Why Linux

[GalaxyKid789]

What I want to know is why do people like linux so much

[insane_alien]

cheap, easy and virus free.

 

also really easy to tinker with which is one of my main reasons for having it. i like tinkering.

[GalaxyKid789]

where can I get linux for my old!!!!!! pc it runs 98se

[insane_alien]

i'd recommend SliTaz or DSL(damn small linux) for an old PC.

 

http://www.slitaz.org/en/ <SliTaz site (get the stable CD image, the whole OS is around 24.8MB and uses up about 30MB of RAM when running(on my laptop anyway)

 

http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/ < DSL site, slightly bigger download(50MB)

 

another alternative would be puppy linux ( http://www.puppylinux.org/ ) but i've never had much luck with it.

[GalaxyKid789]

but how can I get to my computer since it does not have internet

 

here is a curve ball for you it only has 96 mbs of ram

[insane_alien]

download it on the computer you are on and wither burn it to CD there or put it on a USB flash drive and take it to a computer where you can burn it to a CD. put the CD in the drive of the windows 98 computer and restart it. when it boots it should boot into linux.

 

and 96MB of RAM is fine. i've seen linux run on 4MB of RAM.

[GalaxyKid789]

i will try to do that but windows 98se does not have the drives for flashes\

[insane_alien]

did you not get a driver CD with your flash drive?

[GalaxyKid789]

also is have linux really worth having if you dont have internet

 

I dont think I did

[insane_alien]

i'll reverse the question, is windows 98 worth having if it isn't connected to the internet?

 

windows and linux do the exact same job on the computer, they provide an interface between hardware and software.

 

as windows 98 hasn't been supported for some years now and was prone to being buggy and crashing a lot, it should be worth it to put a modern OS on the computer.

[GalaxyKid789]

i know but i plan on upgrading the computer so I can have xp

[iNow]

Galaxy - I think Linux might require more computer knowledge than you seem to possess (at least based on the small handful of your responses above).

[insane_alien]

what exactly do you use your computer for? we might be able to help you more then.

[GalaxyKid789]

after I built it all I use it for is writing my c++ programs so if you think that linux is fun to mess with the programing of the Os i will give it a try on my old computer before I upgrade for Xp then I will try to run a parrell so I can have both linux and XP on my new computer if I like linux enough

[CaptainPanic]

I think the easiest Linux version (distribution) is Ubuntu. Check their forums to see the system requirements or anything else (use the search function, or type any problem plus the word "ubuntu" in google to get an answer.

 

So, in short: Ubuntu is damn easy to use and install, and has a great forum for any problem. Only the fact that your pc is near-prehistoric might be a problem challenge.

 

Have a look at this thread on the Ubuntu forum about light versions of linux: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=865469&highlight=pentium - perhaps you posted it yourself, perhaps you've never seen it. Anyway, it's certainly on topic here.

[insane_alien]

well, you can wait till you get the new shinier computer and just try out ubuntu from the CD. its the same CD you install it off of.

 

you'll have access to everything you would if you installed it with only 2 things that are not ideal.

 

1/ CD drives are SLOW compared to a harddrive, performance will NOT be spectacular(although there are some hacks to cache the whole CD in RAM which makes it much faster)

2/ as the system is on readonly media, any changes you make will be wiped upon rebooting.

[bascule]

Linux is nice because it's a free implementation of POSIX which has garnered considerable industry support and now performs relatively well under heavy workloads.

[TrickyPeach]

People like Linux so much because it has a lot of redeeming features (when compared to alternatives or not).

A few that I can think of are:

 

1. It's free.

2. It's open source.

3. It's faster than Windows, when done properly.

4. It doesn't suffer from viruses, malware etc.

5. It can stay running on a machine for an unlimited amount of time, no reboots. It's much much stabler.

6. It can be fundamentally customised on basically any level.

7. It's maintained by a community.

8. It has a good following by scientists, which is appealing if you are in such an environment.

9. Another tempting thing could be the desktop effects, some people are in love with them. Compiz is much more breathtaking than anything Windows has to offer.

[Mr Skeptic]

Also, it has a future (this is a conclusion often drawn from the nature of its development).

[TrickyPeach]

Also, it has a future (this is a conclusion often drawn from the nature of its development).

 

A future in general or do you mean more of a future. Because as much as I would like to see it go surpass the user base Windows I doubt it will happen any time soon...

[Mr Skeptic]

A future in a big way. If nothing else, it sets a minimum standard that Microsoft would have to surpass (for a combination of price and quality and trustworthiness) if they are to stay in business; they will not be able to just rest on their laurels. I personally think that Linux will eventually surpass the best Microsoft has to offer, and Microsoft will be forced to go open source to keep up. I actually prefer Linux already, all it is missing is the ability to run programs designed for Windows so we can play all our games on it. There is already some limited success with that.

[TrickyPeach]

A future in a big way. If nothing else, it sets a minimum standard that Microsoft would have to surpass (for a combination of price and quality and trustworthiness) if they are to stay in business; they will not be able to just rest on their laurels. I personally think that Linux will eventually surpass the best Microsoft has to offer, and Microsoft will be forced to go open source to keep up.

 

I've been only Linux for a few years and never looked back. I love Linux, it's a Computer Scientists dream OS, not to mention that it also works perfectly for my Linguist parents and a friend as I've converted them too.

 

It'd be silly to say that it will surpass MS in popularity though any time soon, it's still at a very low usage. And although its fame has been increasing lately I don't really think the increase in users has been significant enough to worry MS at all. The main reason is big companies, which are the driving force keeping MS where it is are really what tips the scales and news like this is bad news for open source: Stanford and Harvard teach businesses how to squash open source

 

I actually prefer Linux already, all it is missing is the ability to run programs designed for Windows so we can play all our games on it. There is already some limited success with that.

 

Wine seems to be fine for me, I have Photoshop running perfectly. If that's what you meant, Wine is pretty powerful with a lot of community support.

 

What I find is a bad approach though is saying we need Linux to make the games for Windows run on it... that makes no sense, what we need is Game Developers to make games for Linux: simpler, easier, faster and generally less headache-inducing to just write for what you are targeting. And loads of these games already exist, a simple Google search will reveal lists and lists of native games.

Edited October 3, 2008 by TrickyPeach