A standard argument by Linux users is that if WINE cannot run a Windows app for whatever reason, do it virtually. Load up Windows in a virtual session with your app of choice, be it VMware, Virtualbox or the like, load up your Windows session and run your app that way.
There is nothing to my knowledge that Linux cannot run virtually if WINE doesn’t cut it. But how well Windows apps can run in virtual is something else.
A few examples:
You’re a web designer and need to test your site designs in Internet Explorer 7 for browser compatibility. Running XP virtually to do that is fine because performance is not an issue.
You’re a blogger and really like Windows Live Writer. This is just a word processor, more or less. Running it virtually won’t be a problem here either.
You’re trying to edit video. You want to run something like Adobe Premiere, Ulead Mediastudio or some other high-powered video editing suite that you bought previously. Can you run this in virtual? Yes. Will it work well? Not a chance. The frame rate on preview will be terrible and so much memory will be sucked into the virtual session that it will probably crash it (not Linux, just the virtual session).
You want to play your favorite Windows games. Can they be emulated in Linux? Yes. Will they work as well? Most likely not. Frame rates will drop and overall gameplay won’t be as fluid. And no, saying "play on a console" is not a solution. There are many reasons why PC gamers like playing games on PCs and not consoles.
The only time I’ve seen Linux have a legitimate problem with emulation is when there’s any high-graphic app involved. The virtual software we have at present still can’t deliver performance as well as natively under Windows. It is virtual, after all.
In the end, I honestly can’t think of anything else that can’t be run in virtual or have a Linux native equivalent.
Have you run a Windows app in Linux that was a bust in WINE and/or virtual?
Name your apps. Did you find Linux equivalents or other creative ways of getting around virtual limitations? Let us know.
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Why go to all the hassle of running a Windows app in a virtual environment in Linux with reduced performance when you can simply plain “run it” in Windows without all the extra hassles? ‘Beats me.
It’s parallel to running a petrol engine on crude oil and installing a mini-refinery in your engine-space to turn the crude into petrol. It’s much simpler to drive into the gas station.
Sharron, that’s the silly attitude that makes this world Microsoft reliant!
There are always more than one way to do something, why should we always use windows. Plus, a lot of alternatives offer more functionality, plus some can be cheaper, which is always a big plus in my book.
I simply use the dual-boot method for my windows apps. At the moment I have Kubuntu x64, LinuxMint x86, and Vista X64 on seperate partitions for whatever my needs are at the moment. I use Linux for internet browsing, document writing, music listening etc. and use Vista for gaming, Photoshop, and some C++ coding. I’ve tried Wine, I didn’t like it. It was too much hassle to install my programs and to uninstall them when I found that they didn’t work. Not to say that the concept isn’t great, but it has too many quirks at the moment to be a good solution for me.
Touché, Sharon.
What gets me, is that most people who run Linux ALSO have a windows licence as it is attached to the hardware they buy. Their decision to ditch Windows for Linux is often on this smug sense of superiority that they “get it” and the rest are sheep. I mean, great! I used Linux for a while, and here are some of the things you can’t emulate on Linux:
a) Reliable printer support. It’s basic at best, and only on the popular models. The rest .. require a 4 page instruction sheet on how to install.
b) DirectX or any native / decent 3D support. WINE is not the answer. Why emulate the software environment you vilify
c) Frikkin WiFi.
d) Most of the features on ANY piece of hardware are not supported, beyond it’s basic functions. This is rather sad for two reasons. It doesn’t let you use what you paid for, it doesn’t in any way promote development or innovation.
Linux (at present) has one function – to create a dead simple / custom OS environment for a machine with basic uses. It simply cannot replace the compatibility of a windows box without extensive tech support.
What are the arguments FOR Linux, vs “why it can almost be as good as..” (which seems the bulk of the arguments.)
Updates: COOL! They are seemless, integrated, and cover all apps. Seems like a great solution. But .. how much time do you really spend updating? Not a lot, compared to the day to day. Also, I have seen two (and heard of more) Linux distros (especially ubumtu) getting nuked by an upgrade. I’ve never had more than a minor niggle with a service pack.
Security: This really ought to be a non-argument. Really. If you’re smart enough to run Linux then you’re smart enough to avoid malware. Or at least you should be. The argument that no native security software is needed gets nuked by how flipping hard doing basic tasks is. You can protect a PC with ease using free tools. It’s not a hassle. I personally chose to just avoid the malware .. and I have been clean for 3 years. (double checked every once in a while using a stand alone scanner).
Speed: Seems better at some things (leaner) but again, the added time in setting up simple things loses it on this front.
Compatibility: Effortless when it’s there, for sure. However, it is rock hard / impossible on some hardware, and support is less than 100% on all kinds of devices. Also, OSX and Windows now cover most things “out of the box.” On a recent format the only drivers I needed to install were for the nVidea GPU – and even the basic drivers had it running in 1600×1200 @ 32 bit (I needed (1920 x 1200)
Cost? It’s about the only argument for it. But add to this the fact that most users already have a license (see above.)
Finally, how much is your time worth? Mine is worth more than the few quid an OEM disk costs.
The last, last point .. I actually like to use the APPS installed on my machine, not spend all day f**king around with the OS making it do what I need, or looking for limited functionality clones of windows apps. If windows is so bad, why spend so much time copying most of it?
Its called dual booting. Works great!
Hey hi im affraid to keep alive this old post im using right now windows seven and using a program named virtual PC or XP mode wich was made for microsoft to virtualize and emulate XP as a other window, running on seven but i just saw something wich can make my day right now, i created another virtual machine with this program and i pressed supr at the start and it showed a motherboard menu so im about to try to emulate Linux in a windows program i really hope it works if anyone know about it please comment