Reason #20 - "Let your old computer have a second life" - My friends already do this. It's called leaving the OS that's installed on the HD. So if they have a machine they bought in 1998, it probably runs Windows 98. They don't need to upgrade the OS, because it does what they need it to do. Otherwise, they would have bought another computer. They don't keep old computers lying around anyhow. They toss them. Yeah, really, they don't want the clutter.
Reason #21 - "Play hundreds of games for free" - Really? I can get Sims 2 and Spore and Age of Empires and Crysis on Linux? Oh, wait, you meant a hundred versions of solitaire, minesweeper, and othello. Nevermind.
Reason #22 - "Help other countries, and your own" - This is argued as an economic choice, i.e., don't send money to Microsoft. Instead, make money in small businesses selling Linux software. Um, who are you going to sell it to? Especially since one of your major arguments is the huge choice of free software.
Reason #23 - "Get a great music player" - You mean like Amarok or XMMS? Do they play the songs I bought from iTunes? How about the songs I bought from Buy.com? Are the codecs for MP3 already installed? Because you see, my friends are not converting all of their music to OGG., and they are not going to re-rip all of their music in non-DRM format. They have money invested in their music and they want to be able to listen to it, and they can't do that in Amarok or XMMS.
Reason #24 - "Keep an eye on the weather" - There are loads and loads of ways to do this in Windows and in Leopard. Dashboard, Vista Sidebar, and Weatherbug are all examples of this. Really, get a grip. As far as reasons for switching to a new OS go, this is the lamest one I have ever seen.
I have one more reason why Linux is not on the Desktop, and that is that if these reasons are the best that Linux people can come up with, they are seriously out of touch with the current market. People don't want choice. People want it to work, end of story. Does that make them sheep? No. It makes them time-conscious. My time is valuable, and most of my friends think the same about their time. We just don't want to spend time making drivers work, and recompiling kernels, and using the command line twenty times a day. Coders have a saying: "Make a system any fool can use, and only a fool will want to use it." I disagree. People don't want things to be hard. They want it to work. They want it to be easy. They don't want to know how it works under the hood. They will pay good money to get things that way. Free is not a good argument if free means I have to spend my valuable time making it work.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Karl
This is pretty obsolete stuff. I use Linux because I do not have to spend a bug and do not have to worry of the police cracking the door for using illegal software. It has all the software I need and if I just want to play a Windows gmae I use WINE. Furthermore it gets updated automatically and I do not have to worry if that programm is for XP but does not run on Vista. It runs quicker in the same machine and the PCs live longer, i.e. I still have that 98 PC. If instead of Linux it worked on Windows 98 it would not have the appropiate software as you need XP. The only feasible reason it gives is that people believe that if they pay more it means that it is better. Linux nowadays is easier and better. What it does not have yet is a brand image.
2 - Joe Bloggs
Most users care about "Freedom" in the sense they want a computer that can, send an email, write a letter, play that mp3, and since the computer they bought already has windows on it why must they change and learn to do things differently.
3 - bliffle
I put an XP and a linux partition on every computer so I have a choice. My most important email client is only on linux, however, since right now it is safer there. So, mostly I use linux, but for a few occasions I switch to XP.
Seems like a reasonable way to do things.
4 - Richard Chapman
Reason #2: Was your HD failure due to Linux or just a hardware failure that could of happened to any computer regardless of the operating system? Crapware on Linux? Are you implying that the repository maintainers are going to add AOL sign-up scripts? ROTFLMAO.
Reason #4: The implication you, and many others seem to be making, is that if you pay $300 for something, you will not have to spend your personal time on it. That's total BS.
The problem you and many like you are having when you try to convince users that they are wasting the time with Linux is: We used to be Windows users. We know the score. The reason we are using Linux and not Windows is because it is better. No, not in every way but in enough ways that we will stay with it. There are some people who switch back but not enough to stem the tide. The Linux user base is growing at an accelerating rate. It is not shrinking. Yes it is small but not the barely 1% reported by the Microsoft sponsored research group. But if Linux has such a small user base like they say, why bother writing about it?
