The problem with commenting about articles on other tech websites is that one gets sucked into the vortex of one-tech-site-linking-to-another-tech-site, to the exclusion of many non-tech sites. What you wind up with then is a bunch of web sites patting one another on the back and providing referral links to boost hit stats.
Unfortunately for my few remaining visitors, this post is going to be tech-related, which may turn some of you off. But it’s my blog and I feel like jumping into this fray.
This column was posted this morning, and after reading it, I still can’t determine whether the author was joking or intentionally posting flame-bait to get Linux geeks like me fired up. I’m about to offer a few counter-comments to Mr. Zaharov-Reutt’s “why Vista is better than Linux” list. But unlike some of my fellow Linux fanboys who flamed the man in the article’s comments area with some really uncalled-for nastiness, I reply with all the respect people gave Don Corleone.
1. Vista is far more polished than Linux, and in general, things “just work” far better in Vista than they do in Linux.
This first item on his list reflects some of the vagueness Mr. Zaharov-Reutt injects much too frequently into his list. I’m trying to think of what, on my various Linux machines, doesn’t “just work.” On a day-to-day basis, I use a few programs more frequently on my Kubuntu 8.04-based laptop: Firefox, Quanta+, a terminal, OpenOffice, gftp, the Adept package manager. They all work all the time. They start, do what I want, and go away when I tell them.
I recently spent a few hours trying to get my nephew’s Vista Home-based laptop back on line. Trust me, things on that machine didn’t “just work.”
2. Vista has the widest software support, perhaps bested only by XP, for now. This includes the widest third-party software support, from commercial to free and open source software.
Based on what? What he sees on the shelf at Best Buy? I’m certain there are more Windows apps in general, but the last time I looked at my package manager on Linux, there were about 15,000 applications (I’m estimating, and that’s without libraries) available for my distribution (distro) alone. Give me a count of open-source apps available on Sourceforge and other FOSS distribution sites. My bet is that the numbers aren’t as far apart as he thinks.
And one other thing: I thought we were talking about how great Vista is? If XP has such better software support, why would I want to switch from XP to Vista?
4. Vista has the most advanced and widest range of security software available.
This one is pretty funny, both “ha-ha” funny and ironically funny.
Linux doesn’t require “security software.” The security built into the operating system has been enough to keep it from being the target of choice for malware, as Windows has been for the past 15 years. Yes, I can hear it now from the Windows dweebs: Linux doesn’t get attacked because most people run Windows. No, Linux doesn’t get attacked because the attackers know it’s difficult, if not impossible in many cases, to penetrate most Linux boxes. Millions of the world’s websites run on Linux servers with Apache. Few of them have ever been compromised to the degree that Windows servers have in recent years.
5. Vista has IE and Office, still the gold standards of Internet browsing and office work.
Linux (and Windows, for that matter) has Firefox and OpenOffice, which are pretty gold themselves. In addition to Opera, Konqueror, KOffice, and other lesser-known nuggets. Firefox, unlike IE, is based on accepted web standards, not a load of proprietary substance that can only be experienced with one browser. OpenOffice can open, edit and save nearly any Microsoft Office file you throw at it. That suite, too, uses open standards for its default file structure, so files can be easily shared among other systems and applications.
7. Vista has the best backup software and solutions for consumers.
Really? Name one. I worked in system administration for years and could barely find capable software to use on 16-tape autoloaders, at least not without breaking my department’s budget. Perhaps things have changed, but I’d still be interested. Name one. At least name one that “consumers” will use on a regular basis. Pay a visit to the computer forum on Craigslist or the Computers area on Yahoo! Answers some time. A day doesn’t go by where a dozen or so “consumers” ask for help with a crashed system, and admit to not having a backup of their personal data. You can’t even get most people to push copies of their files to external drives or memory sticks.
9. Vista is the easiest operating system to use.
More vagaries. Define “easiest”.
The last time I looked, you started Windows applications by clicking icons with a mouse. The last time I looked, you start Linux applications by clicking icons with a mouse. Most use the left mouse button to do this. Works the same in both systems. So where’s the difficulty?
