The LXer GNU/Linux Straw Poll
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| Author | Content |
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| dcparris Aug 08, 2006 10:38 PM EDT |
This thread is for all those who have replaced Windows with GNU/Linux, either at home or elsewhere. It is especially provided for the many Ubuntu users who continue to contribute to the poll (from November 2006). Hopefully, moving the poll here will help provide some measure of relief to the Ubuntu users' listserv. Meanwhile, anyone is welcome to let us know: what distribution has replaced Windows? how many computers? whether at home, work, school, etc.? What you use it for? Why did you switch? what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? [edited to add...] Have you converted others? How many? I'll be offering an update on the current status of the poll soon. |
| Sander_Marechal Aug 08, 2006 11:27 PM EDT |
> what distribution has replaced Windows Ubnuntu on the desktop and Debian Testing on the server > how many computers Up to 7 or so, but I guess that if I were running Windows I'd have fewer computers > whether at home, work, school, etc. Home + daytime work + my own little company in the evening hours > What you use it for, and/or Home: everything. I'm a GNU/Linux programmers & webdeveloper. I run IE through Wine though. Only bit of MS software left :-) Daytime work: I'm an application admin. Most of it can be done in Linux, but I need to use Citrix Metaframe to access Notes and MS-SQL Enterprise Manager Evening work: See home + various server work (bugzilla, mailman, subversion, etcetera) > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether I did ditch it :-) [edited to add] > Have you converted others? Yes, about 5 colleguas of mine plus my parents and my girlfriend. I'm working on the rest of the family :-) > Why Just spreading the good word mostly. Only my parents was a different reason. I always had to come in and fix their computer, usually once a week or so. I was sick and tired of that. When their old computer needed replacing I told them that if they bought WinXP, I would stop fixing their PC. If they installed Linux I would continue to help them out (and with FreeNX I can do so without leaving my house). They folded and like Linux. My dad once gave me a remark about how he couldn't install some piece of junk he got from work. I told him "Sure I can make that work. That'll be $199 for WinXP and I won't fix your PC anymore, remember?". He's been silent ever since :-) |
| theboomboomcars Aug 09, 2006 6:21 AM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows Ubuntu, Suse, PCLinuxOS >how many computers 4 >whether at home, work, school, etc. Home >What you use it for, and/or what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether I use linux exclusively for everything. Playing around, gaming, taking notes at school, writing papers, etc. |
| SFN Aug 09, 2006 6:28 AM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows
Ubuntu, Debian, 64Studio >how many computers 5 >whether at home, work, school, etc. home plus a dual-boot laptop at work and a dual boot desktop at home >What you use it for, and/or >what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether At home, I use it for general purpose stuff (web, email, gaming, etc.), video and audio production, broadcasting net radio Company requirements prevent me from dicthing Windows at work. At home, I use ULead Video Studio for video editing but am in the process of getting used to Jahshaka and Cinelerra. Once I have a good feel for one of those, Windows goes away at home again. |
| devnet Aug 09, 2006 6:43 AM EDT |
Quoting:what distribution has replaced WindowsPCLinuxOS .93a Minime Quoting:how many computers whether at home, work, school, etc.3 Desktop Computers (1 dual boot WinXP in case I have to work from home)...1 server runs ClarkConnect 3.2 all at home. At work, I am prevented via IT Policy (per the State of Virginia) of running anything on my desktop other than Windows XP so I'm stuck with it there. I do run a CentOS Server as a document repository and intranet site for my projects at work though so that's a plus. Quoting:What you use it forAt home...everything except for when I work from home. So that's the reason for the dual boot. Multimedia, Movies, Daily browsing, email, etc. Quoting:what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogetherGames. If I want to game, I have to fire up the dual boot machine and go into Win XP. |
| grouch Aug 09, 2006 8:01 AM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows Debian GNU/Linux >how many computers 6 >whether at home, work, school, etc. home + 2 local businesses (1 business has since been bought by a national conglomerate thing that is all MS. They were amazed to discover just 2 computers handling every computing need in the little business). >What you use it for Video/photo editing, scanning (old photos, documents, some slides but my scanner only does up to 1200 dpi), printing, music, CD/DVD burning, text editing, web stuff, email, occasional game, spreadsheet, transferring old vinyl records music collection to oggs, transferring old VCR tapes to DVD, faxing, vanity web site tinkering, playing with apache + php + mysql + postgresql, using CAD to 'flesh out' sketches for woodworking projects, showing my lack of artistic abilities using GIMP to try out mods for a '49 Olds ( http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/new-virtual-kustomz-thread-6... ) and '59 4CV ( http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/1959-4cv-just-playing-72316.... ) >and/or what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether Nothing. Ditched that