I’ve been rambling on and on about the productivity and/or visual boost which one can get from Compiz Fusion, the Live-CD function that enables you to try out Linux before installing it, etc. etc. etc.!
But what about you?
Many Linux users know why they use Linux, everyone has a reason they chose the Linux Desktop. Some of the qualities of Linux are speed (because of good, open code) and most importantly, choice.
I like the fact that you can work even if you don’t have a graphical desktop, I like being able to launch everything by typing very short commands (which is way faster than point-n-click). I like that you can re-spin the whole system and make your own flavor of GNU/Linux. Software freedom is also extremely important and Linux has probably developed faster, but I cannot say that Linux being Free Software was my main reason for using it. Let’s not forget, there is a multitude of other operating systems out there which are under open source licenses.
And let’s not forget the great apps that are Linux only. Sure, there are some things that are still not available on the Linux desktop, but with WINE and all of the other cool software we love (Geany, Banshee…) gives us the power we need.
So, my question goes to everyone who uses Linux as their main desktop. Why do you? Is it the freedom? The apps? The speed? Tell us!
September 18th, 2008 at 00:21
It’s an OS that is able to take care of it’s own security, without the need of third-party applications or user interaction.
It doesn’t “slow down”, “die randomly” and generally behaves like an OS should look like.
September 18th, 2008 at 00:35
Lots of reasons - the security, the ability to customise things to look/work how I want them, the speed, the sense of community, the vast choice of distributions and applications, but most of all I love Linux because using it, learning how it works and sharing ideas and solutions with the community is so rewarding. For me it’s the journey with its constantly changing views, not the destination, that really counts.
You don’t get that with Microsoft or Apple.
September 18th, 2008 at 07:01
I chose LInux over proprietary software because of the fundamental principle that “Knowledge is free” and “Knowledge is shared”. Any system of knowledge that doesn’t follow the above principles is pure ‘Tyranny’.
So what your choice ? Freedom or Tyranny ?
Praveen
http://spraveenitpro.blogspot.com
September 18th, 2008 at 11:32
Security (little or no viruses or spamware), there are newer versions all the time (no 5 year waits between releases), it hardly crashes, you get things like RAID and iSCSI even on the desktop versions, great applications and it is FREE!
Gary
September 18th, 2008 at 17:17
I am a developer by hobby and profession and what attracts me to the GNU/Linux Operating System is the flexibility of the solution. I am able to customize and fine-tune components that would otherwise be inaccessible on other platforms. The source code is there and you can modify it however you wish.
The GNU/Linux Operating System has always been there for me as a great learning and productive tool. What better way to understand the many subsystem and how they all come together than to see it for yourself, in its original code might I add.
My experience has always proved my original perception to be a valid one and that is: The best developers (around the globe) come from an open source background. They feed off each other, share and learn proper ways of doing things; things usually not taught in proprietary and closed source environments.
That is why we are forever in debt to Richard Stallman and Linus Torvalds for pioneering these concepts and ideals.
September 18th, 2008 at 17:44
cuz its powerful , free , and excellent environment for Development
September 18th, 2008 at 21:47
It’s Free, it’s secure, I have fine-grained control over My entire system from top to bottom, it’s fast, it works, no virus/malware problems.
Collaboration with the community is also a nice bonus.
September 19th, 2008 at 01:16
I started using linux because my modem under windows kept dropping out, and under linux, everything worked perfectly for hours and hours at a time. This was right after windows 95 dropped.
Why I use linux (as an admin): stability. Linux systems are much hardier and stable to work on.
Why I use linux (as a programmer): high quality code to use as examples. When problem crop up, it’s possible to tell if it was my mistake, or an os/kernel/driver error.
Why I use linux (as a desktop user): configurability. I can make right click do whatever I want in whatever context I need it to (as far as the desktop goes, applications are their own beast). But my options for configuring actions, shortcuts, key bindings, and such is infinitely more configurable in linux.
Why I use linux (as a human being): promotion of freedom. Stallman might be a freaky hippy (and who in their right mind uses emacs
/jk/), but the ability to share and collaborate ideas and solutions in code is important to me.
I would rather have the lingua franca of the internet be the FOSS software rather than the closed proprietary systems from yesteryear.
September 23rd, 2008 at 13:00
For me, it’s the community. As a 1-year Linux user, I’ve depended heavily on forums, google searches, usenet, and all the helpful Linux users to help me overcome an obstacle or fix my system (twice).
But being Microsoft-free feels so GOOD, and it’s taken me a long time now to reflexively reboot once or twice a day.
September 24th, 2008 at 15:52
Definitely shell.
October 9th, 2008 at 12:33
Good question.
First of all, I would say the mindset. When I was a Windows user, it would never occur to me to learn programming or get involved. And I believe that the same mindset teaches you to not accept things without reflection. Take for instance licensing discussions. Imagine that among Windows users, except for (the rare occasion) when they discover that they haven’t actually *bought* Windows, but have *licensed* it - in terms reminiscent of a rental agreement and a lot of “all your base are belong to us” lingo they never read along the way.
I have to use Windows for my work. It is not bad, but it is handicapped, because I don’t have essential features as my runbox, my second desktop, my tabbed browser and some other features. I have gotten so used to the toolbox of my own systems that using Windows seems antiquated.
Of course, I can appreciate the increased security, too.
Compositing and decorations are not really useful to me - I always work full screen, so why have dynamic things on my desktop? I think that things like the cube give people a spatial perception of the desktops, which is good for some people. It doesn’t mean much to me, since I have two desktops, so when I change desktops, I know where I am going.
I feel that the flexible nature of the operating system is very well exhibited with things like the OLPC - the fact that we have tools that requires so little resources that a laptop running on power from a solar panel is a viable option; that to me is en example of technology of the new century, where computer technology and environmental decency can go hand in hand.
November 13th, 2008 at 22:08
Something that I don’t think enough people appreciate is how freaking easy it is to partition and multi-boot with Linux. I’m running Slackware 12.1 right now, but I keep an emergency Ubuntu 8.10 partition for situations when I screw something up in Slack. When I installed Ubuntu from the live CD, GRUB completely overwrote the Master Boot Record (and good riddance to LILO!) and automatically added Slackware to the boot menu.
November 13th, 2008 at 22:24
I echo that. I always have multiple systems - my primary one is also Slackware, but I also have Arch, Pardus, Gnewsense and OpenBSD, all using a 140 GB shared storage partition.
November 29th, 2008 at 14:36
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