Linux users what do you still need windows for?
- Thread starter _TubbZ_
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Soldato
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- 15 Nov 2008
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Things I miss?
Like others have said Ipod support is shocking (no fault of Linux) no matter I did my iPod touch (3rd gen) would not work with Linux (I've tried everything mentioned so far - nada nothing zip - ended up selling it).
Windows is much better at "fire and forget", installing programs is easier.
Networking - for some reason I've always liked how windows deals with networks, very visual, relatively consistent between connection types (i.e. dial up through to lan).
Games I don't care about.
These are annoying but wow 10 minutes on a Windows desktop and all is forgiven - I really can't understand anyone with a brain using Window's nowadays unless they are forced too
Like others have said Ipod support is shocking (no fault of Linux) no matter I did my iPod touch (3rd gen) would not work with Linux (I've tried everything mentioned so far - nada nothing zip - ended up selling it).
Windows is much better at "fire and forget", installing programs is easier.
Networking - for some reason I've always liked how windows deals with networks, very visual, relatively consistent between connection types (i.e. dial up through to lan).
Games I don't care about.
These are annoying but wow 10 minutes on a Windows desktop and all is forgiven - I really can't understand anyone with a brain using Window's nowadays unless they are forced too
I still have an XP VM in VirtualBox for mostly to tell me why my printer is giving me the flashing red light of death. The Linux utilities are yet unable to tell me which cartridge has died after 3 pages of printing. Other than that only application testing in Windows when coding for that platform, which is fortunately rare.
I agree but it has definitely much improved recently, and mines a 3rd gen Nano which is notoriously closed and even works with podcasts now!
I disagree, I've had far more headaches with broken Windows installation scripts than I have with your typical apt-get command.
Naivety, they must be made to learn!
Soldato
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- 7 Jul 2009
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- Newcastle/Aberdeen
I can make do with Nexuis, Warsow and TF2 in Wine for the moment.
I tried ubuntu (8.1) in a few flavours a couple of years back, mainly because I prefer the principle of open source. .
However i found it:
very easy to break.
difficult to restore.
Networking was difificult (may be cause the other machines on the network were M$ windows based)
Use of usb peripherals eg HTC pdas, Allinone fax/scanner etc (I forget the details and
the biggest problem was java based programs and the sound drivers. I had to uninstall the drivers and try some alternative drivers documented in some guides and they were useless too....half finished products.
Generally ubuntu was less intuitive than windows, had to keep consulting guides. I don't ever remember consulting a windows begginers guide. the only windows guides i've used are small for specific things.
I found my self often needing to boot into windows. so thought whats the point use two operating systems booting in and out then out then in and so forth.
so now on windows7. and overall I can't really flaw it except its large footprint but in the age where a single multimedia file is easily 8GB its not all that bad.
So I use windows for everything. but MAY CONSIDER trying ubuntu again as might have moved on since 8.1 !!
However i found it:
very easy to break.
difficult to restore.
Networking was difificult (may be cause the other machines on the network were M$ windows based)
Use of usb peripherals eg HTC pdas, Allinone fax/scanner etc (I forget the details and
the biggest problem was java based programs and the sound drivers. I had to uninstall the drivers and try some alternative drivers documented in some guides and they were useless too....half finished products.
Generally ubuntu was less intuitive than windows, had to keep consulting guides. I don't ever remember consulting a windows begginers guide. the only windows guides i've used are small for specific things.
I found my self often needing to boot into windows. so thought whats the point use two operating systems booting in and out then out then in and so forth.
so now on windows7. and overall I can't really flaw it except its large footprint but in the age where a single multimedia file is easily 8GB its not all that bad.
So I use windows for everything. but MAY CONSIDER trying ubuntu again as might have moved on since 8.1 !!
Last edited:
I'm assuming by '8.1' you mean 8.04, in which case yes an awful lot has changed since back then
. I'm not saying that I can guarantee that you'll have a 100% perfect experience with ubuntu, but things have changed significantly since then. The thing is that linux systems give you absolute power to do anything you want with your computer (assuming you can get root privileges of course). This hasn't changed in the past two years, and I'd be shocked and disappointed if it did. What has changed is more GUIs mean that settings important to the user (in general) don't require editing text files or knowledge of the CLI, reducing the risk of bad things happening
.Anyway, to go back to the original topic. I use windows 7 for games (dual boot) and a webcam which doesn't have linux drivers (to be fair, it barely has windows 7 drivers either). I also have a vitualbox install of XP with office installed entirely for excel (I use latex for word processing). Unfortunately I haven't come across an alternative to excel which has the features I need.