11. Vista and Windows in general is what most businesses use, thus skills learned in Vista translate into the business world most easily.
Really? Why is it that Windows is “what most businesses use”? Could it be that the systems vendors have long had deals with Microsoft that practically require them to install a copy of Windows on nearly everything they sell?
Years ago, if you were buying computers, you bought servers with proprietary operating systems and desktop machines with DOS. Today, it’s rack servers and client machines with Windows. Try buying a computer, any computer, from a major vendor without an operating system (let alone with some version of Linux installed). Yes, I know some companies offer Linux machines (like Dell), but the major portion of their business is selling machines preloaded with Windows.
At one time, buying a machine with Windows made sense. There was no other real competitor out there, there was lots of Windows software, and the cost of Windows was buried in the cost of the system (you always pay for it, despite the fact that it seems to be “free”). Companies and consumers bit and eventually became entrenched in the world of Microsoft…hey, we make Windows, how about using Office, which we design specifically for Windows?…and now, years later, you have all this data, all these documents, all these applications that only work on Windows. Would most companies switch? Probably not.
I’m curious, however, about these “skills learned in Vista.” The only skill I saw that one needs to “learn” in Vista is patience, especially when the user has to verify that they really, really want to run that program they just attempted to start – every time they start something. (yes, fanboys, I know you can shut it off — why was it necessary in the first place?)
What are these other “skills”? Clicking a mouse? Typing characters on a keyboard? (Yes, Linux uses the same mouse and keyboard. Same letter arrangements and everything!). I’ve used Excel and OpenOffice Spreadsheet. You fill them out the same way, and nearly all the formulas and macros work the same way. If I open Word or OO Word Processor, I enter the characters the same way, format the text the same way, save files the same way.
Even the programming isn’t that different, at least at the base level. The major differences is coding for the GUI. But if you write code in Java, or do scripting in PHP or Perl, things are pretty much the same. Even if you wrote code in two different languages (say Java on Linux and C# on Windows), programming “skills” remain basically the same — you still have to use logic and planning, no matter what your code will do or what language you use.
Maybe that new Vista skill is “waiting.” I seem to recall, based on my recent adventures with the nephew’s laptop, that sitting around and “waiting” for Vista to do stuff was a new experience…or, at least one I hadn’t experienced since the day I first booted Windows NT.
17. Vista has the best compatibility with Windows Mobile smartphones (although, XP too).
Duh. The damn things run Windows. How are they supposed to be compatible with Linux anyway? By the way, I owned (until recently) a Palm Treo 650. Used the Palm OS on it, and was able to sync it to applications on Linux (like JPilot) just fine. I haven’t had the same experiences with my new Blackberry, but it doesn’t run Windows either. I’m patient – eventually, some smart people will build out an open source tool set that will allow me to do whatever I need on my Blackberry on Linux as easily as I can on Windows. I can backup and restore the Blackberry’s database from Linux. And I didn’t need to buy one of those superior backup tools mentioned above!
But saying a Windows-based phone works best with Windows is like saying baby formula works best when you feed it to a baby.
18. Vista has arguably the best and most advanced Media Center.
Really? Can it play FLAC and OGG files out of the box? I mean, without adding on any of those nasty open source libraries. By the way, ever heard of MythTV? I’ll bet if you buy a cheap or homebuilt system with no operating system installed, then get this, you can have a very nice “media center” up and running in no time. And all the software is free! Imagine…
19. Vista has the best Tablet PC experience, whether using a Tablet PC or an external graphics tablet.
I’ve worked in IT for a long time, and, yes, I know what Tablet PCs are, but what the hell is the “Tablet PC experience”? In my current job, I am literally surrounded by geeks, everything from system admins to network managers to developers to database admins to helpdesk staff…I’m talking literally thousands of people managing one of the biggest and most critical infrastructures in the nation…and I’ve never seen a single Tablet PC in use. Ever. By anyone. So, it’s a shame the “Tablet PC experience” isn’t as good on Linux, but who gives a shit?
