There are many heated debates and arguments in the world of computers and technology these days. Some of these debates have been around since the computers first became popular amongst average, everyday people. Issues like choosing a Mac or a PC, or choosing an Apple operating system or a Windows operating system have been highly debated for years – and there have even been a recent line of commercials that brings this argument right into your own living room. However, one of the newest arguments involves a relatively little-know, but highly powerful operating system known as Linux. And the exact question is what one is better – Linux or Windows?

Well, the answer is not a simple and quick one, by any means. There are many things that you need to take into consideration when trying to make the decision between running Linux on your PC or running Windows – and this article attempts to help educate you on the topic, so that you can make a better decision for yourself regarding Linux vs. Windows.

The first thing to consider is your PC gaming life. If you are always playing the hottest new game, you probably want to stick with Windows. Because it is by far the most popular computer operating system available today, more games and applications are developed for Windows than any other platform. And while you may be able to run most Windows-based games on a computer that is running Linux, it’s not a guarantee that every single game in your collection will work. That is why if you are a computer gamer by any means, you will definitely want to pick Windows over Linux.

However, being the most popular operating system has a down side too, as Windows users are well aware of. Because more people use Windows on their home computer than any other operating system, malicious computer users and computer hackers target Windows-based computers far more than any other computer. There are thousands upon thousands of different viruses that may affect your Windows machine – with Linux, however, this simply is not the case. Computer hackers are not going to spend the amount of time that it takes to try and develop a virus for Linux, when it is so easy to make one for Windows. So if security is your main concern for your home computer, without a doubt Linux is the way to go.

Because Linux is an open source operating system however, it has gained quite a bit of popularity lately. What this means is that all of the ordinary users of Linux are free to play around with the operating system and develop their own programs and applications. And as this becomes more and more commonplace, you never quite know what Linux might come out with next. Indeed, it might be even better than anything Windows has to offer. And if you are already running a Linux operating system on your home computer, you will be a step ahead of most users who are still using Microsoft Windows on their machines. Ultimately, the choice is yours – though each system does have its advantages and disadvantages.

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By: John Parks

What is Linux?

Linux is an operating system created by Linus Torvalds during his days as a student at the University of Helsinki. Linux was created and meant to be used as an option or substitute to the other operating systems being used by computer users, like MS-DOS, Windows, Mac OSX, etc. Linux is not a program or a set of programs like a word processor of an office suite.

A Brief History

While studying at the University of Helsinki, Linus used a version of the UNIX operating system called ‘Minix’. Several requests for modifications and improvements for the operating system were being sent by Linus and other users to Andrew Tanenbaum, Minix’s creator, but he felt that they weren’t necessary. Therefore, Linus decided to create his own operating system; one that would take into account the users’ comments and suggestions for improvements.

A “kernel” is the focal point of any operating system. Without going into great detail, the kernel tells the CPU to do what you want the program or application that you’re using to do. An operating system would not exist without a kernel. However, a kernel is also useless without any programs or applications.

In 1991, two critical situations evolved that would serve as the starting point for Linux. A kernel was already created by Linus, but he had no programs to use; some programs were available from GNU and Richard Stallman, but they had no working kernel. So Linux was born by combining the programs from Richard and GNU in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with the kernel provided by Linus in Helsinki, Finland. It was a lot of ground to cover and far to travel, so the Internet became the primary method of getting Linus’ kernel together with the GNU programs. It can almost be said that Linux is an operating system that came to life on the Internet.

Not For Everybody at First

Other software companies will sell you software contained in a CD or a set of floppies, together with a brief instruction booklet, and in half an hour or probably even less, you could install a fully functional operating system on your computer. You only needed to know how to read and follow instructions in order to install it. This was what those companies had in mind when they developed their operating systems. However, when Linux was developed by Linus, this factor wasn’t initially considered. Later on, Red Hat and other likeminded companies made it their purpose to develop Linux to the point where it could be easily installed just like any other operating system in the market, by anyone who can follow simple instructions, and today we can definitely say that they have succeeded in this particular purpose.

