Will Linux replace Windows?
Windows' dominant position on PCs is slipping at an accelerating pace. Microsoft's biggest enemy is its own foibles -- steep prices, coerced upgrades, disregard for security, and onerous licenses. They have a knack for making people very upset. It's not news that there's long standing resentment of Microsoft's business practices. Organizations in particular are switching because Linux offers them a better solution. [Linux vs Windows in the City of Munich]
In the past couple of years it's become clear that Linux will continue to grow on PCs, much as it has on servers. The start on PCs has been slow, but the pace is quickening. Windows will still be around for a very long time though. If Windows died, we'd need to invent a replacement to keep Linux on its toes anyway. [Desktop Linux Breaking Ground]
Low-end computers ($200 - $400) running Lindows, SuSE, Lycoris or other versions of Linux are now available. Fry's, TigerDirect and Wal-Mart (online) offer over 20 different models. If you primarily want to browse the Internet, play music and check e-mail, one of these will do fine.
Most users these days don't want to install and configure anything by themselves -- neither Linux nor Windows -- they want to buy a PC and start working right away. Most don't even care what software is installed, they just want to write documents and have all their hardware working well. You can do this with any operating system, so why spend money and a "usage license" for proprietary software (Windows) if you can have an open system -- preinstalled and preconfigured -- for less? http://newsforge.com/article.pl?sid=03/09/02/1823212 -- "Is Linux ready for Mom?"
Linux will be ready for the average individual user when a wide enough range of Linux programs is available. Dell, HP and Acer announced Linux computers this summer (2003), after a few false starts. These computers are very good for single-use users like call centers, order takers, point of sale systems, banking, etc. They're not adequate for most personal users and knowledge workers because the unique programs they need are not there yet. The wide range of programs, file format compatibility and integration of functions these users look for will probably not be available until 2005 or so. "HP rolls out microtower Linux PC for SMB" "HP to Ship Desktop PCs with Mandrake 9.1 Linux Pre-Installed"
Conclusions
Linux is a superb operating system. It's not yet time for the average individual user to switch entirely though. It takes more than an operating system to make a computer. There are too many *essential* programs -- programs that many of us rely on -- that are only available for Windows. That will keep us running Windows for a while longer. There are ways to work around this limitation, but moving exclusively to Windows is not easy. Now's a good time to start exploring Linux though.
Switching to Linux is the right thing for many organizations though. Many are doing so -- small and medium sized businesses -- large enterprises -- government agencies -- public and private organizations. The pace is accelerating.
Open Source Software is the driving force behind Linux
The operating system -- Windows, Linux, etc. -- is the common foundation that every computer programmer and user needs. Also, universally used software like "office" suites, Web browsers, email clients, image processing, media presentation, etc. have become just part of the background for everything that computer users do. What if "everyone" who uses these things could work together to create them and make them freely available to "everybody". That's an oversimplification, but it's close to what "Open Source Software" is all about.
Sounds too good to be true. As it's turned out, it's not. The Open Source Movement provides an unmatched creative outlet for tens of thousands of talented people. Add to that the freedom to collaborate, and independence from "pointy haired bosses". This new atmosphere energized contributors beyond what anyone expected. As a result, the Open Source process simply works better than the proprietary software model, e.g., Microsoft's or Oracle's development processes.
When thousands of programmers are allowed to read, modify and redistribute the source code for a piece of software, the software can rapidly evolve. It gets improved and adapted, bugs get fixed -- and it's all done more quickly than it is for traditional propriety software. The rate of progress is often astounding.
http://www.opensource.org/
http://www.dwheeler.com/
http://www.processor.com/
As you might expect these days, many organizations with an Internet presence foster open source software. The Open Source Development Lab is where Linux is centered. The Open Source Applications Foundation focuses on, what else, applications. The Internet allows rapid and widely based collaboration on many projects at once.
http://www.osdl.org/
http://www.osafoundation.org/index.htm
More on the Web
http://weblogs.mozillazine.org/asa/archives/008499.html -- Linux is not ready for the desktop
http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=11179&page=1 -- Linux On The Desktop?
http://www.linux.ie/articles/onthenatureoflinux.php -- overview of a Linux PC
http://liw.iki.fi/liw/texts/linux-the-big-picture.html -- "Linux: the big picture" -- an interesting writeup of Linux from Linus Torvalds' former officemate, Lars Wirzenius.
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