20. Vista has the best “start menu”.
Boy, we’re reaching into the weeds now, aren’t we? Maybe Mr. Zaharov-Reutt needs to look at the “start menu” in KDE. Explain to me the difference in functionality and accessibility. I don’t think there’s anything really comparable in GNOME, so the argument seems moot. Last time I looked, to anything in either system, you clicked a button, clicked a category of applications, clicked the program you wanted. Maybe the “start menu” is dumbed down in Vista, but, again, what’s the issue?
21. Vista has the best UI, although this is subjective.
Duh again. Isn’t just about everything on your list subjective?
25. Vista can run Microsoft’s OneNote, which only XP can also claim.
This is funny. I had to look this up to find out what it was, and I use Windows at work every day (not my choice). Note-capture software that’s tied to a proprietary system and application suite. So what. I have a nice little application in KDE called Basket that can do pretty much the same thing as OneNote. Yes, it will run on any Linux system (you don’t need a full KDE install, just some libraries).
Besides, most of the Linux geeks I know still write stuff down in notebooks or compose notes on their cellphones/PDAs. Probably a whole lot less bloat, too.
26. Vista has the best “remote log-in” software choices.
Huh?
The Unix/Linux world has long had something called X Display Manager Control Protocol (XDMCP), which allows not only remote connections, but literally running the remote system’s entire desktop from your system. There have been security issues with XDMCP in recent years, but the *nix world dealt with that by adapting OpenSSH (another remote connection tool) to allow XDMCP “tunneling”, so the remote system could be accessed using encryption. There are a number of remote desktop clients available on Linux that allow the same connectivity to Windows systems allowed by tools such as Windows Terminal Services. Linux is just as capable of working with VPNs as Windows. I’m sure there are some I didn’t mention, but you get the idea.
27. Vista has the best suite of software freely built-into the OS, as part of the OS and not a third-party add-in (as with Ubuntu and its suite of otherwise quality third party add-ons).
Again, name it. Be specific, Alex. One thing you need to learn is that Ubuntu, while currently the most popular general Linux distribution, is not the only Linux distribution. Each different version of the system comes with various applications loaded by default. Some versions are designed for specific uses (servers, multimedia, development, security, forensics), and each one is going to come with a specific package of tools and apps.
Besides, if something you need doesn’t come with Windows, what do you do? Well, most people would automatically go out and buy an application. Other more technically-savvy users might find some open source alternative. Some might get some shareware application off the ‘Net and use that. With the exception of the open source choice, that app is going to cost the user something – money and time, for example – to get it up and running.
Let me use Ubuntu as an example of what we in the Linux world do: we fire up a package manager (Synaptic in GNOME systems, Adept on KDE boxes, or use apt-get from the command line), search for the application or tool we need, and click “install.” The program will be installed from a repository that houses the latest version, tested and packaged specifically for this version of Linux. Users can add repositories to the default list (also through the GUI tools) to provide additional software resources. The installation process handles all the required dependencies, too.
So, if a distribution doesn’t happen to have that matching item from Vista’s “suite of software”, you can usually add one in about 30 seconds.
By the way, I’d be interested in what those Vista applications in that “suite” are? Since I’m not that familiar with Vista as a user, I’ll have to use XP as a comparison. Let’s see, there’s Wordpad. Many Linux distros include OpenOffice, KOffice or Abiword, all of which are more powerful word processors. On my Kubuntu box, I found a calculator, a few text editors, all kinds of “control panel”-type tools…I mean, I’ll bet I could match Vista one-for-one on nearly everything they “give” you. Well, maybe not Paint…most distros include GIMP, which is closer to Photoshop anyway.
28. Vista has the best “taskbar”.
Let me ask you a question about that Vista taskbar. Does it still pop up that annoying message that there are “unused icons” on the screen? That message that won’t go away, no matter how times I click it? You know, I bought my daughter a new laptop about a year ago, and it came with Vista. I seem to recall that the taskbar was literally filled with a bunch of icons for crap she’ll never use, most of it partially-working demos of applications that just eat up resources (like the trial version of Norton anti-virus). Most Linux taskbars I’ve seen offer just a couple of items out-of-the-box: a clock, a network-connection status icon, maybe a battery monitor for a laptop. The really great thing is that the taskbar isn’t filled with shit I’ll never use or don’t want. And I can add things that I do want at any time.