I use Windows 7 for my gaming needs ,however my OCZ PSU has been RMAed back to Holland for repair/replacement so no Win7 gaming until I get my new replacement from them.
I'm very happy with Ubuntu 9.10 at the moment(typing this post on my Linux PC) and will be upgrading to 10.04 once it goes final nextweek,Linux OS does virtually everything I need.
I'm very happy with Ubuntu 9.10 at the moment(typing this post on my Linux PC) and will be upgrading to 10.04 once it goes final nextweek,Linux OS does virtually everything I need.
Things I've miss/needed when using Linux on the desktop:
Work related:
MS Office
Mobile phone suites
iTunes
IE6 (for our case management system which will only work reliably with that)
Personal:
Games
Phone hacking software
Hard disk recovery software
Photoshop
Printer software
Home Automation software
There are always little things that I find I can't do on a day to day basis using Linux on the desktop. It may not be a popular opinion but I've found personally that running OSX is the best compromise for both work (15 years as a UNIX sysadmin) and home, failing that I would even prefer Windows and cygwin than a Linux desktop. Don't get me wrong though, Linux on the desktop is fun but I don't really have the time to mess about anymore.
Work related:
MS Office
Mobile phone suites
iTunes
IE6 (for our case management system which will only work reliably with that)
Personal:
Games
Phone hacking software
Hard disk recovery software
Photoshop
Printer software
Home Automation software
There are always little things that I find I can't do on a day to day basis using Linux on the desktop. It may not be a popular opinion but I've found personally that running OSX is the best compromise for both work (15 years as a UNIX sysadmin) and home, failing that I would even prefer Windows and cygwin than a Linux desktop. Don't get me wrong though, Linux on the desktop is fun but I don't really have the time to mess about anymore.
Every now and again I try and move away from Windows - I love the idea of free software, created by people with a vision not a pay cheque in mind. I've tried most newer versions (i.e. 7.04 onwards) of Ubuntu, Kubuntu and Xubuntu. I've had most success with Linux Mint and have also dabbled with Fedora and a few others that I can't remember. The end result is I always that I return to Windows.
At the end of last year there was a period of about 3 months where my sole PC access was via my netbook that was running Mint and out of laziness and cheapness I didn't install Windows, but when I finally had access to my copy of Win 7 and external optical drives again it was like a breath of fresh air. I didn't have to worry that everything I do could damage the OS in some way (because I appreciate how much more open and accessible it is) and I didn't have to go off to research and troubleshoot every other command, program, message etc.
Also, I have had several linux installations fail on me for apparently no reason (one such case was a fresh install, maybe 3 days old, where all I did with it was browse the internet), whereas my previous beta Win 7 installation ran flawlessly as is my current Win 7 installation. I haven't seen the BSOD on any XP installation either since circa 2005.
From a very personal view and taking from my own experiences, Linux just isn't a serious competitor for a desktop OS. For a day-to-day environment where I just want to watch movies, listen to music, browse the internet and do the occasional word processing and programming project, Windows is just so much easier to live with. I truly believe the average person wants things to work out-of-the-box and they don't truly care about customisability or total control of the system and having to sit down and learn how Linux works and getting past that initial layer of complexity is too much of an ask.
As for the bloated argument, my installation of Win 7 ran on my netbook with no discernible difference in speed to my Mint installation and previous installation of the netbook version of Ubuntu - if anything, it was more stable and required the least post-installation tweaking and driver installation.
I also abhor OpenOffice, it's a decade behind MS Word, and if I want to use that under Linux I have to do so under WINE or similar, so why don't I just run Windows? Also, MS Word may be bloated (some please provide proof that the latest MS Word is that bad...), but with the surplus computing power of most computers the difference isn't truly noticeable merely irritating if you know about it. Also PS is far superior to GIMP, again, it feels like a decades worth of development difference to me. Gaming never really entered into it for me. Finally, the internet ran better on my Win OS than Linux OS, for example, streaming videos would never render properly or smoothly (not due to hardware or connection speed).
That's my two cents worth, they are formed from my own experiences and opinions so please don't be too harsh
At the end of last year there was a period of about 3 months where my sole PC access was via my netbook that was running Mint and out of laziness and cheapness I didn't install Windows, but when I finally had access to my copy of Win 7 and external optical drives again it was like a breath of fresh air. I didn't have to worry that everything I do could damage the OS in some way (because I appreciate how much more open and accessible it is) and I didn't have to go off to research and troubleshoot every other command, program, message etc.
