Linux. You Can Do It!

Linux. That's a word that will evoke all kinds of emotions in people. The fact is, Linux is the cheap geek's best friend.

Ok, so what is it?

Linux is an operating system just like Microsoft Windows or like OS X on a Mac. The major difference is that Linux is an open source project that has been developed by many different people. If you are completely lost at this point check out this link to learn what Linux is in detail according to Wikipedia.

What does this mean to me?

To the person with the lean wallet it means this, a total computing experience that is completely free (in more ways than one). In other words, your email, word processing, some gaming (I'll explain later), music, movies, internet browsing, social networking, voip, just about anything that you need to do can be done on Linux.
When I say free, I mean it in more ways than "I don't got to spend a dime on it" type free. I mean like freedom. No need for antivirus or antispyware. No need to type in long strands of random characters and signing your life away every time you install your latest piece of over priced software. No need for a "Genuine Advantage". No need to own a brand new computer just to make it start up. That's the kind of free I mean.

What's the catch? If it's so great why doesn't everyone use it?

I have just one long word to answer that: familiarity. Nearly everyone who uses computers got their start on Windows. People are used to it and don't like change. My wife, who I love dearly, hates Linux. When I ask her why she usually tells me "I like Windows". She told me the other day "It's kinda ugly and looks little kidish" which at the time I agreed. (I fixed it that same night) If you use Windows and it works for you or you have a hard drive with everything on it that makes you happy then you don't need to worry about this. But if you are sick of spyware, viruses, expensive programs, and intrusive end user agreements, then consider at least trying Linux. I am still suck with somethings that I need Windows for (such as instant viewing Netfix movies) so I dual boot my computer with both Linux and Windows. All you need is an old hard drive laying around and some room in your computer. Just install Linux on the old hard drive after Windows has been installed and Linux will do the rest.

What flavor of Linux should I use?

I struggled with this question for a very long time. There are literally hundreds of flavors of Linux to try. I suggest using Ubuntu 7.10 to start with. That is what I am using now. It is very user friendly and will make it a pleasure to use.

I recently came across another blog about converting over to Ubuntu that I think will help the not so convinced. Check it out here