irritating, crippled, spying pile of malware back about the end of 1999. It was immensely relieving. [Pollsters shouldn't extend polls after publication. Edited to add:] >Have you converted others? Sure. >How many? Can't count 'em. Used to do it via hours-long sessions in Internet chat, years ago. (In my naive days, I would even ssh to their boxes as root to help set things up after they got connected. Very glad to see LiveCDs that provide good, usable setups on boot, now.) >Why? They wanted relief from fear of inadvertent mouse clicks wiping out data or installing some spyware, malware or adware, relief from fear of email attachments that damage the system before they can even read the email, fear of websites and links that alter their desktop, fear of downloads with malicious payloads, fear of images that root the system, fear of "Service Packs" that wreck things. |
| Libervis Aug 09, 2006 10:21 AM EDT |
Quoting:what distribution has replaced Windows After trying a few distros, Arch GNU/Linux has replaced Windows completely. Quoting:how many computers 2 desktop computers, Arch on mine, Ubuntu on my sisters (though they usually still dual boot because of one game they want badly; The Sims). Quoting:whether at home, work, school, etc. What you use it for It's at home. We use it for everything, from fun (yes, even games) to work (my web publishing). |
| alc Aug 09, 2006 12:41 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows
Suse / Kubuntu how many computers @home 3 desktop 3 laptop @work 6 desktop 4 laptop whether at home, work, school, etc. @home 1desktop linux only 1 dualboot 1 laptop linux only .The rest are windows. What you use it for, and/or web/ email/music/ photo/ also school for kids and wife.@ work mine is used for estimating/project management (construction) and email what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether @home I'm linux only,the rest of the family is dual boot or win only..@work,I'm linux only but accounting and project managers use windows.I'm hoping to switch over 2 project managers to linux only or at least dual boot. |
| techiem2 Aug 09, 2006 12:45 PM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows Gentoo >how many computers 6 desktops/servers and 1 laptop currently 1 desktop dual boots to W2k Laptop dual boots to XP >whether at home, work, school, etc. Home and work >What you use it for, and/or Everything. IT work, web devel, games, general usage, etc. Web/IRC/Teamspeak/FTP/etc. Server http://techiem2.no-ip.com:444 , router, fileserver, linux work and games, one is Bible study comp for mom. >what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether A few games that won't run in linux. :( /me grumbles about directx > what distribution has replaced Windows? Started with Redhat 7, moved to Mandrake 8, then Debian for a little, then Suse 9.0 -9.3, now Ubuntu Warty through to Breezy and Dapper. > how many computers? 3 Desktops Main Athlon (runs Dapper) P2 with Win 98 (for old records and stuff) P3 nothing on it now (did have smoothwall). Laptop P3 running Brezzy (May convert it to Xubuntu Dapper) > whether at home, work, school, etc.? all home > What you use it for? Everything... > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Don't have MYM support (Managing your money) that I still have older records on > Have you converted others? How many? At least 1 friend. |
| herzeleid Aug 09, 2006 1:46 PM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows
Suse Linux (9.3, 10.0, 10.1, SLED 10) >how many computers 6 >whether at home, work, school, etc. home, work >What you use it for everything - email, web, programming, documentation, and especially gaming/multimedia >what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether Nothing - the only trace of windoze at our house is a seldom-used win4lin instance on my suse 10 desktop. (edited to add...) > Have you converted others? How many? Yes, perhaps 10-20. > Why? Spreading the goodness - I like to help out - plus, the more linux users there are, the fewer people will be calling me to fix their crashing, virus ridden expees... |
| Scott_Ruecker Aug 09, 2006 6:44 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
Mostly FC-1,2,3 and 5, Kubuntu and now SuSE 9.1-9.2-10.0-10.1 how many computers? Total? about Six or Seven that I have put Linux on myself including an old Dell with a P-2 in it(it still has the MS-98 enabled! sticker on it)I only own two computers. whether at home, work, school, etc.? My Home, Friends and Family Homes What you use it for? Absolutely everything I can think of, Go to ASU, Write for LXer, Personal Data Managment, Collecting of information etc. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? The last day that Windows could be found on one of my computers was Nov.-28 2005, You guys should know that. Have you converted others? Yes How many? Three that I know of for sure. Two friends and My Mother. I Love My Mom, she is cool. Why? Because I talk about what I am interested in with my friends and family. Because it just comes out of me, I couldn't even stop myself if I tried. |
| jimf Aug 09, 2006 7:36 PM EDT |
> what distribution has replaced Windows? Started with Mepis, but have everything on Debian at this point. > how many computers? 1 laptop (P4 2.4 with 512meg) 2 desktop (p4 2.52 with 1gig, and, PII 300 with 512meg)) > whether at home, work, school, etc.? all home=work > What you use it for? Everything... A lot ot graphics, CAD, database. > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? 99% of work is on Linux. I keep one w2k system on the PII 300 dualfor support reference. One of these days, I have to get off my fat ass and set up a dual boot. > Have you converted others? How many? between Mepis forum support and IRC... At least 50 to ??? > Why? Why not :D |
