UNIX-Better or worse?

[horndude]

Alright, let me rephrase. I don't know why they bothered to KEEP updating UNIX after windows was released. The fact that UNIX was released before windows and is STILL hardly used just proves my point. lol, and apparently in the eyes of most beholders, UNIX doesn't qualify as being "user friendly".

windows doesn't run on mainframes, unix can be compiled to run on almost anything, and that is where unix came from, originally it was made for mainframes, and to this day it still runs on many of them, hardly used? its very popular in the business world, even these days

linux on the other hand started as a free version of unix made to run on desktop computers, and nowadays linux runs on pretty much any architecture made including some mainframes

and evidently Apple computer inc felt it was good enough to use it as base for OS X by using freebsd4.4(about as close to unix as you can get without paying for it), and OS X is very user friendly yet retains all the traits of a POSIX compliant OS

it can be as user friendly as you want to make it

 

[S0ULphIRE]

lol, it's true I don't like it. at all. But I did give the nixes a chance, I've been trying to use them for the last year and a half (BECAUSE of how good everyone said they were). I know there are some benefits to using it, e.g. if you need a free os, or if ur pc doesn't really have that much oomph.
I just wanted to get different viewpoints on why someone would use unix, or any other nix.
So basically, unix is for businesses? Not really home user use.

 

[Erich K]

I have a Windows XP machine that I hardly ever download anything onto, I keep a good antivirus, defrag often, etc., etc. and it's slow as can be, and it often locks up. While the hardware in my Linux machine isn't nearly as good and it smokes Windows. Also, I've never had Linux lock up to an unusable state in the 4 years I've been using it.

What do you mean by "an OS which looks like it was created in the dark ages"?
Have you seen Compiz Fusion or any recent Linux distro for that matter?

 

[horndude]

Could it possibly be that it costs more because it's a better system?

Unix, the real licensed version is like $4000 per license, and it doesn't run on x86 hardware, but it can be made to, but you'd be better off with one of todays purpose built kernels for desktop PC's.

the POSIX compliant clones like Linux, freebsd etc etc are free though

Unix is the kernel and the software tools that allow you to run and operate the OS as well as write more software for it and in the case of unix,linux,bsd etc you can even make a new version of the OS and set it up to run on totally different hardware by cross compiling it.

the actual Unix OS which its kernel and toolchain are proprietary and cost big $$, but what's funny is the GNU/GPL software is backwards compatible for the most part and can run on unix

the linux and bsd kernels and toolchains are freeware and so is all the desktop apps written for them for the most part

**************
why it is commandline based? look at where it came from, picture yourself logged into a mainframe at an old text only terminal with hundreds of others also logged in using that same mainframe at the same time, sitting there hacking out code or entering data, that's where it came from and why it is the way it is

 

[Ewc1307]

So basically, unix is for businesses? Not really home user use.

You are so far from the truth it's unreal...more of my friends use Linux (of some flavour) rather than Windows.

Why? - Well you'll have to ask them that but i'm sure freedom, security, less stress on system resources (which can be used for something more than graphics, which don't make a game or an OS), more variety...to name a few.

Look at the cost to a business to run a system running on Windows compared to Unix...

 

[S0ULphIRE]

I have xp too, defrag about once a year, and it's fine. Microsoft does fail, case in point vista or 2003. At a guess, I'd say you were trying to run xp with 64-128mb of ram.
The last version of linux I used was 2.6, which I believe is the latest stable release.

 

[S0ULphIRE]

You are so far from the truth it's unreal...more of my friends use Linux (of some flavour) rather than Windows.

Why? - Well you'll have to ask them that but i'm sure freedom, security, less stress on system resources (which can be used for something more than graphics, which don't make a game or an OS), more variety...to name a few.

Look at the cost to a business to run a system running on Windows compared to Unix...

How much compatability do you get using Linux with most software out there? The point is, most software is designed to run on windows, which leaves Linux as a good os, but redundant. Sure it runs fast, but runs what?

 

[Ewc1307]

So what you're saying is that down your local store you wont find much Linux software...well yes but why goto the the shop when it's there on the net!

Embrace open-source and delve a little deeper...

 

[S0ULphIRE]

If you took a percentage of ALL software written, how much do you think would have been written for Linux?
Open-source is awesome, hey its free! For misers like me thats a major plus. I dunno, different people weight up the pros and cons, some like them, some don't. The ironic thing is to pass my tafe course, I need to be proficient in the *nixes. I guess I'll have to embrace and delve.

 

[horndude]

runs everything but games, although it will run some windows games these days too, even some of the recent 3D games

most of the time linux has an app that is as good or better than the windows app it replaces, in some cases far far better, like MPlayer/Mencoder.........done so well that even windows apps use them, same with ffmpeg, another popular app to port to windows and use in video software

in the server world, apache, MySQL, and php have for quite awhile now put a serious dent in the server business

where it runs in to big problems is hardware with non standard or proprietary drivers from companies that for whatever reason do not like linux and refuse to release the specs, so then people have to reverse engineer kernel modules to make them work, that takes time and sometimes it works well, sometimes not..........right now wireless adapters and printers being the big problems