Twayne wrote:
<snip>
I happen to agree with that, but I still don't use Linux in any
mainstream way. Bugs and market share etc., aside, Linux is good for
those who run certain programs only and consistantly and the distro
includes any drivers they might need to support, or they can at least
be downloaded and added to the OS. Unfortunately for most serious
computer users though, unless you were brought up on Linux of any
flavor, it just doesn't fit the bill.
This is bunk. Without getting into a OS flame-war kind of exchange,
this is just a dumb comment and cannot pass unchallenged. I was brought
up on Windows 3.1 and then '95 and encountered Red Hat 7.2, then
Slackware and then Debian. Since adopting Slackware 8.1 way back when,
the only time I have to use MS is when I go to work. On my GNU/Linux
machine I have completed all course requirements for my MSc, have web
surfed and researched, corresponded, enjoyed multimedia, programmed with
Python, Lisp, C and Scheme (PLT) and played countless games of varying
levels of complexity and eye-candy. This would suggest therefore, that:
(a) I was not raised on GNU/Linux (although I think that if kids
want to learn about computers, they should learn either GNU/Linux or a
*BSD flavour and NOT MS), and
(b) all of the uses described surely count as "serious" use and is
not restricted to "certain uses".
Your claims are a nonsense. Hence the challenge.
In my case it's mostly the lack of drivers for software and hardware I
use, and/or software I cannot easily replace and get the same
functionality I had on windows. LInux is more or less a "roll your
own" OS and depends on the user being able to "roll" his own, which is
technical ability most users don't have.
Again, this is a nonsense and based on some old myths or just your
personal poor experiences. Almost all distros are easy to install, work
right out of the box and adapt quickly and painlessly to the specifics
of your hardware and machine architecture. When was the last time you
tried installing Windows from scratch? I've done so several times with
Vista (because it just stops operating on a laptop after a period of
time for no apparent reason!) and it is Hell, takes ages and then is
crippled through a lack of any decent functionality ... including
drivers and additional (necessary) packages. This is primarily because
the code base in MS is crappy and that coding errors for memory
(mis)allocations is passed onto the third party suppliers in terms of
compliance to the MS API.
Once you get into the nitty gritty of getting it to do what you need
an OS to do and support, it just plain falls down on its face in my case.
That's probably because you just don't know how to use it. Perhaps it's
not point-and-click enough for you, or maybe because it doesn't restrict
your computing freedom to pre-designed limited options and regards the
user as a competent individual user who can make up her/his own mind
about their own machine?
Several software programs just don't have Linux drivers, a fair
amount of hardware likewise, and the program offerings from LInux just
can't meet or beat the requirements of my needs. If the pieces and
portions of things do turn out to be available, it can be a real
hassle to just get them installed and functioning right, too.
Again, your mileage clearly varies from that of other GNU/Linux users I
interact with via such lists and fora. Perhaps if you had specific
issues you could raise those with the relevant distro user community?
More specifically, I need PHotoShop and PaintShop Pro for the
features each provides. There just are NOT any LInux offerings yet
which can replace those required functionalities.
The GIMP pretty much parallels the functionality of Photoshop and in
many instances, exceeds it. In any event, you will find most graphic
designers who do this as "serious" users will use a Mac OSX, which is
based on UNIX as are GNU/Linux and the *BSD variants. They won't use MS
at all.
A printer, TV tuner and two PCI cards of mine simply have no Linux
counterparts and thus become useless boat anchors, which is
unacceptable as I earn money with those.
You'd have to be more specific than that - chances are they can be
configured, but you don't provide enough info for me/ us to be able to
offer help.
Linux is not something to be jumped into blindly and without
substantial pre-planning to be sure it'll deliver the things you need
and that are most important to you. Someday I nope it will, but it
just isn't there yet.
That could be said about anything. I would also suggest that it is
*you* who is not ready - the OS itself is doing just fine.
I'm at the point where I have reasonably acceptable alternatives to
ALL of the MS software I used to use except fo the OS LInux.
Don't understand what you are getting at here.
So MS still have a strangtle-hold on me for their OS.
MS has a strnglehold on you. Period.
Eventually I hope to thumb my nose to MS and wave goodbye but it won't
happen in the near future.
Nope, it probably won't. You still have a long way to go to shake off
the FUD you've bought into.
Why did I bother saying all that? Because I'm sick and tired of the
lies and overly simplistic neanderthals making comments abotu someone
fixing their problems by switchign to Linux. It's dumb advice and
seldom if ever called for.
That's as maybe. However, please be aware that as far as your post
goes, you are guilty of spreading lies based on your simplistic
appraisal of an OS you don't understand, appear not to have tried in
practice (the "objections" you cite are well established MS-based FUD
and have been disputed many, many times since the early 2000s), and is
clearly too smart for you. For the same reasons, I'd suggest that you
stay away from any of the *BSDs and be very cautious if you approach a
Mac, given that it is not so dumbed down as your bog-standard MS machine.
HTH,
No, not really. But there again, I suspect that you weren't really
trying to either.
Twayne
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