| dek Aug 10, 2006 7:38 AM EDT |
> what distribution has replaced Windows? Started with Redhat 7, moved to Mandrake 8, then Debian for a little, then Suse 9.0 -9.3, now Ubuntu Warty through to Breezy and Dapper. > how many computers? 3 Desktops Main Athlon (runs Dapper) P2 with Win 98 (for old records and stuff) P3 nothing on it now (did have smoothwall). Laptop P3 running Brezzy (May convert it to Xubuntu Dapper) > whether at home, work, school, etc.? all home > What you use it for? Everything... > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Don't have MYM support (Managing your money) that I still have older records on > Have you converted others? How many? Still working on 1 friend. > Why? Love the FOSS philosophy and community. As a progressive. I want to support building community where ever I find it. Don't like M$ business tactics. Don't care for the closed software model. My motto is: Friends don't let Friends use Microsoft. |
| pogson Aug 11, 2006 3:20 AM EDT |
The components have been shipped for a new installation of Linux in a school that had 50 Win 9x machines last year. There is a Windows-only app that will be used on 25 of the old machines but the others can be used as thin clients of the new Linux terminal servers. It remains to be seen whether the Windows-only app will be seen as essential after the Ubuntu repository is explored by teachers and students. 25 Windows machines will move to EdUbuntu 6.0.6 153 new Linux seats will be added. I have used Linux in all the schools in which I have taught since 2000 but it was only retained in one as far as I know. This time the school is adopting Linux terminal servers, so it would be a major renovation to go back to Windows. I will train staff how to keep it going in the event of my death or departure. I figure a system like this will be worth staying around. We will have six dual core AMD64 servers with a total of 20 gB RAM and 2.5 terabytes of disc storage which will be in two RAID 1 arrays: user files+databases+webpage and terminal server OS+applications (desktop stuff). By using inexpensive thin client boxes ($100 to $200 per seat) and using GNU/Linux we were able to allocate a few dollars to peripherals and to this awesome array of servers which can easily serve 200 simultaneous users in a reliable way with lots of redundancy. Our school is lucky enough not to have been terribly locked-in to Windows because they were mostly using a few desktop apps which can be replaced with Linux apps. Now they will be able to use GPL software almost everywhere. Even the library will be automated. What a change. They will have gone from 50 seats to 200 over the summer. Using Linux and thin clients permitted double the number of new seats compared to the usual XP installation on thick clients. It pays to have a revolutionary on staff... |
| bigg Aug 11, 2006 8:18 AM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows? Ubuntu on my desktops, Debian Etch on my laptop how many computers? 3 whether at home, work, school, etc.? A desktop and laptop at home A desktop at work What you use it for? Everything - basic surfing, heavy analysis of data, latex, ... what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? It took about nine months, but eventually I had everything converted to Linux and open source, now I don't need it. I can do anything I need on Linux or Windows, but am more productive on Linux. It did take a little while to find appropriate free substitutes. As an academic I am lucky to not be tied to software not available for Linux. So now I don't use Windows and it makes me cringe when I use someone else's Windows computer. Have you converted others? How many? Sort of. People use my computer without realizing it is not Windows (who really cares or even pays attention to the basic interface?) My mother couldn't believe how fast my computer was compared to her four-year old computer with XP. My wife uses my computer for anything needing security or when she is not in the mood to wait twenty minutes (that is correct) for her XP to boot up. My wife also does minor programming tasks and agrees that the Windows DOS prompt really sucks, so she uses Linux for those few times a year as well. They are not all the way there, but they do concede that there are problems with Windows and Linux can be a far better choice. Why? Well, try losing a couple weeks of work time because of a spyware infection when the @#$%!!! at Microsoft knew spyware was a problem and did nothing about it. I got sick and tired of wasting time and money on anti-virus, trying to understand what a registry is (I'm not very technical or interested in technical details) and all that crap. Then there's the performance issue. Microsoft has innovated in at least one area, how to make a computer slow down after a couple years. My laptop is more than four years old, and the performance made it unusable. Reinstalling the OS was not an option because I would have had to destroy my programs that cannot be reinstalled. I also got tired of having to kiss someone else's butt to have access to my own data. If it's my data, why do I need to get their permission to access it? Nowdays the extent of my computer maintenance is to click the update button every so often. I don't notice the operating system, and that's the way it's supposed to be. I also do more than the average user, so it's so much better to let the OS take care of the software management. I remember the days of trying to get different programs to work together with XP. |
| virgo977virgo Aug 11, 2006 9:00 AM EDT |
> what distribution has replaced Windows?