Also, I have had several linux installations fail on me for apparently no reason (one such case was a fresh install, maybe 3 days old, where all I did with it was browse the internet), whereas my previous beta Win 7 installation ran flawlessly as is my current Win 7 installation. I haven't seen the BSOD on any XP installation either since circa 2005.
From a very personal view and taking from my own experiences, Linux just isn't a serious competitor for a desktop OS. For a day-to-day environment where I just want to watch movies, listen to music, browse the internet and do the occasional word processing and programming project, Windows is just so much easier to live with. I truly believe the average person wants things to work out-of-the-box and they don't truly care about customisability or total control of the system and having to sit down and learn how Linux works and getting past that initial layer of complexity is too much of an ask.
As for the bloated argument, my installation of Win 7 ran on my netbook with no discernible difference in speed to my Mint installation and previous installation of the netbook version of Ubuntu - if anything, it was more stable and required the least post-installation tweaking and driver installation.
I also abhor OpenOffice, it's a decade behind MS Word, and if I want to use that under Linux I have to do so under WINE or similar, so why don't I just run Windows? Also, MS Word may be bloated (some please provide proof that the latest MS Word is that bad...), but with the surplus computing power of most computers the difference isn't truly noticeable merely irritating if you know about it. Also PS is far superior to GIMP, again, it feels like a decades worth of development difference to me. Gaming never really entered into it for me. Finally, the internet ran better on my Win OS than Linux OS, for example, streaming videos would never render properly or smoothly (not due to hardware or connection speed).
That's my two cents worth, they are formed from my own experiences and opinions so please don't be too harsh
For me it's gaming and just the compatability.
No ATI Fan speed controlling and there's no AMD temperature monitoring, well not for the Phenom's (I've tried a method with lm-sensors, it works but not so well).
OpenOffice is something I hate, it doesn't appeal to me and after using it I get a headache and just boot to windows for Office 2010.
No ATI Fan speed controlling and there's no AMD temperature monitoring, well not for the Phenom's (I've tried a method with lm-sensors, it works but not so well).
OpenOffice is something I hate, it doesn't appeal to me and after using it I get a headache and just boot to windows for Office 2010.
Me neither, windows just funnily feels more stable in a way compared to linux, in Ubuntu they have Evolution as the default mail client, it's such a crap piece of software, I'd rather they put Thunderbird as the default.
The last few posts are very silly I feel.
Judging Linux because of an Office Application is completely unfair. Especially due to teh fact that Open Office is available for both Windows and linux, so what the hell thats about I dont know? - There are other Options, not just Open Office and you are not forced to use it. I myself prefer Star Office to MicroSoft Office and I use it on both Linux and Windows PCs, but I would not be judging the O/S on my choice of Office app.
The use of the term "OUT OF THE BOX" is also too often misused too!
Only a couple of days ago, I had a friend who had a CD full of video files that would not play properly on his PC, I told him to use KMP or VLC as these aseem to play pretty much everythign I have asked them to, but he said he already has tried them, I said abotu ninstalling any extra codec packs, perhaps the Klite one maybe and again, he said he has, so I said toi uninstall all codecs and players and reinstall just KMP and again, he said he has and they still failed to play??
So...
I put the disk into my Sabayon PC and double clicked on teh first file. It played it just fine, but the second one would not... It told me that it needed a codec and 2 secodns later it had it... It played that one just fine too.
3 more times it needed to download another codec and thats all... It was fully able to play every one of them and it did this all automatically.
He has never been able to play these on his PC.
Now, I MUST also add that I chucked the disk at my main PC ( KMP but no codecs ) and it played the files just fine for me.
But to say that Linux does not work out of the box is simply wrong.
The choic,e of EMailer - sure some default to this program, some to that, but come on guys... Windows defaults to Outlook Express... Is it really beyond any of you to install Thunderbird? - On debian baded distros its probably less than 5 clicks to install it.
What is the default EMailer in Windows 7 might I ask? - Exactly. Another dummy argument there then.
As for stability, I am finding this to be an interesting thing.
Reason?
Sabayon 3.5 I first put on my DFI LanParty and I got a 3D Desktop and a set of 3D Games and while I had a few issues with Sabayon itself, it was fairly stable.
I put it onto my Asus and it was crappy. Ubuntu seems to be better on the ASUS and all teh while Sabayon is rock solid on the DFI
I have gone now with a few flavours of Linux on a few PCs, but oen good constant for me, has been the DFI is still running Sabayon just fine... Its now fully up to date, I have installed loads and loads of apps and Games, its got all the eye candy I can throw at it with Compiz-Fusion, Cube Desktop & Emerald themes and plays all my movies that I throw at it, and it has full access to all the partitions on all my LAN PCs just great for accessing the files and music etc and its quick as hell, shows no signs of having any hiccups at all, and has never even slowed the slightet bit since I first instaleld it and its been well over a year now Im sure.
