Why Linux Still Can't Cut It
Submitted by lukeprog on Tue, 12/13/2005 - 07:45
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- Linux is great. It's free. It's totally customizable. Unlike Windows, it's secure from viruses and spyware, and also more stable. It's efficient with system resources. Most software for it is free. It's updated frequently and cutting-edge. But it still can't compete with Windows on several vital fronts. So, I haven't switched to Linux yet, and I haven't recommended that other people switch to Linux. Hopefully our beloved Linux developers will address these issues quickly without sacrificing the advantages of Linux. It's important to remember that many of these issues are not the fault of Linux developers (winmodems and proprietary formats, etc.), and that some issues may be solved by a simple increase in Linux popularity (availability of software, etc.).
- Installing software on Linux is excruciating. A few packages can be installed pain-free, but most require hunting to satisfy dependencies, a dozen cryptic text commands, or even compiling the source code!
- No distribution or desktop environment is consistently, intuitively user-friendly. Seriously, I've tried them all. Leading desktop environments KDE and GNOME are getting better at providing intuitive dialogs for all aspects of system administration, but neither approach the professionalism of Windows XP.
- Most software is poorly designed. There are a few shining examples like Open Office, Firefox, and others, but most Linux software has a weak feature list and a half-assed interface.
- Linux is not a dialup operating system. It is built for high-speed, always-on networks and is severely crippled in functionality without a decent internet connection. Also, it won't work with the majority dialup modems in existing PCs (winmodems).
- Linux has problems with laptops. The hardware in laptops is so often obscure, messy, or proprietary, and Linux has trouble with much of it.
- OEM support is rare. Manufacturers have no way to easily, effectively customize distributions for their customers.
- Virtually no top-tier video games are available for Linux.
- Linux can't handle DVDs, MP3s, or other proprietary formats without some tricky install work.
- There are too many distributions. Well over 100 distributions! Please, developers, concentrate your efforts on the dozen distributions that really matter, and make those better, really fast.
- I haven't mentioned MacOS because, although it is by far the best OS, it is nonfree and proprietary. So, I'm cheering for Linux.
Having spent maybe a year using Linux (mostly Mandrake, before it became Mandriva), I agree with most of these. I'm currently using Windows because of the game issue and so I can use Microsoft Visual Studio. I would have no problem using Linux regularly, but it can be a pain at times.
Did you really find playing mp3s and other proprietary formats troublesome? I thought XMMS and Xine were standard for distributions (might require an extra library or two for 'protected' DVDs though). And MPlayer is Godly. Download the codec package, stick it in a certain folder, and MPlayer will play just about anything you throw at it (divx, xvid, wmv, qt, (s)vcd, etc).
Open Office's design is blegh. It's great as a free alternative to MS Office, but I can't stand it. Last time I used it, I couldn't find any settings for something as simple as a hanging indent. It had before text, after text, and first line indent options, but no hanging indent.
No, proprietary formats weren't all that hard for me, though they would be quite troublesome to someone less experienced with computers than I. Open Office is kinda blegh, but it does make sense to someone who has used MS Office before. It gets the job done for most people's usage. I wasn't aware of the hanging indent issue. I almost never use MS Office or Open Office anyway.
GNOME or KDE? Or something else? I find KDE superior but also more resource-hoggish. However, my favorite distribution is Ubuntu, which is far better designed than Kubuntu.
I like the simplicity of GNOME, the idiot workspace according to Linus Torvalds. KDE always felt cluttered and bulky to me.
Linus is insane. The Linux community must stop pandering to him just because he's Linus.
Vent: I just spent 3 hours trying to install mplayer on Xandros without compiling from source. I never got it. Software installation on Linux is sometimes easy-as-pie, but often horrific.
But I'm becoming more familiar with Linux. When I find a decent deal on a laptop, I'm going to dual-boot Windows and Linux (probably SUSE).