If you get a few more comments than what you've got now, consider yourself lucky. What you've got here is just a bunch of rehashed twisted logic that's been spewed out many times before. The difference is that you seem particularly inept at it. They use to call this kind of crap spreading Fear Uncertainty and Doubt. It still is, only now it's the Microsoft faithful who are feeling the FUD. Microsoft isn't going to disappear that's for sure, but things will never be the same for them. Get used to it. They will have to play ball just like everyone else and if they don't follow the rules, they will lose.
Oh, I almost forgot. I'm a Windows user (NOT) so don't get me wrong...
5 - Mirza
I agree with most of the article, though not all of it. It is true that for most people computers are like kitchen stoves. They use them until they break. Nobody buys a new kitchen stove (if the old one is still working) because of the brand name or features.
Freedom, however, is a different thing. Freedom is in fact the most UNDERUSED argument out there. The author totally misses the point of freedom - it is more than just being able to recompile your software. It is about having control of your computer. Vista, for example, will hobble some video hardware to protect "intellectual property". With iPhone, you can only buy software from iTunes store (and Apple charges software developers a percentage fee that is ultimately paid by you). In XP you cannot really uninstall Microsoft messenger. If you uninstall it, and you create another user account, that user will have messenger running in his task bar. Fact is users license and don't really own proprietary software. Which then means that Software makers have the right to impose restrictions on users to promote their own (manufacturers) bottom line. There are countless examples like these. Infringement on our freedom from proprietary software is so rampant that it goes unnoticed.
If people really knew what computing freedom is all about, many of them would gladly endure inconvenience of switching to a new OS to protect their freedom.
6 - Jack
I think the writer do have some points about the unpopularity of linux. I think it is easier for everyone if, for example, Linux have less distros. I'm a full time Linux user, and I remember the first time I use Linux I'm so overwhelmed by the choices of distros. I think Linux and it's community should focused on making one good opensource O/S together, and not splitting into so many different flavors.
Oh yea, I don't use Windows because I don't wanna pay for something that I can get it for free...
7 - Mirza
more on freedom from GNU:
Many of us know that governments can threaten the human rights of software users through censorship and surveillance of the Internet. Many do not realize that the software they run on their home or work computers can be an even worse threat. Thinking of software as 'just a tool', they suppose that it obeys them, when in fact it often obeys others instead.
The software running in most computers is non-free, proprietary software: controlled by software companies, not by its users. Users can't check what these programs do, nor prevent them from doing what they don't want. Most people accept this because they have seen no other way, but it is simply wrong to give developers power over the users' computer.
This unjust power, as usual, tempts its wielders to further misdeeds. If a computer talks to a network, and you don't control the software in it, it can easily spy on you. Microsoft Windows spies on users; for instance, it reports what words a user searches for in her own files, and what other programs are installed. RealPlayer spies too; it reports what the user plays. Cell phones are full of non-free software, which spies. Cell phones send out localizing signals even when 'off', many can send out your precise GPS location whether you wish or not, and some models can be switched on remotely as listening devices. Users can't fix these malicious features because they don't have control.
Some proprietary software is designed to restrict and attack its users. Windows Vista is a big advance in this field; the reason it requires replacement of old hardware is that the new models are designed to support unbreakable restrictions. Microsoft thus requires users to pay for shiny new shackles. It is also designed to permit forced updating by corporate authority. Hence the BadVista.org campaign, which urges Windows users not to 'upgrade' to Vista. Mac OS also contains features designed to restrict its users.
Microsoft has installed back doors for the US government's use in the past (reported on heise.de). We cannot check whether they have successors today. Other proprietary programs may or may not have back doors, but since we cannot check them, we cannot trust them.
The only way to assure that your software is working for you is to insist on Free/Libre software. This means users get the source code, are free to study and change it, and are free to redistribute it with or without changes. The GNU/Linux system, developed specifically for users' freedom, includes office applications, multimedia, games, and everything you really need to run a computer. See gNewSense.org for a totally Free/Libre version of GNU/Linux.
