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The 10 great myths about Linux, debunked one by one. "Linux is safe because nobody uses it." "Installing applications is impossible!" "Linux is recontramegasuper difficult to install". "Linux is for geeks" ... well, enter this post and see why all these and some more are just myths. |
1. Linux is more secure because it has fewer users
Linux is often said to be more secure than Windows, just because Windows is more popular, so hackers and virus writers are concentrating on a more common platform.
Well that's only one side of the coin ... there are many things that make Linux more secure and that will make this myth go to the ground. First of all, you have to accept it, YOU are the weakest part of any Operating System.
Users are the ones who break the motherboard of any OS, with a little silly decisions. Linux users are generally a bit more cautious than Windows or Mac users. Not only do we not click on that banner that promises to see Jessica Simpson naked. Besides that, Linux users don't normally run their system as root, which is not the case for Windows users, that already lowers Linux's vulnerability a lot. The question is what would happen if Linux became more popular, if it had 90% of the market share? I don't really know, but I really don't think it made much difference.
Linux with its roots Unix was created as a Network Operating System or a Network Operating System (SOR) and is progressing little by little to being a Desktop Operating System (SOE). This simple fact makes Linux have a legacy of network security, a server / client model with limited permissions. Instead, Winows was originally made a Desktop OS and progressed to a Network OS, in addition to adding layers of security as it grew.
Finally, Linux is Free Software, which means that there are more eyes watching for bugs and vulnerabilities. Any thirty-something programmer in his mom's basement can fix a problem for the community. It doesn't take a hideous and gigantic layer of bureaucracy to be able to accept a settlement ... what better?
2. Installing applications on Linux is difficult
That may have been true in the early years of Linux, but now it is no longer true. As a Linux user, what do I have to do to install an application? All I have to do is enter the graphical interface of my package manager (imagine a gigantic package of programs that are on a server at an indeterminate point in Google Earth) and then search for the application I need.
Not sure which one to install? well, you just have to put the function, for example, suppose you want to install the "Gmail alert", just type "gogle" or "gmail" and and a flood of applications will appear. After a "difficult" double click, you're done. On the other hand, in Windows everything would be simpler ... I Agree, Acept, OK, Error: invalid parameters, BSOD, etc ...
3. Linux is impossible to install
The first time I installed Linux I did it a few days ago, I had an Ubuntu disk in my hands and I decided to try it on my home computer ... I was going to make a backup of all my files, I was afraid of losing them, but after seeing that there were many, I was lazy. With fear, I did the installation, and in less than two hours I had a computer with dual boot and my files intact. Nothing will happen! the only thing you need to install Linux is to have common sense (delete all data? yes or no) If you don't believe me, why not resort to virtualization?
The truth is that the installation process has been improved over time and is now even easier than installing Windows. Now in 30 minutes you can have a functional system, with a multimedia player, a good Internet browser, an office suite, a chat client ... Can you tell me the same about your operating system?
4. The Linux interface is ugly and unattractive
Well, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. A command line only operating system may not be attractive. Instead, an interface with jelly-like windows, spinning cubes, spherical desks, fireworks, effects when closing the windows, animated icons ... and a great etc. it may not be so ugly.
Your operating system doesn't have a spinning hub? No gelatinous windows that shake when you move them? Don't have a dock? Don't have fun effects when you open / close a window? Damn ... you know something? Linux does! That and everything in between, and if you like how your Seven or Leopard looks more, you can make it look the same. The truth is, the sky is the limit.
5. No games on Linux
I'm not a big gamer on PC, on the contrary, I play a lot with my PSP, but even so, I once installed Diablo II on Linux, and it worked perfect (even better).
There are actually many applications that can run on Linux even though they are native to Linux, in fact, I wrote a long time ago about ways to run Windows games on Linux, and even so, there are many people who program very interesting free games for Linux ( personally, I play a lot of Warsow)
6. Linux does not come pre-installed like Windows
Error! that is something that is not true, you have been deceived horribly. Some international brands like Dell and Lenovo can sell you your PC with Linux pre-installed. There are also companies that specialize in that, such as System76 or EmprorLinux. ASUS has also set a new trend in the market for ultras, which mostly use Linux.
7. No Linux support
If you buy your Linux machine they will probably offer to help you with the service. Also if you bought your distro from RedHat or Novell, you will have support. But hey, Linux users are really people who like to help each other. There are forums, chats, guides, etc ... The truth in terms of creating communities, I think any company is envious of us.
8. Linux does not have good hardware support
It's a lie, there are stories on the internet that tell the adventures of people with hardware problems in Windows, when installing a printer ... the solution: use your ASUS eee PC, which recognized the printer in 30 seconds. What people sometimes don't understand is that Windows computers work because the people who sell them have already done the work for them.
If Windows didn't come pre-installed it would be a real pain in the… eyes. The truth is I believe that we are at a point where Linux now works perfectly with 90% of the hardware. Can Apple or Windows say the same? I don't know, I don't use my precious Seven anymore.