Ubuntu, Debian Etch > how many computers? 2 (Dell laptop D610, and a desktop) > whether at home, work, school, etc.? at home > What you use it for? programming, web surfing, note tacking > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? company requirements (caused by technicians inertia) > Have you converted others? How many? I'm trying and trying and trying with everyone care about freedom and security > Why? because freedom has no price !!! |
| CuCullin Aug 11, 2006 9:50 AM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows? Several. Kubuntu, SUSE, and Debian. how many computers? Five. 2 laptops, 2 desktops, and one tablet. whether at home, work, school, etc.? Home for all, though I use the laptop for work. What you use it for? Work, setting up my new company, email, web browsing, multimedia, audio and video editing... everything. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? AutoCAD :( (for work) Have you converted others? How many? Yes, not sure how many though... 10 maybe? Why? Because I'm very into free/libre open source software, and the ideals behind it. |
| ajt Aug 11, 2006 10:01 AM EDT |
> what distribution has replaced Windows? Debian GNU/Linux (home) RedHat Enterprise Linux (work) > how many computers? > whether at home, work, school, etc.? At home 3 direct replacements + 2 new systems that were bought running Debian At work 2 direct replacements + 4 brand new system that were bough for just Linux. > What you use it for? Home: Home server (web, DHCP, email etc), workstation/desktop use Work: SAP application servers, web servers, 1 workstation system > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? At home, nothing, all systems bar one legacy system are Windows. When the legacy system gives out it will be replaced with a Linux notebook. At work, corporate policy. > Have you converted others? How many? My father runs a Debian desktop, it's his first computer. Linux is easier for me to support via SSH/VNC. Several friends/colleagues at work, various systems from Windows/Mac to Linux. Easier maintaince, less virus security problems etc. > Why? Mostly because Microsoft is expensive if you want to stay legal, the malware issue is also a big issue. Partially because I grew up on Unix and like to hack and Windows is poor platform for all the things I do. To me Windows is good for two things: games and viruses, I don't play many games and I don't want any viruses...! |
| NoDough Aug 11, 2006 10:03 AM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows?
>how many computers?
>whether at home, work, school, etc.? 1 Home computer (Ubuntu) 1 Work computer (Ubuntu) 1 Server (Gentoo) 1 Old Laptop (Mepis Lite) 4 Old Desktops (Puppy) >What you use it for? internet, email, documents, spreadsheets, games, graphics, programming, etc. >what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? employer >Have you converted others? How many? >Why? Technically, one other. My parents computer. Their Windows was constantly slowing, crashing, etc. because of adware, spyware, and viruses. However, as with the 4 puppy machines and the one Mepis machine above, I collect old PCs, load them with Linux, and give them away to charities. So, I may have converted others. |
| johnwlittle Aug 11, 2006 10:10 AM EDT |
>> what distribution has replaced Windows? Initially SUSE which was followed by Ubuntu Warty. It's been all Ubuntu since. >> how many computers? 4 >> whether at home, work, school, etc.? I would gladly run Ubuntu at work. If they'd let me. >> What you use it for? Everything. I share documents between MS-Office at work and OpenOffice at home. Web development, Games (World of Warcraft, Quake 4, Medal of Honor - and more), Multimedia stuff. I'm essentially doing everything I did with Windows and a bit more. >> what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Nothing. I ditched Windows completely (at home) 3 years ago. >> Have you converted others? How many? 7-8 others that I know completely made the switch. I write about Ubuntu quite a bit online so maybe more. >> Why? I support FOSS but also for technical reasons. Friends come to me with Windows PCs that have been trashed by spyware and other junk. Most of them are just using their browsers and multimedia features. Once they realize that they can do all that and avoid the slowdowns, crashes, viruses, and spyware associated with Windows they're hooked. I'm all for FOSS but it's important to note that Linux is getting to the point where it's just a better alternative. |
| dingding662 Aug 11, 2006 11:00 AM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows? Ubuntu Dapper Drake, Debian stable how many computers? 3- my main desktop is ubuntu. 2 other boxen running debian stable on home network for fileserving whether at home, work, school, etc.? home What you use it for? I surf the web, read RSS feeds, email, use sound editing software to create my music, play a few MUDs, basically everything I did with windows. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Windows is ditched. Has been since I first tried RedHat in 1998. Have you converted others? yes How many? at least 2 that have completely ditched windows. lots of dual-booters. Why? older computers that run slowly on XP, more security, FOSS |
| dooglus Aug 11, 2006 11:52 AM EDT |