A special problem occurs when activists for social change use proprietary software, because its developers, who control it, may be companies they wish to protest-or that work hand in glove with the states whose policies they oppose. Control of our software by a proprietary software company, whether it be Microsoft, Apple, Adobe or Skype, means control of what we can say, and to whom. This threatens our freedom in all areas of life.
There is also danger in using a company's server to do your word processing or email-and not just if you are in China, as US lawyer Michael Springmann discovered. In 2003, AOL not only handed over to the police his confidential discussions with clients, it also made his email and his address list disappear, and didn't admit this was intentional until one of its staff made a slip. Springmann gave up on getting his data back.
The US is not the only state that doesn't respect human rights, so keep your data on your own computer, and your backups under your own custody-and run your computer with Free/Libre software.
8 - Antonio
The writer is not mentioning one very important thing. Outside USA, Linux is growing faster, Windows is very expensive and many governments are switching to Linux and are promoting Linux in the country through the schools and universities. It is not only a money issue, it is also a security issue.
9 - JAFO
You need more informed and intellectually curious friends....
10 - Albert
Could not agree with you more! They've been giving away Linux free for years, almost decades now, so if it had any merits, it would not be at the 1% market share as it is now. It's just a fancy toy to keep the geeks busy. Having said that, I must point out some reasons which make you look silly in an otherwise well put argument.
Your #7 is way out of date. Any modern distribution has a graphical package manager. They have for a loooong time. A better argument would have been that they offer no help in terms of finding solutions, but instead find old crappy apps with cryptic names. Try looking for PDF and figuring out which one is the one you want.
You need a better closing to #14 .. not only hippies have global consciousness. Actually most hippies caused the problems we're faced with today. You got carried away there.
Your #17 is starting to get you carried away even more. Even my newbie elder parents got the concept of multiple windows and/or tabs in a short order. People like to be organized. Not necessarily applicable to workspaces tho. Workspaces require a major re-thinking of how you work, and most people just don't get it.
In your #18 you sound lost. First you say no one reports bugs, then you contradict this by saying that they all expect the bugs to be fixed. This is incoherent ...On top of that you say that the bugs get fixed because you pay for the software. Now you're really starting to go off the deep end, almost as if you haven't used commercial software.
OK, now in #20 you claim your friend throw away old PCs because they don't like clutter, but in #14 you said that they help the environment, if they can. Sounds contradictory, albeit probably realistic since most people these days say they want to help but do nothing about it. Never mind! :)
#23 - you make it sound like the world revolves around iTunes .. sadly you may be right. Soon you will need iTunes to activate your newborn when you bring it home from the hospital.
Also for your closing arguments, you make an argument about time being valuable. Stuff like "We just don't want to spend time making drivers work, and recompiling kernels, and using the command line twenty times a day" has no place there. First point yes, the other two are bogus. No one does that. Fixing drivers issues is a problem tho .. and not all drivers, most devices work with Linux out-of-the-box. But still, if you have that one device on your box which has only proprietary drivers this can be a major pain in the ass, and THAT can take a lot of time. Or setting up and configuring proprietary software which does not follow any rules, that is also a big pain in the ass, but not compiling kernels, etc.
Also, you contradict yourself again with your coders quote. You disagree with the notion which says to make things easy, then you state that everyone wants it to be easy and not understand how it works. Eh? Then you allude that Android is a difficult-to-use system .. where did you get that from?
Anyways, overall, not bad! If you suspend belief and assume that the commercial software world works as beautiful as you describe (i.e. people camping out to purchase your easy to use, DRMd software providing endless bug fixes and new features at user's request), then remove the contradictions, get with the times on Linux, and this may be one of the better critiques of the Linux on the desktop. Congratulations.
11 - CAMCAM
The Open Source community is more about people than companies. Nobody can force you to use Linux nor BSD. It's your own choice.