9. No Office Software, or not much software on Linux
How? Under which rock they have been living for the past decade. The truth is there are more office suites in Linux than in Windows and Apple combined. They do 97% of what Microsoft Office does and you don't have to pay anything to get it. And the truth is that we do not use MS Office as it should be used, at its maximum power. Why pay 100% if I only need 10% of the features?
And when it comes to software, there is a replacement for everything you need. And sometimes they do the job better. Before someone says "photoshop", let's not get into that conversation, if you don't like GIMP, you can still have Photoshop on Linux, so don't insist.
10. Linux is for Geeks / Geeks
Do you think I'm going to refute this? The truth is, it is not only for geeks, but it does serve us. I hope you liked it, and remember Free Software, Love and Peace.
Many people tell me that Linux is not good as an Operating System "for average people", that it is for offices, servers, programmers ..., yadda yadda. They took me out with that "the best option for the average user is Windows", that because it was only a matter of "next, next, next ...", which was more "user-friendly"; some told me it was Mac and I couldn't help but laugh.
I believe that Linux, at least Ubuntu, is a great Operating System for those people who like an easy life. Me, for example: I'm horrible with computers, and I still love Ubuntu. It's nice and easy to use, not to mention much lighter than other Operating Systems. Many complained that Unity this and that, but it improved a lot in version 12.04: you can now have desktop icons and it is supported for up to five years, which tells me that developers DO listen to the user.
It has replacements for all those programs that we had to pay a pretty penny for so that, as you said, we only use 10% of its capacity. Office, for example: I don't miss Word because OppenOffice has everything I need. I use GIMP for my graphics, which is much lighter and cheaper (IT'S FREE) than Photoshop, and I congratulate the programmers on version 2.8. For the internet I have Mozilla and Chromium, which is Google Chrome but with the blue icon. And I could mention many other alternatives to many other things, but I'll stop you here.
If you really need to use proprietary software or you just don't want to change it, ignore the occasional hipster who comes to you by calling you "terrorists" just because they want to keep Adobe Illustrator (or in my case Corel Draw), they have Wine there for install the proprietary software they want.
I would recommend Windows if someone is a fan of videogames, that although they deny it, it does have more support than Linux in terms of the most «mainstream»; if you only work with graphics, cinematography and that, then buy a Mac, which has better support for those things. But like I said at the beginning, I laughed when they told me "Mac is the best choice for desktop." I am not going to buy a Ferrari if I will only use it to go to the supermarket, so I will not spend twenty thousand MXN pesos just to open Word, play in Paint and enter social networks; you have to be very slimy to do that ... without offending those who did it.
Phew! I'm done: D.
Hahahahaha, I know it is a somewhat old post but the truth is that it has made me smile from ear to ear, in particular I read point 8 and I remembered that once I had the need to replace the hard drive of my laptop and install windows. You know when I could get all the HW to work properly? never really 100. Later I finally decided to migrate to linux, where when I finished the installation all the HW worked wonderfully for me, the truth is that once you try it you don't want to go back to the dark side lol well it's just my humble opinion greetings
Well well.
Very good entry; ideal for those who are starting (I will send it to some people in my family who I have forced to use Linux XD).
Great! Hopefully this space will also serve you in your new linux experience! Cheers! Paul.
I love Linux, I have the updated version of Ubuntu and since I migrated from windows to Ubuntu I have no regrets, although at first I was a bit panicky because I was able to do it alone and without help from anyone, except for forums and linux pages Because in my city, people are still loyal to Windows, and I got out of the "BIG BUSINESS" marquetinero.
Good! A hug!
Thanks for spreading the word!
Cheers! Paul.
how I hate taringa ... the posts are stolen and they don't put sources
the last part Linux is for Geeks / Geeks, if it is, that's why I use linux
I was reading the "Why Linux is more secure than Windows
By Pablo Castagnino | linux, microsoft, security, windows »
And I saw how this post was related, I thought it was attacking Linux, I personally use Ubuntu 11.10, I have been using Ubuntu for more than 6 years and every day it goes from more to better, I still keep fixing my family's Windows computers every two months LOL
both they and we attack each other the truth, but there is no linux that there is no windows, without paying and even better
Windows is still a necessary evil, but until I see my country do what Russia did, I will die happy (http://usemoslinux.blogspot.com/2012/01/rusia-ahorrara-41785-millones-de-euros.html)
"Only dead fish go with the current"
Excellent post and ...
Big Linux !!
Linux is a marvel, BUT, like the environmental groups that sell you freedom, solidarity, etc, etc, etc of monsergas behind this inexorable negotiation. If not: is the installation of this system so complex, confusing, stoning and in many cases sterile? ... Isn't the revolutionary payment of windosws and mac behind it? ... Convince me if you can
Are these my ideas or lately are we receiving many users who come to complain about GNU / Linux?