> what distribution has replaced Windows? debian > how many computers? 1 > whether at home, work, school, etc.? on my laptop, which I use at home and at work > What you use it for? work (programming, system admin) & play (music, movies, games, web browsing) > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Mostly laziness. I've not booted into Windows for quite a while. I know there's some stuff on the NTFS partition that I should keep, but it's a big job to go through the partition deciding what to keep and what not to, so I've left it there for now. > Have you converted others? I've tried, but no - see below > How many? 2 > Why? The first friend I set up with ubuntu hoary because windows just wasn't working. Sometimes it would get online, and other times it would refuse to. ubuntu just worked. A few months later the PC died and was thrown out. She now uses a Windows laptop from work. The 2nd I set up to dual-boot ubuntu and XP home. She almost exclusively uses XP because "her games" don't work in ubuntu. |
| tminton Aug 11, 2006 12:00 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
Ubuntu 6.06 & Feather Linux how many computers? whether at home, work, school, etc.? 2 at home with Ubuntu 1 at home with Feather What you use it for? Most everything ;-) One son is running Feather on an older desktop and teaching himself programming. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? My bride is stuck with a couple of proprietary Windows for here business, some of the kids because of a Windows app we use for homeschooling. (if I had only knew about Moodle at the time ;-) Have you converted others? yes How many? 8/9 so far, also converting our systems at church to Ubuntu 6.06. Why? FOSS, security, Patch Tuesday ;-(, costs Most of the systems are too old to run XP well and certainly not Vista (not that I'd want to) Convinced that GNU/Linux is simply the better solution! |
| gemoftheplain Aug 11, 2006 12:14 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
ubuntu how many computers? 2 whether at home, work, school, etc.? home What you use it for? everything what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? nothing Have you converted others? How many? at least 3 Why? Windows virus and malware are the main problems. |
| alisonken1 Aug 11, 2006 12:27 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
Slackware
Mutagenix (Slackware w/Freerock Gnome live CD) how many computers? 1 Server (actually, was SCO before replacement) 10 Desktops 1 Laptop 1 dual-boot Win98SE and Slackware whether at home, work, school, etc.? 7 work 5 home What you use it for? email, webbrowsing, documents, programming, routing, graphics what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? UPS online shipping labels require Windows for printing labels The wife's laptop being hers Church software (3 desktops) [edited to add...] Have you converted others? How many? 0 Why? did not want to change |
| jeickal Aug 11, 2006 2:07 PM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows?
Mandrake (now Mandriva) >how many computers? 3 (2 Mandriva and 1 Ubuntu) >whether at home, work, school, etc.? 2 @home, 1 @work >What you use it for? Home: web, office, game, music, photos,... in short: everything Work: Everything that does not required some corporate standard win-only program >what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Home: Nothing, formatted my last windows disk 2 1/2 years ago Work: corporate policies >Have you converted others? How many? I'd say around 12. I think 3 of them don't use windows at all at home >Why? In order of importance: 1) Because of: http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/philosophy.html#AboutFreeSoftw... 2) Whatever the business is, when one company makes it close to monopoly, it's bad for customers 3) I believe that MS (among others) business practices are unethical and unfair 4) Poor quality of MS products 5) I don't like making illegal copy of anything |
| tigertron Aug 11, 2006 2:20 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows? Ubuntu
how many computers? one
whether at home, work, school, etc.? home
What you use it for? email, office apps, photo archiving, image printing & scanning, browsing. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Support for webcams & my Canon LiDE80 scanner, Tax software. Have you converted others? Yes How many? two Why? Easier to support my relatives - lower cost, fewer virus issues, harder for them to screw up the installation, more secure access over the net. |
| weibullguy Aug 11, 2006 3:19 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
Gentoo, Debian, Fedora, Ubuntu, Kubuntu how many computers? Three (also installed Cygwin at work to do some things, so maybe 3-1/2) whether at home, work, school, etc.? Home, but see above. What you use it for? Word processing, some C/C++ and FORTRAN programming, data analysis and mathematical modeling, some music, a few games, personal finances, etc. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Already did and never looked back. Have you converted others? Yes How many? Five Why? I installed Linux because I was trying to get back to the days when computers were fun and you could actually do something with them. For serious scientific/engineering work *nix is the better platform. Many of the tasks I use a computer for fall in this category. As I write this, my machine is crunching through a simulation that will entail over 200 billion calculations. I think my 12-year old put it best when he said, "Linux is better because you can leave a program running all night and in the morning, the computer isn't all locked up. You don't even need Ctrl-Alt-Del if you have Linux." When future PC consumers are saying things like that, someone ought to be concerned. Family member switched because I no longer offer Windows support to my family members. They're welcome to learn how to maintain their own machines, however. |
| DrHood Aug 11, 2006 4:23 PM EDT |
BACKGROUND