Linux is just something you can use, share, promote, learn and fix. Should you? As you wish. If you prefer IE over Firefox, who can force you to download and use Firefox? You are free...
First thing you should understand: Linux is Not Windows. Most newcomers switching from Windows to Linux have problems. The following article (Linus is Not Windows) was written because of this and try to explain whats happen. Have a look.
12 - Mark Saleski
perhaps the biggest reason that linux hasn't gained traction is that it's just never really been available. by that i mean that, until recently, it was almost impossible to purchase a computer with linux on it.
so most people have never even seen what it looks like...and are thus very susceptible to silly articles about it that make the os sound like it's only a single step above running a computer with wires, aligator clips, and a logic analyzer.
will any of this change in the future? probably not, as microsoft has won the os war, despite putting out an inferior product.
13 - Felipe
I think you're wrong on all of 24 reason. Some are ridoculous, the others..... no comment.
Ciao from Italy
14 - rob enderle
Ah, the haters come out in full force.
Weather widgets? You must be confusing Linux with Vista who used widgets (like Konfabulator has had for years) in their OS as a revolutionary move.
Maybe some person somewher thought this was a selling point, who knows, but I have to admit that was a first.
My friend uses Linux to cook his meals (actually he uses the calculator to measure his intakes) so you could add another one like that if you want.
> I think Linux and it's community should focused >on making one good opensource O/S together, and >not splitting into so many different flavors.
Great, people keep saying that all the time but NEVER offer the solution on HOW you are going to force people to work on their own time on a project they dont want instead of one they want.
Are KDE developers going to drop everything to go to GNOME or XCFE? Is some Debian coder going to go work for a SUSE project?
If I want tomorrow to take a distro and work on changing some superficial things by myself and repackage it as YippieLinux, who is going to stop me? How are you gonna stop me?
Youre gonna tell me not to do it?
Its my free time buddy, even the wife doesnt tell me what to do with my free time.
I've seen some people make Muslim, Jewish and Christian versions of Ubuntu. I dont care about these, not interested in what some people who believe in the bogeyman use or even see a need for these. I find them and the people using them: stupid.
Can I stop them? No. Can anyone stop them? No.
Please move on if you have no idea..
Btw, Im going back to see my family in Brazil next month for the first time in 5 years and theyre tech turn is based in Linux.
50,000 computer labs built by end of 2009 (about 30,000 by the end of 2008) which will serve 50 MILLION students on KDE desktops which were localized for the market.
Needless to say, my young cousins will soon be able to give me tips.
disclaimer: I use Linux/WinXP on most of you machines. My two boys are running old hardware (we dont waste money here) and what they can do with that P3-800 my brother installed for them is visually stunning.
Ive used my brothers laptop often and finally felt confortable 18months to switch at home.
(actaully, my bro saved my data that was stuck in a crashed Windows machine with a LiveCD and decided to dual boot everyhting with PCLinuxOS)
Considering we use OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, VLC, Skype, IM, it wasnt a hard switch. Throw in the FF extensions and web based services like Gmail, Yahoo, Facebook and on and on....it has barely caused a ripple.
We have two gaming consoles at home so that Chessmaster game is the only one the kids ever boot into now.
Virus, malware, updates, trojans, etc? Dont know them anymore (not true, I still have to make sure the WinX partition on my desktop is up to date)
I've used a computer since our first Tandy machine (I was the cool kid on the block because ours had TWO 5 inch diskette slots!) so I've tried every OS Microsoft has had and even used Macs during those dark days of OS 8 and 9 when the fanbois were trying to make themselves believe that those werent horrible OS.
Since my brother installed our first Linux 18months ago, I have done it myself a few times, made mistakes adn learned from them. Just like I did with Windows for years, spending hours and hours troubleshooting things, learning how things work. Which is why I was always the guy friends would ask help. Linux is no different. But yes, there is choice and there are ways to diffentiate them. Desktops i think are more important than the distro final touches. If I have old hardware I use XCFE based desktop. Windows friends want to switch? I give them KDE based desktops. I think the differene between KDE distros like PCLInuxOS and Kubuntu is smaller and should be the main ingredient when you are choosing your Linux pie.