However...
I have tried a few other distros with varying levels of reliability mand I have to say that Ubunut is NOT the most rock solid of distros no! - But Debian sure is.
Mint also seems to have better stability.
So, please dont judge linux over one or even two distros... There are so many out there, some will love your board so maybe you just need to choose the correct one?
Judging Linux because of an Office Application is completely unfair. Especially due to teh fact that Open Office is available for both Windows and linux, so what the hell thats about I dont know? - There are other Options, not just Open Office and you are not forced to use it. I myself prefer Star Office to MicroSoft Office and I use it on both Linux and Windows PCs, but I would not be judging the O/S on my choice of Office app.
The use of the term "OUT OF THE BOX" is also too often misused too!
Only a couple of days ago, I had a friend who had a CD full of video files that would not play properly on his PC, I told him to use KMP or VLC as these aseem to play pretty much everythign I have asked them to, but he said he already has tried them, I said abotu ninstalling any extra codec packs, perhaps the Klite one maybe and again, he said he has, so I said toi uninstall all codecs and players and reinstall just KMP and again, he said he has and they still failed to play??
So...
I put the disk into my Sabayon PC and double clicked on teh first file. It played it just fine, but the second one would not... It told me that it needed a codec and 2 secodns later it had it... It played that one just fine too.
3 more times it needed to download another codec and thats all... It was fully able to play every one of them and it did this all automatically.
He has never been able to play these on his PC.
Now, I MUST also add that I chucked the disk at my main PC ( KMP but no codecs ) and it played the files just fine for me.
But to say that Linux does not work out of the box is simply wrong.
The choic,e of EMailer - sure some default to this program, some to that, but come on guys... Windows defaults to Outlook Express... Is it really beyond any of you to install Thunderbird? - On debian baded distros its probably less than 5 clicks to install it.
What is the default EMailer in Windows 7 might I ask? - Exactly. Another dummy argument there then.
As for stability, I am finding this to be an interesting thing.
Reason?
Sabayon 3.5 I first put on my DFI LanParty and I got a 3D Desktop and a set of 3D Games and while I had a few issues with Sabayon itself, it was fairly stable.
I put it onto my Asus and it was crappy. Ubuntu seems to be better on the ASUS and all teh while Sabayon is rock solid on the DFI
I have gone now with a few flavours of Linux on a few PCs, but oen good constant for me, has been the DFI is still running Sabayon just fine... Its now fully up to date, I have installed loads and loads of apps and Games, its got all the eye candy I can throw at it with Compiz-Fusion, Cube Desktop & Emerald themes and plays all my movies that I throw at it, and it has full access to all the partitions on all my LAN PCs just great for accessing the files and music etc and its quick as hell, shows no signs of having any hiccups at all, and has never even slowed the slightet bit since I first instaleld it and its been well over a year now Im sure.
However...
I have tried a few other distros with varying levels of reliability mand I have to say that Ubunut is NOT the most rock solid of distros no! - But Debian sure is.
Mint also seems to have better stability.
So, please dont judge linux over one or even two distros... There are so many out there, some will love your board so maybe you just need to choose the correct one?
Totally understand what your saying, I could never convert fully to a Linux desktop. To be fair though an operating system is what you install on it..
Email wise, yeah Windows 7 doesn't have a default one, if it has it'll be Windows Live Mail or something.. I've not tried it in all honestly.
I have to say though nothing beats, imo, Outlook/Exchange although not everyone has access to this its just awesome, setting up a new computer? Oh look all your rules have downloaded and works perfectly.. You've updated that rule? Oh now its updated on your home computer now!
Anyway, with anything one thing will be better at something and another will be better a something else... Can't win them all.
Don't get me wrong Linux is awesome, I have a few at home myth etc and my Work PC is running Ubuntu.. At home on my desktop though, it'll always be Windows I think..
Email wise, yeah Windows 7 doesn't have a default one, if it has it'll be Windows Live Mail or something.. I've not tried it in all honestly.
I have to say though nothing beats, imo, Outlook/Exchange although not everyone has access to this its just awesome, setting up a new computer? Oh look all your rules have downloaded and works perfectly.. You've updated that rule? Oh now its updated on your home computer now!
Anyway, with anything one thing will be better at something and another will be better a something else... Can't win them all.
Don't get me wrong Linux is awesome, I have a few at home myth etc and my Work PC is running Ubuntu.. At home on my desktop though, it'll always be Windows I think..