I can also turn the taskbar off in Linux.
Nice try.
29. Vista has the most versions, although this isn’t a plus, Microsoft!
Okay, I don’t want to split hairs here, but have you visited Distrowatch recently, Alex? Look at the page…this is the “full stats” page which lists 350 different Linux distributions. Like Vista (which offers, what, four versions? Five? Six?), you can pick the version that best suits your needs (and each one is detailed on Distrowatch, too). You’re not stuck with the version that the vendor happened to install on your new PC or laptop. And if you want a better version, you don’t have to pay some outrageous upgrade price. In fact…you never have to play for Linux if you don’t want to! So multiple versions of Vista might be bad for you, but the Linux camp has choices.
31. Vista has the best and easiest online driver finding mechanism.
Now, as a long-time Linux user, I can recall a time when finding “drivers” for some hardware could be a major pain in the ass. But that was only in the most extreme cases, because Linux, unlike Windows, doesn’t really use “drivers.” Most of the code needed to work with specific hardware is coded into modules, which, like drivers, are little chunks of code that hook to the kernel on startup and load when the hardware is detected by the kernel. The major difference between Linux and Windows is that the user (at least, the technically adept user) can install modules created outside the Linux kernel development community, or can directly modify the kernel to get certain things working.
In recent years, however, there’s been less of a need for users to have to try hacking their systems to get things working. The creators of the most popular distributions build generic kernels and include sets of modules that cover nearly everything the user needs to get their system going. And remember that repository system I spoke of earlier? All the major distributions utilize some kind of package management that enables even the most challenged users to find and install something for a specific hardware need.
Admittedly, there are still some issues with some hardware, including some wireless network adapters. One very popular wireless chipset maker simply refuses to provide technical data to volunteer developers so a real Linux driver can be created for their hardware. In spite of the fact that big hardware companies like Intel and AMD work with the Linux community, some companies still insist on keeping their technical source closed or unavailable. Unfortunately, this particular wi-fi hardware company makes chipsets for a wide variety of computer manufacturers, meaning their hardware is very common.
Yet, this lack of cooperation hasn’t stopped the Linux development community from finding a solution. By use of a tool called ndiswrapper, users stuck with this hardware can use it under Linux via the company’s own Windows drivers. This is just one example of how the community has rallied around the system and provided solutions to a seemingly-insurmountable issue. Show me where this happens in the Vista community. Or in the Windows community, period.
By the way, please stop propping up Vista’s driver compatibility. Ask anyone who used Vista immediately after its release about the hardware that no longer worked with their new operating system.
32. Vista has the best error reporting to help Microsoft squash bugs, and the best version of “Windows Update”.
Really? Can you tell me where this “error reporting” takes place. Is it part of Microsoft’s regular support? I guess that means it’s going to require my credit card, right? I’d like to know where this happens so I can send screen caps of BSOD messages or those old Dr. Watson memory dumps. I used to have a lot of them. Maybe it’s different in Vista.
As for the “best version” of “Windows Update,” this would make sense, since Linux isn’t Windows.
By the way, you do know how Linux gets updated, right? As soon as you get on line, most systems check for any new updates at their repositories (against what you have installed already…not crap you don’t care about). You get a notification (usually through a icon on that taskbar we discussed earlier) and you can nearly always install them in the background while you actually work on something else.
33. Vista has an SP1 that fixed a lot of earlier Vista issues, now in the past.
Linux doesn’t have service packs. Never has. Never need to, really. That update thing I mentioned above? That takes care of issues, one at a time, when they pop up. No need to wait a year for a service pack to fix massive piles of bugs, with the potential that the service pack is going to break the system. Small steps. I’ve been using one or another of the Ubuntu distros as a primary system for about three years now. I have never had an update break my system. Ever.