Will I delete my Windows partition? Why should I?
To spite myself? But our Windows usage has dropped drastically over the past year, that is undeniable. Linux is ready for soccer moms, grandparents and kids. It works. It is fun and configurable. It is cutting edge technology which isnt bound by sales needs and released when ready (Compiz,Beryl, Fusion are heads above their competitors). Its safe.
What else do I need?
Im only surprised there was no command line mention, using these kinds of pieces include that.
Yeah, but the weather one more than makes up for it.
If youre gonna troll for hits, make sure to bring out the old gems.
15 - Middy
I don't know why I am responding to this but I couldn't resist. Okay #13, WRONG. This is one of the most over used Windows Zealot statements out there. Viruses work in Windows because of the fundamental architecture flaws in the Windows design not because it has a larger install base. Windows and Linux on the web are near parity, yet Windows still has more security issues around it.
Next you base your arguments on some pretty weak baseline of what your friends do. I have friends, they could use Linux if I set them up with it, they wouldn't have an issue pinging me from time to time with their questions, but I figure leaving windows on the machine keeps me out of being tech support for more people.
And how many times have your friends actually tried to talk to Microsoft. The last time I called Microsoft for free was in the early 1990s. Their phone support is horrible and expensive. 99 times out of 100 someone else has posted a response to a question I would have anyway without going to Microsoft. You can buy the same level or better of phone support for Linux if you want.
As a person who almost exclusively uses Linux (I do have a couple Windows virtual machines kicking around an one Windows partition on one of my machines for doing some special video editing using software I have owned for years), I think what you wrote is why you don't want to use or recommend Linux on the desktop, it has nothing to do with why a vast majority or even some select minority don't use it. The main obsticle to Linux on the desktop is install base. People stick with what they already have even if there is something better out there for them. Comfort is what it is all about. Oh and I can't remember the last application I compiled on Linux, but it was probably back when I was using Gentoo which was about 3 years ago now.
16 - Daniel
Well, don't think windows users would have such a satisfactory experience if we, us, geeks, keep helping them with their problems, so...
PLEASE, STOP GIVING FREE SUPPORT TO MS WINDOWS!!!!
PS: Want help? switch to linux.
17 - CAMCAM
Ok, I will just copy the entire article because I think people won't use the URL I gave :
(Linux is Not Windows)
[Camcam, I'm not sure what makes you think people would be any more likely to read the article in the form of a comment than to follow your URL.
For copyright reasons among other things, we can't let you copy and paste the whole thing here.
I think that more people would have been likely to go to the original article if you had used a properly formatted, clickable link, rather than just giving the URL in plain text. I have now fixed this for you in your earlier comment.
Carry on.
ASSISTANT COMMENTS EDITOR]
18 - Rachel Tomlinson
You have weird friends. That's not a personal attack, more of an observation.
19 - Sandaruwan
Reason #19... In fact, most distributions aimed at the desktop user do frequent updates that require rebooting. Just take a look at Ubuntu.
Seriously, have you used ubuntu? You only have to restart on rare occasions like upgrading the kernel.
Reason #20 - "Let your old computer have a second life" and Reason #15 "Enjoy free and unlimited support"
Does proprietary software gives support to older versions? They'll simply tell you to pay more and upgrade the software. And of course as a side effect you'll have to upgrade the hardware as well. If your friends doesn't mind paying for support, you can always get paid support for linux. That's a tiny fraction of what you pay for windows.
Reason #6 "When the system has installed, why would you still need to install stuff" amd Reason #7 "Update all your software with a single click"
Yes, linux world has so many software. I party agree with argument here. That's where distros come in - they ship with reasonable choice of software that you can carry on your day-to-day activities. In reason #7, you are claiming that people will have to recompile stuff if that software is not in repositories. Yes, true - but if they hate choices that much, why would they want to install so software out of repositories. For example, ubuntu repositories contains tons of software.
