Linux vs. Windows

About the way Linux 'feels': there are many different flavors of Linux depending on the distro that you install. One which is becoming quiet popular is Ubuntu (Gnome) and its KDE counterpart Kubuntu. It´s just a matter of taste which one you prefer.

About Linux advantages above Windows: it's save, no spyware, no virusses. It has a lot of incredible good and free software. The system take care of its own maintenance (no defragmentation, huge registry, etc.) Updates for all the software packages comes from repositories and are almost completely automated.

About Linux disadvantages: not all hardware vendors wrote drivers for Linux. E.g. Dell printers and Linux don't like eacht other very well. However, the big majority of hardware will function good with Linux.

Herman

I like openSUSE 10.0 its free comes with openoffice which is also free if your not gaming or anything i think linux is a good way to go. It's safe fast on old computers even and generally good. Windows on the other hand has a monopoly so that lots of software written only for it. if you do game and you want an alternative Cedega can play like all windows games but there is a montly subscription i think.

I whould recommend reading this.

http://linux.oneandoneis2.org/LNW.htm

Basicly says "Linux is not trying to be Windows."

I would say that Linux offers very little over Windows. It is free (depending on distro), so if you have a new computer with no OS and no money, it's a good option. It offers a great platform for learning about you computer. If you know nothing about computers, Linux forces you to learn about how things work (especially if you are trying to troubleshoot problems).

I'd say the main thing Linux has over Windows is that it's a great development platform and file server. You can use a headless linux box to host all your mp3s or to serve as a web server for offline web development. In these respects, linux is far above Windows.

If you are just looking to check email and surf the web, it's hardly worth a switch to linux. However, linux does have the advantage of fewer viruses and spyware.

I guess it just boils down to what the circumstances are. Linux is good for some things and Windows for others. Both will do just about anything you want.