Windows, Linux, The Debate: which is best?

Tue Jan 17 12:04:11 UTC 2006

Hey there, friends.

How about this idea:

People from the community with the relevant background, start a web site,
let's call it www.welcometolinux.org.

This site will be a portal for Linux Users Wannabies. It can, and should,
contain:

A categorised menu, split by distros, linking to forums, FAQs, mailing
lists, screenshots, distro's web sites....

Kind of a portal to all that is GNU/Linux. A one-stop "shopping" for
newbies.

I can think of some of the links that shold be included, but I know nothing
about marketing and creating inviting eye-candy web site.

I know of some 60 year olds using GNU/Linux without even knowing it.

I'll be more than willing to help, if someone else takes the lead on putting
such a site together.

Regards,

On 1/17/06, Bry <brymelvin at melvinart.com> wrote:
>
> >
> > Message: 8 Date: Tue, 17 Jan 2006 09:08:05 +0200 From: "Billy
> > Verreynne \(JW\)" <VerreyB at telkom.co.za> Subject: RE: Windows, Linux,
> > The Debate: which is best? To: "Ubuntu Help and User Discussions"
> > <ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com> Message-ID:
> > <445F36B0271AE1419CEE0B9589044B4321B346 at TYGRRA01-XCS00.telkom.co.za>
> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Cybe R. Wizard wrote:
> >> > I'd like to quote a post from 2004 by Kelsey Bjarnason on
> >>
> > alt.os.linux.
> >
> >> > When someone said Linux was always in the future:
> >>
> > <snipped>
> >
> > So what? Since when does 'the truth' make a difference in world of
> > sellers and buyers? Seriously.
> >
> > You cannot attack the Windows Desktop Market with a "my o/s is better
> > than yours". Marketing 101.
> >
> > End-users does not give a damn about the so-called technical
> > superiority of Linux over Windows (which is arguable anyway). They are
> > driven by different needs and requirements.
> >
> > For Linux to make in-roads into the home user desktop market requires
> > not technical superiority, but some common marketing savvy. Or even
> > better, a grokking the basic principles of warfare as per von
> > Clausewitz. Never attack a bigger enemy in entrenched positions with a
> > frontal attack. Outflank them. Wage guerilla warfare against them.
> >
> > But proclaiming that your shiny gun is technically superior than that
> > of the enemy when outgunned a million to one is just plain stupid.
> > Battles and wars are not won that way. Nor marketing share.
> >
> >
> > --
> > Billy
> >
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> >
> I would like to point out that being the "best" does not necessarily
> mean much of anything.
>
> Myself and many other users/former users (including most of the world's
> banks ) of OS/2 can testify to this.
>
> Last month OS/2 was discontinued by IBM. It is alive now only as an
> "OEM" (their words ..not mine :-)  ) distribution called eCS by a
> relatively small company called Serenity.
>
> OS/2 indeed brought a number of  innovations to computer use and is in
> some aspects what the "non dos" versions (NT) of windows borrowed from.
>
> I still consider OS/2 (eCS) superior to windows... Even though we are
> gradually migrating at my business to Linux I still have OS/2 in it's
> eCS form on my personal desktop. From it I can run all the legacy apps
> we have used through the years, run some ported Linux apps  (GIMP
> Imagemagick etc) as I have installed XFree86 on it and run a number of
> win32 apps via ODIN which one might say is OS/2's version of wine.
>
> Migrating to linux is somewhat of a necessity as despite the OS being
> kept alive by serenity systems, there just isn't the developer numbers
> to keep up porting and patching things now that IBM has turned toward
> Linux. ( the amount of developers working on ODIN for example can be
> counted on one hand at the moment). I have my doubts on the longevity of
> eCS as an alternative.
>
> We DO have a couple of windows workstations ,(specifically for Corel and
> Serif Graphics suites...they don't run on crossover OR wine) but I
> haven't trusted our data to windows computers (all the work archived on
> eCS or Linux) for about 8 years and I'm not about to start. In Many ways
> I think OS/2 was FAR superior to windows and in some aspects is still
> superior to Linux. However  OS/2 lost the marketing wars years ago and
> at this point IBM won't sell it directly and has suspended all
> development.
>
> Marketing decisions have always been more influential than technical
> superiority in computing.
> Motorola's 6809 and 68000 chips vs Intel's at the beginning,  (remeber
> the coco on OS-9 , the Amiga etc
>
> for that matter the 8086 vs 8088 in the original pcs
>
> Linux MAY be superior in some ways....to windows  but that doesn't
> necessarily mean much to most people.
>
> Most people don't CARE about the structure of the operating system any
> more than they do about the internal design of their toaster or
> microwave, or cell phone. They care that they can use it ...and don't
> have to study things to make it work.
>
> They also don't care about open source vs proprietary code.
> Computers to most are an appliance. Yes there is an awareness of "other"
> operating systems to some extent, but that is to them the same as buying
> aftermarket high performance parts for their car or something similiar.
> they don't have to install special stuff in their TV Toaster or
> Dishwasher. To them the Over the counter windows computer is ENOUGH
> trouble without having to bother to change things around. Most never
> even install a new Operating system. When the one they buy quits working
> either from component failure or operating system failure, they trash it
> and get a new one.
>
> Linux is a good deal. More and more businesses and governments are
> looking at it . IBM is supporting it, Novell and DELL also to COMMERCIAL
> customers. Walmart is experimenting with Linux computers retail as are a
> few others but they are the exception to the rule.
>
> I Don't think we're going to see Linux suddenly become popular. we'll
> see a gradual shift toward Linux FIRST from those using proprietary Unix
> and OS/2 (yes OS/2 died years ago...on the consumer desktop, but NOT in
> business. ). I think SUN sees this hence open solaris.
>
> I don't think by the time the majority heads to open source Linux or GNU
> or or Open Solaris will exist. I think as hardware evolves it will force
> may aspects of Personal Computers to be more standardized.
>
> But that's just a wag.
>
> FWIW We moved to Ubuntu from SuSE for migration for two reasons:
>
> 1. a SINGLE basic CD installation...and get the accessories you want
> later.
> Our first SuSe Installation had me pulling out 100 odd games. Commodore
> 64 emulators and a really serious amount of  junk apps( like Krpm)
> "earth" etc etc for weeks.
>
> 2. Novell bought SuSe....I remember taking that red box of Novell
> Networking and  pitching it from three stories to a dumpster. ...And
> then installing Lantastic..(now also extinct) It was a traumatic
> experience paying what I did for those headaches :-)
>
> Bryann
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> ubuntu-users mailing list
> ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com
> http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-users
>

--
:====================================================:.

Amichai Rotman

UIN#: 6401746
Registered Linux User#: 201192 [http://counter.li.org/]

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