Not dead yet...

[Steve Lamb]

Thursday, August 26, 1999, 8:36:50 AM, Anders wrote:
> Linux has strength in support at the moment, relative good amount of
> apps - but it is NOT simple to set up and use.

    I disagree completely with this.  Linux has been, by far, the easiest OS
that I have ever used.  As I always point out to people, when they say "easy
to use" what they really mean is "easy to learn."  Windows, OS/2 and BeOS are
easy to learn but are not easy to use.  That is not to say that I think Linux
(or any Unix variant, for that matter) are hard to learn.  There have been
studies where children with no computer experience found Linux easier to use
than Windows.  This is because the Unix model is logical, straightforward and
consistent.

    As for setup, the hardest OS that I had to setup was WinNT.  Followed by
OS/2, BeOS and Win98.  Win95 was a bit simpler.  I started on Linux with the
Slackware distribution and it was actually fairly easy to setup.  Maintaining
it was a pain, but I learned a lot.  My only experience with Red Hat is
v4.2(?) and it was not simple at all.  But that is Red Hat, not Linux.  I'm
also sure that things have changed since then.  Currently I use Debian Linux
and if there is an easier install out there, I'm not aware of it.  The
directions were straightforward, the package manager is logical, maintaining
it is a breeze.  How many other OSs (certainly not BeOS) do you know where you
could upgrade everything other than the kernel, every piece of software and
libraries, on the fly without bringing the machine down or with a large
interruption in service?  Not even Red Hat can claim that.  My main server has
been through two complete revision upgrades (v2.0 -> v2.1 -> v2.2) and I never
needed to reboot because of it.

    Again, ease of use all comes down learning (which you have to do in any
OS) and the fact that everything is logically laid out.

-- 
         Steve C. Lamb         | I'm your priest, I'm your shrink, I'm your
         ICQ: 5107343          | main connection to the switchboard of souls.
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