What can Linux do that Windon't? :P

[KSoD]

Okay it seemed like you didnt like how they kept the software up to date. I know it seems like everyday you have a update or 6 available. But it is nice to see thye stay on top of these issues.

 

[horndude]

of course you will have more updates, linux is built with the same philosophy as unix.........lots of very small apps which do one thing and one thing only and do it well, so there are tons of apps in linux which each get updated periodically which makes for frequent updates

most of the time the very same versions of apps can be found on most of the linux distro's out there, most distro's only patch when absolutely needed in order to get something to work

some distro's like ubuntu are setup to automatically look in a depository for updates, others make the user do it on their own

 

[jeller]

Well, I'd have to disagree with the automation and networking part. I find that Windows actually is easier to set up networking in.

As for the multiuser system, Windows XP is that, it has multiple profiles and whatnot. Linux has the same (it's more advanced, with the permissions and stuff, but I prefer everyone is root/admin systems anyways).

The things I like about Linux are:

-FREE!
-Open source
-Includes almost everything you need, everything else is free download
-Easy to get up and running, almost all drivers provided automatically
-Really secure and immune to viruses
-Awesome graphics (Compiz Fusion)
-Compatible (with M$ documents, media, networks, and to an extent, programs)

Counter-reason time .

-I already have Windows, and I already payed for this distro
-I can't truly utilize that
-Like what? And are those other free downloads really Linux-specific?
-Windows is already up and running =\
-Never had a virus, I'm sure it's bad. But there are at least 5 free AV programs for Windows, and someone in this thread said that's not completely true.
-That does look pretty cool
-Windows is compatible with itself :S

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I'll have a lot more fun with Linux once I take another year or two of programming. I think what I'm seeing is that the customizability of Linux is it's best feature, and I can see how that's so. I'm going to wait 'till I can really take advantage of that.

 

[horndude]

Well,

A: I own all of my computers, my parents have their own computer. Thus, only one user on all of my computers. As for remote login, I don't see why you'd want to use another computer remotely when you could use the computer you're on at full speed, other than remote management, which I prefer VNC.

B: All of my network routing is handled by my router...and configuring things like SMB locations, Broadcom wireless cards (the normal networking stuff, not the advanced router/server functions) seem easier in Windows. TightVNC for Windows is a lot better than Linux VNC clients (which need IP addresses as opposed to system names, don't have a simple GUI server or client, etc)

in order to understand and see the differences you have to actually use them and have the experience

take the remote login for example, why would you want to do such a thing? business, office work, internet cafes just to name a few

when using linux logging in to another linux box VNC isn't even needed, not only that but lots of others can be logged in as totally separate users at the same time, and they all can do so with either a GUI or text shell interface...........this comes in handy sometimes

just one of the few things linux can do that windows cannot, part of the philosophy of how the OS is built, its all about being just like unix only on a desktop scale rather than a mainframe, but the end result is the same

 

[Greg]

Regarding the talk about updates: In Ubuntu go to System > Administration > Software Sources. Click the "Updates" tab and adjust the automatic updates to your liking.

Personally I have it set to "Weekly."

 

[CalcProgrammer1]

Yeah, about the updates thing...my laptop insists that it's been up-to-date for a few weeks now and...yeah, hasn't downloaded any updates...

I'm not sure what the problem is, I've checked package manager, software sources, etc...I think I must've broken a package trying to make ThinkPad Buttons work, as that's a known bug with Gutsy.

Now that you mention the remote-login thing, I did use it once to try it out (connected to my laptop using my desktop) and it was pretty neat that I could use another computer to basically run two users at once. I guess it would be more suited to a bunch of low-end client PC's connecting to one high-powered mainframe/server PC, which would only really be useful for business or schools maybe.

I like VNC just because it's multiplatform. I mainly use it to control other PC's so I don't have to physically get up, go downstairs, open a server, come upstairs, and start playing games.

I think it's best to have both XP and Ubuntu 7.10 installed...you can use XP for the things that don't work on Linux, and use Linux for the most secure Web browsing yet. I also use Linux to test Wine with some of my games, but you can of course run them in Windows too...but things look better with Compiz