Reason #10 - I really don't understand your point here. You are saying that Leopard is amazing to your friends, but since they haven't heard about compiz fusion, they should move to Leopard? They are not amazed by compiz and don't want to hear about it.
Reason #4 - buy a laptop pre-installed with linux.
Reason #24 - yeah, weather is lame.
20 - Damijan
Thank you for making me laugh. Really entertaining article.
I am glad that I got rid of Windows disease 7 years ago. Never regretted and never looked back.
iTunes? Which idiot is using iTunes anyway? DRM crippled songs. No thanks. I want to play songs which I bought WHERE I WANT AND WITHOUT ANY RESTRICTIONS. I am glad for Apple that people are (still) stupid enough to embrace DRM crippled stuff. Good for them. Maybe I should buy some stocks from Apple it looks that there is enough stupid people around ...
21 - Marco Fioretti
About #20, that is ""Let your old computer have a second life- My friends already do this... Otherwise, they would have bought another computer. They don't keep old computers lying around anyhow. They toss them. Yeah, really, they don't want the clutter":
please tell your friends that the environmental problem caused by the wrong software is much more than the waste caused by CDs and boxes. To know more, please read "Does software pollute? of course!".
This said, most of your other reasons are refreshing reading: many FOSS zealots should read them to remember that, wrong or right, 95% of human beings do look at software the way you describe, so they'll never adopt Free Software for the reasons stated in the GNU Manifesto (for more on this, see the "Opinions" section of Digifreedom.net)
Marco
22 - Aleks
My responses:
Reason #1: Sure. Viruses aren't a problem IF you want to install anti-virus and use system resources, which affects your entire system.
Reason #2: Instability is a bit of a misnomer. There may be more crapware for Windows, but a smart user on Windows won't download said crapware, and neither will a smart Linux user. But if they do, guess which OS remains more "stable" in the end?
Reason #3: Agreed, but what about direct attacks? Most crackers are familiar with a Windows system.
Reason #4: Have you tried installing any of the Linux distros today? Installation is just as easy, if not easier than installing Windows. So yeah, you can shell out $300+ for an operating system if you'd like.
Reason #5: Only someone ignorant of what software "freedom" means would say what you just said. The simple fact is that no closed source application like Photoshop (the app you mentioned) or even Windows can make the claim that they aren't spying on you for market research or something like that. An open-source and free application CAN make this claim. And please, re-compiling the kernel? Are you serious? I don't think I've ever seen a user have to recompile their kernel to fix a problem. Especially with how easy Linux is to use today.
Reason #6: True, but variety is the spice of life, no? I'd rather have a choice of 20 different text editors, than a choice of 5. I'm sorry that choice makes your life "difficult"
Reason #7: Again, ignorance is bliss. If you install all your software from a package manager, and most users will find that they do, then upgrading is indeed simple. But for those programs that weren't in the package manager, chances are if they're not in there and you have them, that you know how to upgrade and install them. I don't know why you bothered compiling an application in your example, when chances are more likely than not that a binary would be available for you to use.
Reason #8: Actually, the level of tech support is about equal, if not bending towards the Linux community side of things if you want support. Communities, IRC channels, mailing lists, and more.
Reason #9: See my #7.
Reason #10: Really, now? I haven't seen one person that wasn't impressed by wobbly windows, spinning desktops, desktop cubes and more. They all blow Windows and Leopard out of the water. In fact, I remember one of your non-techie friends asking on a YouTube video that showed this awesome stuff, "how much does Linux cost?" Only if they knew the side of freedom.
Reason #11: That's because your mac is based on Unix. But I thought time was valuable to your friends? Why would they waste time defragmenting when they could get a system that doesn't require it? It seems that your friends don't know what they want themselves.
