Star Five Things the Linux Community Doesn't Get About Joe User
Linked by Eugenia Loli-Queru on Tue 22nd May 2007 00:12 UTC, submitted by Jon Dough
Linux Why is it that the average computer user still chooses to spend hundreds of dollars on Windows or Mac when there are countless Linux alternatives that they could download, install and make use of completely free of charge? Some answers here.
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google_ninja
Member since:
2006-02-05

Ive really missed argueing at the end of threads with you cyclops ;-)

Could you give examples of how Desktop Linux is behind the competition in every way. I would be happy to hear them. What is interesting to note is that in reality the desktop experience on Microsoft is very similar to that of 98. Interestingly the example you chose was compositing desktop, which unlike competing OS's will work on even on intel915 chipsets the most common graphics chip worldwide. It is the only platform that offers two choices of competing integrated desktop solutions KDE and Gnome, both of which are more complete than any competing platform. Although I would love you to explain the word "better".


I can go out and buy a generic vid card and have it give decent 3d accell on windows. If I don't buy NVidia, I can't. Beagle is great and all, but it isnt anywhere near as integrated as windows search, let alone spotlight. Integration in a general sense is rather poor on linux, unless you choose to go the KDE way, which is only (at most) a third of the userbase.

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cyclops Member since:
2006-03-12

I was disappointed that Vista had a 40% drop in speed and more on X86 Vista over XP. These are still in fact slower than that of Linux.

I'm glad you are enjoying search as that must have feature. I have never used beagle or similar on linux so I just wouldn't know. The last time I remember searching was on XP and it was a painful experience at best. The little dog offered nothing more than to increase my frustration.

Integration in every sense is excellent on Linux. I actually use XFCE4 the most minimal of the three desktops, and everything seems pretty integrated to me...perhaps you should explain it better.

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archiesteel Member since:
2005-07-02

I can go out and buy a generic vid card and have it give decent 3d accell on windows. If I don't buy NVidia, I can't.


My laptop, which has an ATI integrated chipset, would like to disagree with you. Intel is also nicely supported on Linux.

Beagle is great and all, but it isnt anywhere near as integrated as windows search, let alone spotlight.


That is a matter of opinion, not fact.

Integration in a general sense is rather poor on linux


Again, a matter of opinion. I feel that my Kubuntu desktop is *more* integrated than a Windows PC.

unless you choose to go the KDE way, which is only (at most) a third of the userbase.


Sources, please (about KDE representing 1/3 of the userbase)?

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google_ninja Member since:
2006-02-05

My laptop, which has an ATI integrated chipset, would like to disagree with you. Intel is also nicely supported on Linux.


I am talking from personal experience. My last PC had an ATi vid card, and I was using linux full time, as I was a J2EE dev, and I hated XP. I tried everything under the sun to get enemy-territory working right (that was my drug of choice back then), and after an insane amount of tweaking that no average user could be expected to do, I got hardware 3d going. But even then, the performance was poor, and it was quite crashy (to be fair, ati drivers on windows crash too, but this was quite frequent). I ended up biting the bullet and dual-booting xp for games, and i got about 50% higher framerate, with nowhere near the trouble.

If things are different now, I stand corrected, but this was a bit more then a year and a half ago.

That is a matter of opinion, not fact. (re beagle)


On windows, anything that searches plugs into windows search. On mac, they have started taking advantage of it in new ways. In linux, you have a single search tool.

Again, a matter of opinion. I feel that my Kubuntu desktop is *more* integrated than a Windows PC.


You know I said KDE being the exception, because you responded to it just below. KDE apps are well integrated for the same reason that microsoft apps are, they are completely component based. (KDE copied ms in this, however they have done a better job. The COM implementation on KDE is very clean, and they havnt switched horses every few years the way MS has).

Sources, please (about KDE representing 1/3 of the userbase)?


I have no sources, just based on interactions with linux users online, and distro stats. I would put KDE at about 25-30%, GNOME at 40-50%, and others (including XFCE) at about 25-30%. I freely admit, I am pulling these numbers out of my ass, but again, it is based on what I have seen. If RH, Fedora, and Ubuntu didnt push gnome so hard, It would probably be a different story.

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