Linux Today

Nowadays, there is a great deal of favorable reactions from computer users regarding Linux. The fact that Linux has proven to be impressively stable and versatile, especially as a network server, surely has played a big part in this popularity. Down-time is minor or insignificant when Linux is installed and used as a web server or in corporate networks. Many cases have been reported wherein Linux-powered servers have been functioning smoothly for even more than a year without needing to re-boot, and when it had to be taken down, it was only for a brief period for maintenance purposes. Its cost effectiveness has become to be one of its strongest selling points. Linux can be installed and run on either a home PC or a network server, without having to spend as much as it would be for other software packages. More reliability and less cost – it’s ideal.

By: Syahrul Azlan Idris

Most people purchase computers to run programs – whether it is to send email, browse the web, meet friends of girlfriends on msn messenger, do office work or just play solitaire.

People buy computers to use programs for their functionality not to run operating systems be in Microsoft Windows, the new Microsoft Vista product , the Mac Operations Systems or the various Linux Operating Systems – be they Ubuntu Linux , Mandiva , Knoppix or Debian.

At the heart of most computer users is functionality and usability. It is as simple as that. It is an interesting situation that the Microsoft Corporation controls the vast lion’s share of the computer operating system market. Indeed it even has a major share holding of the next player in line – Apple with the Macintosh OS (Operating System).

What are the issues?

1) Linux is not really free. Linux, in its various flavors or distros, is given free of charge, whether it is on a cd, DVD or downloaded. You can install the program on your own compute or various computers , at no charge to yourself whatsoever

This is in direct contrast to a commercial product such as Microsoft Windows or the new Microsoft Vista which you to purchase a boxed version or a valid license which comes with most computer systems purchased. This license which comes on most new computers as a matter of course could be referred to as the “Microsoft Computer Tax” and is not an option you can forego, to reduce the purchase of your new compute – whether or not you wish to use another operating system such as Linux.

Linux is given free of charge to install. This is not a shareware or time limited version of the product which requires a registration fee after a period of time.

If you require product support or training commercial organizations do exist which will charge you for support of that product or for training or both. Indeed it can be said that Microsoft itself charges for product support, Symantec the antivirus / security organization charges for basic support by product, subscription fees – sometimes automatic subscription fees and 900 phone number and charge card “Priority Support”.

Indeed you would not expect your local school or technical college to provide computer and compute software training free of charge.

2) Linux is complex and will force you to learn the Linux command line,

Not true simple as that. The various Linux distros all have GUI (Graphic User Interfaces) just like Microsoft Windows, Windows used to come as command line DOS. Windows users use pull down windows to operate the software. So can and do most Linux users

3) Compared to Windows , Installing Linux is Difficult

- The vast majority of computer users are computer neophytes and beginners.

These computer users purchase computers with the operations system Microsoft Windows or the Macintosh Operating System installed on their new computers. These people could not install the Windows Operating system and the device drivers necessary if their life depended on it. How the situation of a Linux is based computer any different.

It is only a matter of time until new computers come preinstalled with the Linux operating system. Imagine if Henry Ford had been told not to build new cars since there were few good roads available in America.

4) My Computer Hardware Just Works Under Windows

5) Again untrue in many cases and soon to be less of an issue as more and more computers will come preinstalled with a Linux operating system. Already Dell Computer (which was a Microsoft stalwart) is selling Linux based laptops. Interestingly the response to the Ubuntu Linux dell notebooks is quite positive, If you think Linux hardware compatibility is an issue try upgrading to the new Microsoft Vista from your previous Microsoft Windows product. You will find to your surprise that few if little of computer hardware are supported. You may have upgraded to the new Vista and found you have either no sound, good video or even internet connections via your network adapter device or wireless network adapter. And try undoing your upgrade to get back to your working windows version – it cannot be done.

Lastly you may say I run Windows since all of the programs I use are available only on the Windows operations system – since that is the dominant player in the market. You may well surmise that since Windows is the more than dominant player in the computer OS market that software developers write their product almost exclusively for the windows operations system and that market.

This is true. If you are using a specialized product for your job, industry, situation or preference you may well be locked in.

In the end most people buy and use computers for functionality and use. Most people use their computers for internet browsing , communication – whether it by email or messenger services (M.S.N. , Yahoo , Skype , Eyeball Chat) , downloading and burning music and in more than many cases for playing nothing more than computer games such as simple solitaire.

In these cases the functionality of Linux and its program base easily allows for this. Indeed many of the cutting edge programs and computer services come out of left field by computer software developers and enthusiasts whose preference of Computer Operating System is guess what – Linux in its various forms.

By: Maxwell A. Rubin