37. Vista has the best “System Restore”.
Good thing, too, since having to restore the system is a pretty common occurrence with nearly every version of Windows. Restoring an entire Linux system (except in the case of a severe hardware crash) is pretty much unheard of (well, maybe except for us nutcases who are always testing three or four new distros at the same time). Our systems don’t get hammered with crippling viruses and malware, and we tend to fix the specific problems when they come up, rather than just brute-forcing the issue away by “restoring” the system. And some distros have a “repair” function available on the installation CD. Pop it in, reboot, select repair.
Oh, by the way…does Microsoft provide Windows Vista on a LiveCD? You know, so you can boot it up independently of the installed system and try it out directly from the CD? So you can test your hardware for compatibility or fix an issue without bolluxing up your current installation?
I didn’t think so. I guess that nasty licensing issue always gets in the way, huh?
38. Vista is the most widely available commercial OS, and thus has the most support.
And Linux is the most “widely available” [sic] open source OS, thus is has the most support.
And nearly all that support is free, by the way.
39. Vista doesn’t turn you into a left-leaning, anti-capitalist socialist.
Neither does Linux.
I’ve been using it since 1993, and I’m still as much of a freedom-loving, flag-waving, pro-business conservative today as I was back then (read a few of the political posts on this blog if you want to verify my political status). Yeah, I know, we have Richard Stallman on our side of the aisle, but the Linux model fits the right-leaning, pro-capitalist business model very nicely. Linux encourages freedom: freedom to innovate, freedom to change something for one’s individual use, freedom to spread the word about a terrific system and all the great applications and tools that go with it. The “free beer” part of the equation is nice, too. But I make a pretty good living working primarily with open source tools (Apache, PHP, Perl, etc). I have to do a lot of it on Windows boxes, but I can get it done. And I work primarily for the military, another freedom-loving bunch.
40. Vista has Microsoft behind it!
Yiles. That explains why people using Vista are taking it up the…errr…in the shorts. Perhaps this is why Bill Gates wiggled his butt in that stupid commercial.
I didn’t touch on every one of Alex’s 40 points, or this would have been the longest blog post in history. But after reading the column and then responding, I still had the nagging feeling that he was intentionally tweaking the Linux crowd by the way he worded things in his piece.
Then I read some of the comments posted after the article, and some of a Alex’s responses. I have no doubt he’s a true believer. Yet some of his follow-up comments strike me as odd, too:
With the biggest market share…it’s undeniable that IE is the gold standard in Internet Browsing.
Well, sure, IE has the biggest market share, because Windows has the biggest market share. Isn’t that like saying the Chinese use more resources because they have the largest national population? No kidding.
If you want to use an alternative like Firefox or Opera, you have to go get it and install it. Yet, Alex can’t account for the fact that millions of Windows users have done just that. Considering how wonderful everything that comes with Vista is supposed to be, why would they do that?
Then there’s this:
As for standards compliance and IE, have you heard of IE8 beta 2, soon(ish) to be IE8 final?
Yes, I have, and I understand that it’s currently a memory-hogging, bloated hunk of crap. But it is a beta, so one can’t honestly judge it right now.
As for “standard compliance”…don’t you think it’s about time? I mean, since IE really took off with version 5, they’ve had more than a few chances (interim and major releases, that terrific “Windows Update” system) to make IE “standards compliant.”
The big question here, however, is what standards? Microsoft has attempted, for many years now, to be the one setting the standards by literally forcing people to have to use their browser to get any of their proprietary features working (Silverlight is the latest sparkling example). I have to wonder if the developers at Microsoft even know what “standards compliance” means.
I guess the jury is still out on that one.
In conclusion, this article is really nothing more than one Windows fanboy trying to spark a fire under the Linux fanboys (which I happily admit to being, myself). But, like some of the commenters, I have to wonder is Alex did a few Google/Yahoo searches, or took a closer look at a working Linux system beofre writing his “challenge” to his Linux-loving friends.
I’m also dismayed at some of the viciousness of a few of the commenters. Trying to win the Windows-vs-Linux argument doesn’t require attacking people personally or calling them crude names. You can make your argument without being an attack dog.
Especially when the other party is so completely wrong.
In Jersey? What exit?