Reason #12: Fair enough, but what about stuff like conky, scripts, and other neat stuff you can make your desktop have? For example, I wrote a script for my desktop that changes my wallpaper every 10 minutes. Oh, and you can customize it because I give it away for free on forums. Whereas to achieve the same affect your friends would have to download a program to do the same. And they better find an open sourced FREE one, because a closed app might be "spying" on them.
Reason #13: It could be that after you uninstall stuff, stuff is still left over. It could be that registry keys are all over the place. It could be that fragmentation slows down your system. It could be that Windows is just crap. Linux has a better way of handling programs, so even crapware would be handled amazingly well on Linux. Oh, and since a user has already moved to Linux they're aware of what freedom and open-source means. Chances are they're more educated than their Windows user counterpart and won't download closed-source crapware. Because open-source crapware is really rare. If not, non-existent.
Reason #14: Agreed, but it may help the extreme tree hugger switch.
Reason #15: I already gave a list of where you can get support. If they want real-time support they have IRC channels. And what's so cryptic about copying and pasting into a terminal? Because that is what I'm assuming you're referring to.
Reason #16: Yep.
Reason #17: I don't know about you, but workspaces are awesome.
Reason #18: "If you don't pay for software, I suppose you can't have that expectation" Excuse me? I didn't know that open-source developers stopped giving a damn about bugs. Please, this claim is completely untrue. More bugs are fixed in an open source and free environment than with a closed Windows one. What's more is that you can communicate DIRECTLY with the developers and bug fixing teams instead of some hierarchy of sales and technical support staff.
Reason #19: Yes, but put a Linux box beside a Windows box and we'll see which one requires booting first. Oh, and btw Ubuntu will only reboot if something system-wide is changed. Most of the time, Linux doesn't need to reboot after an update because there is a method in place that distributes patches system-wide while the system is currently working.
Reason #20: I don't want clutter either, lol.
Reason #21: Ah well, the availability of Windows programs on Linux is a bit of a problem. But as the gradient shifts, we'll be seeing more stuff on Linux. In fact, it's already begun. Rumours have it that Steam (the game platform) is coming to Linux. Until then, we'll just have to settle with WINE, which is a pretty good way to run most Windows programs natively on Linux. WoW, Guild Wars, Counter Strike Source, and many popular games run amazingly well on Linux because of WINE.
Reason #22: Agreed.
Reason #23: Well iTunes DRM is a bit of a problem isn't it? But we can blame closed source standards on that one. And secondly, Amarok, Banshee and Exaile (and MANY others) play things just fine. Oh, and they look better than iTunes, sync with an iPod and ANY other device. Oh, and they have more features. But I guess that doesn't matter, right? Oh, and installing MP3 codecs with a single click isn't that hard to do (it's a single click on Ubuntu), and it doesn't require a restart.
Reason #24: Yes, that is kind of lame. I don't know who wrote that, lol.
Reason X: Agreed, but Linux does "just work" too, you know. It just takes some time getting used to. Change isn't something your friends can take easily from the looks of it, but they would be better for it if they had.
23 - Bill Bukowski
All those arguments aside, I think the biggest thing holding Linux from taking over is games. Your not going to get the old people to change, you have to hit them young. If Linux had any where near the game support that a Windows PC can offer, most of the younger people wouldn't care about the OS. Wine and it's more focused child Cedega gets you closer, but it is not as easy as 1. drop disc in, 2. click on install.exe, 3. play to hearts content. As a gamer and heavy Linux user I always hate having a Windows machine around just to do gaming. Grab the youth, screw the people who are already ingrained.
24 - Caleb Cushing (xenoterracide)
Reason #7 sorry you can install rpm and a deb without a package manager... avg antivirus provides rpm's not in pms and so does cedega etc... most people think make --configure is the only way. when really it depends on the disro, and whether the software maker supports that disto. Yes you don't have a download.com for linux, but that's what repositories are for, download.com is just a windows version of a repository, that doesn't automate things for you.
25 - Caleb Cushing (xenoterracide)
correction... you do need the package manager to install rpm's and deb's but like windows it's just a double click and follow the directions... meaning not at all different from using an exe.