Moving to linux has been a gradual process that has taken years. 1999 - 2000 Corel Linux, Mandrake 7.2, and Mandrake 8.2. These didn't last long because it was difficult for a windows user to move to linux due to hardware not working, unavailable needed programs, and lack of linux knowledge. 2002 - 2003 Installed Xandros 1.0 and dual booted with Win98 2003 - 2004 Upgraded to Xandros 2.0 and dual booted with Win98 2004 - Present Ubuntu (Warty, Hoary, Breezy and Dapper) and dual boot with Win98 WHAT DISTRO HAS REPLACED WINDOWS Ubuntu HOW MANY COMPUTERS? My home has three (3) desktops with Ubuntu. Mine, my wife, and the two kids share a computer that has Edubuntu. In addition to the above 3 desktops, my home has a MythTV machine (KnoppMyth), an Axentra H-70 (router, gateway, email, http, and ftp server running linux, not sure of any particular distribution), a Nokia 770 (Debian linux), and a Samsung YP-T7 1 Gb MP3 player (also running linux). WHETHER AT HOME, WORK, SCHOOL, ETC.? All of the above are in the home. WHAT DO YOU USE IT FOR? My Desktop - browsing web (Firefox), email (Evolution), instant messaging (Gaim), writing (OpenOffice Writer), diabetes management (OpenOffice Base/Calc), games (Doom3, Tremulous). Spouses Dekstop - browsing web (Firefox/Opera), email (Evolution), writing (OpenOffice Writer). Kids Desktop - educational programs (gcompris) and browsing web (Firefox). WHAT IS HOLDING YOU BACK FROM DITCHING WINDOWS ALTOGETHER? I keep windows to run Nascar Racing 2003 Season (Sierra/Papyrus) - I love this simulation, but it is three years old now and the number of participants is on the decline. Once I stop using this sim program (probably this year), there will be no reason to keep a Windows partition. My wife has kept a Win98 partition to use the Palm Desktop application for the Palm IIIe. We are in the process of converting the calendar and contact list to Evolution. After that, she is ready to dump Windows. The kids have never used Windows, so no need to dump it for them. HAVE YOU CONVERTED OTHERS? HOW MANY? 2004 - Got a friend (1) to install and try Ubuntu/ 2004 - Gave my parents, who live on the west coast and I live on the east coast, a laptop. They never used a computer before and they did not like Windows XP because they didn't want to bother with antivirus software. They then tried Xandros 2.0, but felt the GUI interface was too complicated. Next was Ubuntu and has been using it for the past year and are very happy. Note: I provide technical support to my parents via the phone, which is not very often actually. 2006 - Gave an old computer (450Mhz, 256Mb RAM) with Edubuntu to my brother, who lives several states away, for his daughter (8 years old). They don't have much money and never used a computer before. I installed the Edubuntu and my mother delivered it to my brothers home. They plugged it in, turned it on, and the daughter took to it right away. I keep calling them to see if they need technical support, but they keep saying it isn't needed. 2006 - Assisted two work friends build a KnoppMyth machine. This is their first introduction to linux, although both have a Tivo. I am about to assist one of these friends build a network attached storage (NAS) device using an older machine using freeNAS (not linux, but freeBSD I think). WHY? I recommend linux because..... Cost - $0 Stability - very Security - I honestly don't run anti-anything on my desktops The Big One Support - I don't do tech support for Windows. |
| MrChilly Aug 11, 2006 4:32 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows? started with fedora core 2, then deb, suse, mandriva, been gentoo for a few years how many computers? lappy and desk is gentoo kid's use xp (dora hates penguins) server in mail will be gentoo use dsl at work for customers with whack infested windows boxes whether at home, work, school, etc.? all of the above What you use it for? soon to be server, games, office, web, email, finance, better question is what don't I use it for what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Dora the Explorer and Spongebob Squarepants Have you converted others? How many? 15 people at work, one or two off of the net Why? stability and cost have been the most effective arguments |
| tlyons Aug 11, 2006 7:38 PM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows?
Debian on the desktop, (open)SUSE on my laptop >how many computers? 3 desktops, 1 laptop >whether at home, work, school, etc.? All of the above >hat you use it for? All of my needs, except when Windows is absolutely necessary. >what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? My need to access certain websites specially crafted to rely on IE's standards-noncompliant behaviour. Also, I've had mixed success with printing at times. >Have you converted others? How many? Why? One person so far, but not deliberately. Letting people see you use and enjoy Linux, and especially how simple it is with a GUI, is more influential than preaching openly. |
| djohnston Aug 11, 2006 8:07 PM EDT |
PCLinuxOS 0.93 MiniMe has replaced Windows on 2 computers in my house. We use it for everything from web surfing to photo editing to listening to music to creating documents to playing games. We don't run Windows any more, and haven't looked back. We use wine for 1 graphics app and 1 card game. I have converted 3 other users' computers to PCLinusOS 0.92 exclusively, one user to a dual boot of PCLOS 0.92 and XP. She still uses Windows/Quick Books. (I disabled her internet connection in Windows.) |
| tuxtom Aug 11, 2006 11:24 PM EDT |