While reading this American Thinker column lamenting the quality of today’s English writing, I was reminded of something I saw this weekend while driving up to New York. I was pretty shocked at first, thinking what I saw might have been an aberration. But I was wrong.
If you travel along the length of New Jersey Turnpike, you pass 12 service areas. The areas provide food, coffee, snacks, rest rooms, souvenirs, gas and oil, and emergency services. The twelve areas are managed by the Turnpike authority and all are named after famous residents of New Jersey. Some are familiar (Vince Lombardi, Thomas Edison, Woodrow Wilson), and some might not be that familiar to many people (Richard Stockton, Molly Pitcher, John Fenwick). No matter what your level of familiarity with these famous Jerseyeans, you can actually learn about their lives and accomplishments at the service areas that bear their names.
Well, maybe.
On Friday evening, I was driving northbound on the Turnpike and decided to stop, grab a quick bite and gas up. The subsidized gas on the Turnpike was $3.72 for a gallon of regular, pretty good considering it’s $4.15 on Long Island and over $3.85 in Virginia. I fueled up, parked and strolled into the main building for a bathroom and snack stop.
On the way out, I noticed a display on the wall at the entrance of the rest area. The display included artistic renderings and biographical information on James Fenimore Cooper, for whom the service area was named. Anyone who’s attended high school in most of America is familiar with at least one of Cooper’s works, most likely The Deerslayer or his most famous work, The Last Of The Mohicans. I was forced by assignment to read The Deerslayer in high school; I tend to agree with Twain’s assessment of Cooper’s work as a lot of hot air.
Nonetheless, he was a popular and widely-read artist in his lifetime, and the folks of New Jersey deemed him an important enough historical figure to honor by naming this service area after him.
Now, here’s where the problem started. The display seemed professionally constructed and mounted behind glass, as one would with a valuable painting or sentimental photograph. The images and text were framed by an attractive matting. I stopped to read the brief biography of Cooper, and was floored by just how terribly it was written. The grammar and construction of the piece was so bad, I had to wonder if someone in the state agency that runs these places asked his kid to toss something together on the computer after dinner, then failed to proofread it.
I really sorry I didn’t think of writing the text down or taking a snapshot of it with my cell phone camera. Based on what I recall, I know that the text included a number of incomplete sentences, some which could have been fixed with proper use of punctuation. Something along the lines of (and I’m paraphrasing here):
The final sentence contained what had to be the most egregious error in the text (again, paraphrasing some of the content):
The narrative’s poor quality reminded me of the essays I used to direct my students to write when I was a high school English teaching intern back in 1990. The horrible quality of the text was something I would usually see on a first or second draft, and these errors and misuses of the language would nearly always be corrected before they submitted their final versions. I can’t understand how a state agency could allow such a poor example of the English language be used in a public display that provides travelers with historical information. What are people not from New Jersey thinking when they read this mess? Can they be wondering, as I did, whether this reflects badly on the state’s education system?
I walked away in disbelief and hoped that this was that aberration I considered earlier.
Then I made the return trip back yesterday. Kelly was with me this time, and we were heading back to Norther Virginia, from where she would fly home to Jacksonville. We stopped at the Walt Whitman service area on the southbound Turnpike, and sure enough, I saw very much the same thing in the historical text about Whitman. This one wasn’t as horribly constructed as the one on Cooper, but it seemed to be created by the same hand, as the errors were very similar. I found it ironic that such poorly written English was used to describe one of America’s literary geniuses, one of the most admired men of letters in the nation’s history.
The Garden State has been the butt of a lot of jokes over the years, especially from the smart alecks living across the river in New York. One quote allegedly attributed to Ben Franklin:
And, of course, you know you’re from Jersey if:
or:
The fact is, New Jersey is not all swamps, oil tanks, malls and toll roads. The state has some of the loveliest rural country in the Northeast, especially the horse farms located in the southern and central part of the state.
But, most people traveling north or south on the New Jersey Turnpike won’t see that part of the state. They’ll see historical information about the state’s favorite sons and daughters written in a manner that would be disgraceful in any tenth-grade English class. That’s a real shame.
(Thanks to this site for the New Jersey humor).
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