your software. The difference between "closed source" (proprietary) and "open source" software is that their "source" is open. Huh, okay, why do I care? Well, the "source", or "source code", is like the secret recipe of every software, like the recipe of a cake. When you buy a cake, there's no way you can figure out the exact recipe (although you can guess bits and pieces, "there's some coconut in here"). If a bakery gave out the recipe for its super-successful cheesecake, it would soon go out of business because people would bake it for themselves, at home, and stop buying it. Likewise, Microsoft does not give out the recipe, or "source code", of their software, like Windows, and rightly so because that's what they make their money from.
The problem is they can put whatever they want in their recipe, without us knowing. If they want to add a bit of code saying "every 12th of the month, if the computer is online, create a list of all the files that have been downloaded in this computer since last month, and send it back to Microsoft through the network". Microsoft probably doesn't do that, but how would you know, since everything is closed, invisible, secret?
A little while ago (October 2008) a lot of Chinese Windows users (most of them buy pirated copies of Windows) saw something strange happen with their computer: screen would turn black. Users could switch it back manually, only to have the process repeat itself every 60 minutes amid a stream of warnings: "You may be the victim of pirated software." Nothing to really prevent you from working, but it can easily make you go nuts. Microsoft had added a bit of code (an ingredient to the recipe) saying "if this is detected as a pirated copy of Windows, make the screen black every hour". Now the point is not that the software was pirated: pirating software is bad, period. The point is that these users got an automatic update for Windows (updates usually fix bugs and add new features) without knowing how it would affect their system.
A similar strategy is used by some governments to spy on their citizens by injecting codes in proprietary softwares widely popular in the market. A notable instance is surveillance system used by the Chinese government to identify Skype messages containing “Tibet” and “democracy”.
Changing the source code of open source software is a much more open process. By definition, all the recipes are public. It doesn't matter to you since you won't be able to understand the code anyway, but people who understand it can read it, and speak out.
That's why you can be sure open source software doesn't do bad things behind your back: the community keeps a close eye on all the recipes.
Liberty, Equality, Fraternity...sounds familiar?! You are right! They were the pillars of The French Revolution. Since our childhood we have been exposed to these lofty ideals, but we hardly ever make sure that this value system is actually put to practice in our daily lives. By now you must have understood that Linux is much beyond yet another operating system. With Linux comes absolute freedom and spirit of sharing with the community whatever you have to offer. It is developed by collaborative process open to anybody and everybody. It has broken the language barrier as it has been translated to languages spoken in even the remotest areas of Africa (and of course all major Indian languages including Sanskrit!). It is color blind to region, religion and different socio-economic status. It has the potential to end the digital divide rampant in our society. It is precisely because of these reasons that admiration for Linux sometimes assumes religious proportions.
Still wonder why Google and Wikipedia are powered by Linux? OLPC project (one laptop per child) prefers Linux. Governments of Germany and Nigeria have openly endorsed and adopted FLOSS. In October 2008 Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) laid down the roadmap to build it's entire IT ecosystem using FLOSS only after a successful pilot project.
Ok! I am ready to give Linux a try...what should I do?
Try a "Live CD" You can try Linux without even needing to touch your hard disk, without needing to do anything to your existing Windows ! This is possible with "Linux live CDs".
You can boot into full Linux operating system just from the cd drive and now a days even USB thumb drive, and check whether everything is working fine.
Install Linux alongside your existing operating system If you want to keep Windows on your computer (which I recommend, in case you change your mind, or in case you find stuff you can only do with Windows). Each time your computer starts, it will let you choose between Windows and Linux.
You can carry the operating system with you in your pen drive and use it on any machine. You don't even need to burn a cd to install the operating system...install it on your friend's computer from the same pen drive.
For any further information you are welcome to contact the author.