I am self-employed, so my boxes are both home and work. My PC boxes all have swappable HD trays, so I don't dual-boot those...just pop in the drive I want if I need to boot into something that's not ordinary for me. 1) AMD Athlon XP 2000+: MEPIS 3.4.3 (Primary Personal Workstation and LAMP Development Workstation), XP-Pro occasionally for test-fests. 2) Pentium 4 2.8 overclocked 3.04: XP-Pro (Primary .NET/Adobe/Macromedia Development Workstation), Occasionally test other distros, etc. 3) Celeron 2.4: Ubuntu LTS Server 6.10 (My dedicated linux server...previously Sarge) 4) Dell Inspiron 6000 Laptop: Dual-Boot MEPIS 6.06 RC2 and XP-Pro (My lay-in-bed-and-read-ebooks machine. Also my on-site tool box when I visit clients.) 5) Linksys WRT54G Wireless Router 6) Linksys WET54G Wireless Bridge 7) AirLink101 AR420W Wireless Router (Used for AP) (Note: All three of these wireless appliances run embedded Linux unmodified by me) (Note: Ubuntu installed flawlessly on the Inspiron Laptop...everything was perfect, but I don't do gnome. Kubuntu left me wanting my MEPIS, and Xubuntu was still a bit buggy. I HIGHLY recommend Ubuntu for laptops...and just about anything else...I just don't like brown gnome...I really don't. RedHat uses gnome and I don't do RedHat anymore...4 years clean, baby) You will flame me for what follows: I used to be a 100% Linux bigot, but Microsoft and the technologies built around it play a huge role in this world. A Very Important Role. It is not all evil and bad....profit and intellectual property is not all evil and bad. Money makes the world go 'round whether you like it or not. The finest and most popular web development tools (I didn't say servers!!!) in the world run on Windows or Mac (Even Adobe's venerable favorites are developed in windows native code and ported to Mac). The .NET development platform with Visual Studio are incredibly important and ass-kicking technologies, no matter what school of thought you come from. I still prefer Linux for my desktop...probably because I am too cheap to buy a Mac...no, because I like KDE. But "I Don't Do Windows" is no longer my religion. I guess I could say "I write better software faster with less personal stress because I am using .NET". That's one thing that Microsoft has done right. And then there's Java...ouch...what a messed up PITA anymore. Lot's of work...and then lots of work...and then lots of complicated work, for no other reason than it's lots of complicated work and it makes everyone look more important because they have lots of complicated work to do that one page of php could have accomplished. (You can tell I'm a bitter ex-Java developer) Now Ruby I like...just gotta do more of it. Thanks for letting me rant. |
| aysiu Aug 12, 2006 2:27 AM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
Ubuntu Dapper how many computers? Two, but I use only one on a regular basis whether at home, work, school, etc.? At home. I have to use Windows XP at work. What you use it for? Web browsing, music listening/organization, file/picture organization, email, web design/FTP. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Nothing. I've ditched it. I have it installed only to create tutorials like this one: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/installing.html Have you converted others? How many? No. Why? I've tried, but it takes an open mind to really convert. |
| pupeno Aug 12, 2006 3:22 PM EDT |
In 1997 I installed GNU/Linux for the first time, it was Slackware and dual-booting with NT 4.0. In 2000 when migrating to a bigger hard disk I realized I haven't booted Windows for six months so I installed just Linux, no Windows. > what distribution has replaced Windows? At that time I believe it was RedHat, probably RedHat 4.2 or something like that. Today it's Kubuntu. > how many computers? In my life, about 30 or 40 computers run free software because I made the choice. That included various GNU/Linux distributions, OpenBSD, etc. Some servers and some workstations. > whether at home, work, school, etc.? At home, always Linux now. At school I tried to push it but I was disregarded. Eventually another friend got to insert GNU/Linux in some areas, at work... I won't take it unless I can run GNU/Linux. On 1998 it was a novelty, I was a really weird person. I expected that by 2006 that would have changed, but no! I was hired by a company to port a C program from and to some weird architectures (not x86), I was given an x86 box with Windows, after half an hour into the work, when I said I don't need any administrator to install my workstation, I can install my own Linux, I find out they wouldn't allow me to run Linux: I quit. Half an hour, that's my record. They called me a month latter to offer me "another job" where I could run Linux, by that time I have moved to another country and I am working for a much more sane company, all desktops are Linux. > What you use it for? Everything. I am a programmer. > Why did you switch? First, I wanted to be a "hacker", that is, what I thought the word "hacker" meant at that time. I studied security for some time untill turning into othe areas of programming. Today I chose it for its freedom, period. > what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? Nothing. I have ditched Windows and all the companies that make me depend on them. Do you hear ATI ? I won't buy any of your products until you release the information or the drivers under a free software license. > Have you converted others? How many? My wife, Sandra Fernandez, is the best example. She is a musicia, I never told her anything about converting, I kept quiet until she felt embarrased in a conference about free software tha we were both attending and asked me to perform the conversion. Although one could say I haven't done the conversion myself I did it technically and I continue to support it. And besides that, I am very proud that she preaches for the use of Free Software as strong as I do, it is very common for her to pick up the issue faster than me and explain it in plain words to anybody only asking me when the thing gets too technical. She is much better than I in reaching the non-geeks. Another person of which I am proud is Ary Kaplan Nakamura, a friend of my wife. He was 'converted' only after I talked to him about Free Software. That is, he was converter even before installing Linux for the first time. He understood it was the right choice and in a Stallmanesque desition he choosed freedom over any set of features or comfort. Quite a guy! After a little time, just to check, I asked if he was still running Linux. He felt insulted: "of course I am running Linux, what else would I be running ? what are you running ?" he said. Aside that, I don't have any particular converters but I push to that direction every time I can. |