The point is Flack, that we don't have to convince anyone to use it, and those of us who use it are convinced. The conviction depends on yourself and your needs. 😉
Perhaps dear Elav what happens that they do not read a minimum of some post or have some technical foundation of everything that the technology contains: Hard Drives, RAM Memories (ddr-ddr3), processors (pentium.i7, amd), etc, etc ... A great job is done here. Personally, I have learned a lot thanks to your time and effort ... Slds
Well the truth is I tell you my experience, I had a Cyber a long time ago in the days of ADSL of 512kbps and the great solution was to put a Squid Proxy and on the server with Linux now well I had no more money to compare another pc to put it and I had to be done on the Administrator's pc, but I was left without a control system, printers and some other things, and the one who did the job charged me around 150 dollars + transportation costs, the truth is I preferred to compare the Windows license that cost about 60 dollars and work with my control system and have my printers and other devices without problem, I am not going to say that Linux is bad but implementing migrations is not what they paint it and it is more expensive in the end than the Windows license.
I'm tired of talking with friends on the Internet, with my own brother, and more people about some problem with the PC, or how to see something on the PC, and really, I am greatly surprised how, walking 10 hours (and more) in front of the PC , they don't know how to do certain basic things….
But with this aside, you are absolutely right, except for games, we can make all the excuses we want, but a gamer will always use Windows, it is not the fault of Linux or its community or its users, it is the fault of the companies that create such games, but it is pure reality, a shame if, but reality, and not tell me about Wine, not all games run on Wine, and, although I have not tried it for a long time, I think that if pc is fair performance, it is possible that if you have to walk to emulate and then run the game, then you will be worse, also, the solution is not to emulate with Wine, the solution is to start programming games for Linux, which at this point is already embarrassing … ..
Blue screen, I have said before that I have run into many times with people who spend many hours on the pc and do not even know basic tasks, but surely even those who spend only 30 minutes on average a day with their Windows, know what what is this "blue screen", something that in linux, neither blue, nor black nor pink, in my experience, if your pc freezes in linux, open it and see which piece has been damaged… .because it hardly has been by the SO, unless you are too curious and have stuck your nose where you should not.
And to finish, for Windows users who read this I am going to tell you something, if you have ever used Linux and you have felt lost or you have not been able to do something basic, remember the first time you touched Windows and You will understand that it is not because Linux is complicated, you are simply used to another OS, but for a little while with Linux, if you look for your problem in a Linux forum, and little by little you will realize that it is too easy to write a sentence in a terminal and install not only a program, if not all its dependencies, if you don't like the terminal, you can use synaptic or the visual package manager, but after time you will realize that knowing the name of the package of the exact program, it is much easier, more comfortable and faster, to use the terminal…. how many times have I given up installing a program in Windows because it did not have the appropriate dependencies….
Anyway, there will continue to be the stubborn that does not even know what OS is and will come to rant about Linux, my advice, give him the reason, that the fewer of those are seen in the Linux forums, the more calm we will be ..
I tried with xubunto and I could not try with ubuntu 5 times and in the end with the lili linux usb creator and downloading from the cerver that the program chooses (because all the versions that leave for ai do not serve any) and with that I could .andava slower than win7 is a pc with 1 g of ram and 1.800gh micro and win7 andava but it was delayed at the time of watching videos on the network so looking for I found puppy linux that looked very promising although it started quickly from a usb, the installation in The disk as the only operating system was impossible to find the way if you are the one who created it. So I looked for help and I found a tutorial with about 20 very complicated steps for the definitive installation, I got to step 16 and I wanted to install In an icon that looks like a rayito. But know that I never found the mature rayito. So after more than a month of trying to install some linux on my old pc I still use win7 and I am disappointed that linux is so difficult to install because yes It is not because if it is not for one thing it is for another. so if someone knows an efficient way to download a light linux that the first steps are to install as the only operating system instead of starting in 5 hours with the poor ram memory let me know
I like linux like Arch Linux, Slackware, Linux Mint and Windows XP and 7. All emulated on my laptop with Win7 ^^
AUTOCAD is the only program that I use on windows and I don't like the free versions in general and there are functions that I don't have yet, such as taking data from a database and dumping them into an AUTOCAD drawing, it saves me a lot of time. For the rest, I haven't used windows for 9 years (except for a virtual one to run AUTOCAD) and I don't worry about viruses and other headaches.
For me I am not interested in an operating system that to install a simple application destroys itself, I have installed debian ubuntu kubuntu fendora mandrake and I have finished disgusted, something always fails I always have problems with the X video engine in the forums they are very technical. that is, they speak of a supposedly safe system but it is useless, by the way I have also worked with solaris. I have installed canaima 4.0 in my boy's canaima. It took three days to install the supposedly free educational repositories.! When I dedicated myself to installing an emulator from the library or ZSNES package, I lost the desktop, nothing was visible, only the background, I tried to recover with any forum shit that I got until it finished without the internet connection with recursion problems, problem in packages dpkg error -1 and 1. I have worked more than 3 hours a day in the brand new rescue of something that seems that it does not finish maturing and let the systems based on 1990. linux I am sorry to say it is disgusting because they do not want to learn that the best in plug and play, not everyone is required to be a computer engineer to use linux!