| Casey Aug 12, 2006 5:56 PM EDT |
--what distribution has replaced Windows? Ubuntu 6.06 LTS ----how many computers? 3 home systems + 1 usb portable seagate 160 gig drive. --whether at home, work, school, etc.? home, some work. ----What you use it for? Daily computing and gaming. Why did you switch? Lemme count the reasons. Malware, virii, spyware. Commercial software applications gouging for 'required upgrades' (Intuit and their Quicken "sunset" was a final straw. The windows OS and its tightly integrated browser into operating system is just inherently unsafe for secure usage online. --That and the nonstop costs for 3rd party applications to fill the gap to protect the system. ----what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? I have an XP partition on a laptop JUST for testing applications or troubleshooting in the environment. (My job is IT, as well as assisting friends/relatives from time to time over the phone.) This partition gets booted perhaps once a month with no actual work being done with it other than to test/assist a windows user. [edited to add...] Have you converted others? How many? 2 people at work have seen the light. Also I'm an avid EVE-Online (http://www.eve-online.com) MMORPG gamer, and with cedega (http://www.transgaming.com), I don't need windows to participate there. I'm active in the linux tech thread on their forums and assisting and educating there has been interesting as many folks who were "fence sitting" have jumped to the linux side because of those posts. |
| zzsql Aug 13, 2006 5:05 AM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
- FreeBSD, Whoppix (Installed to disk)Mac OS X on a sweet powerbook. (BSD Darwin kernel under the hood) Love it. how many computers? - 5 at home. 200 at work. whether at home, work, school, etc.? - Home FreeBSD as desktop computer. OpenBSD as a firewall, Whoppix for dirty research (heh) on a laptop and desktop PC. - At work I replaced two dozen Win32 boxes with SuSE Linux. What you use it for? - At home, see above. - At work (Auto parts manufacturing) replaced Win32 boxes because they're just simple data entry stations. Why did you switch? - Like everybody else, licensing, malware and unreliability. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? - Convincing the suits that the world won't end if we use an OS not from M$. |
| ilinux_allan Aug 14, 2006 2:31 AM EDT |
q:what distribution has replaced Windows?
ans: Fedora Core 4 q:how many computers? ans: 2 q:whether at home, work, school, etc.? ans: Work q:What you use it for? ans: Mail Servers q:Why did you switch? ans: Windows NT/Exchange Server 5.5 has been compromised. There is no way for this Exchange Server 5.5 to be not an open relay, at least I don't know. I cannot find any documentation to secure WinNT/Exchange Server 5.5, unless I will switch to Linux where tons of documentation existed. q: what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? ans: CorelDraw will only run on Windows. Accounting software are windows-based SQL. [edited to add...] q:Have you converted others? How many? ans: Yes. Converted one, but dozens will follow in the future. I'll be offering an update on the current status of the poll soon. |
| jgoulter Aug 24, 2006 12:09 AM EDT |
>what distribution has replaced Windows?
Mepis and Naslite >how many computers? Six all up. Three workstations (Mepis) each sharing printers. Two file servers (Naslite), another desktop unit (various Linux for trialing) in my workshop, all cable networked. >whether at home, work, school, etc.? Home >What you use it for? Everything: Family history. Digital camera management. Net access. Games. CD/DVD burning. Music etc etc etc. >Why did you switch? Was driven screaming from Windows because of malware infestations, Crashes, and the need to reinstall it every few months. >what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? What's Windows? [>edited to add...] >Have you converted others? How many? Yes, about 5 |
| JohnP Oct 29, 2006 1:08 PM EDT |
what distribution has replaced Windows?
Kubuntu how many computers? 2.... for now. I am currently converting my parent's machine too! whether at home, work, school, etc.? Home (which is also where I work) What you use it for? Photo manipulation / editing (I am a professional Photographer) Why did you switch? Malware and viruses - Despite of running software supposedly aimed at preventing these, something always got through. I found XP slower than Linux and going back to it now makes me realize how "clunky" it really is. Vista looks like it will be expensive and I think Linux is more powerful. what is holding you back from ditching Windows altogether? I am still using some video editing software under Win but hope to find a suitable Linux equivalent. (Running dual boot for now) I have to add that I found the switch much easier that I had first thought. After downloading a few libraries, I now have all the multimedia functionality and most of the Linux software is as good, if not better, than the XP equivalent. Never having tried Linux before, I am surprised at the quality and robustness of this operating system. I cant wait to ditch Microsoft all together.... Hurrah! |
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