The fire that rages on concerning Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X and Linux as far as “which is better” continues to burn hotly. You will find zealots (a.k.a. “fanboys”) for each party, but the plain fact of the matter is this: that they’re all wrong because that’s not what the future of computing is about.
What is proprietary?
Proprietary as it pertains to computers refers to anything that must be tethered to something else in order for it to work, be it hardware or software.
Example 1: The Mac OS X operating system is proprietary to the Apple Macintosh computer. If you don’t have a Mac, the OS won’t work.
Example 2: Desktop computer gaming as a whole is proprietary to the Microsoft Windows operating system. If you don’t have Windows, you can’t run the latest/greatest games.
As of now…
At this point in time you cannot escape the proprietary nature of computers. Even if you run a Linux-based operating system like Ubuntu there is certain hardware it “likes” more than others. This is not to say a Linux distribution is proprietary because it isn’t. However there is preferential “treatment” per sé for certain hardware (i.e. whatever more people use will usually get drivers written for it first).
Are we in a better situation now compared to before?
Absolutely. Prior to the advent of technologies like USB, most computers were proprietary to a fault. We are inching closer to a time when operating system just won’t matter any longer. We’re not there yet but it’s coming.
Using Windows?
Most likely you are. And maybe you’ve thought about the future to the tune of “What will happen when my PC goes completely obsolete? What do I do then? Do I have to start this crap all over again?”
You don’t have to start all over again. Instead you just have to prepare and it’s easier than you think.
Going anti-proprietary
To go anti-proprietary simply means to use software that is not proprietary to any one operating system. By doing this you give yourself the following advantages:
- You can keep your existing setup without having to buy a new computer.
- When you do buy a new computer (or switch operating systems) you know that what you use will work.
- You can mix and match between OSes seamlessly and know you wont have to re-learn things over and over again.
Your choices for going anti-proprietary
- Internet-based applications.
- Open source software with multiple-OS releases.
Internet-based apps is any application that requires the internet in order for it to work.
Some examples:
- E-Mail: Hotmail, Yahoo! Mail, Gmail
- Office-based (word processing, spreadsheets, etc.): Thinkfree, Google Docs
- Photo storage/management: Flickr, Picasa, Zooomr
- Media publishing: Zazzle, Lulu, CafePress
- Image editing: Online Image Editor, myImager
- Instant messaging: Meebo, RadiusIM
Open source based apps are applications installed to your computer directly.
Here are some examples that have releases for multiple OSes:
- E-Mail: Mozilla Thunderbird
- Office-based: OpenOffice, AbiWord
- Photo storage/management: Picasa
- Image editing: GIMP, CinePaint
- Instant messaging: Pidgin, aMSN
The pros and cons of going anti-proprietary
Concerning internet apps:
Con: There is no guarantee that the app you’re using on the internet will be there tomorrow. None. If it goes offline, you’re up the creek without a paddle. As a general rule of thumb, internet apps that have a subscription fee option (like Flickr) have a much higher chance of sticking around compared to ones that are completely free.
Pro: You can use these apps anywhere on any computer using any OS as long as the computer is connected to the internet (and what computer isn’t these days?)
Con: If your internet goes down (which does happen from time to time), you can’t get to your apps.
Pro: All apps these days a highly internet-centric anyway, so pushing your stuff to the internet is a sound idea.
Concerning open source apps:
Con: If the team of authors for a particular open source app you use decide to say “screw it” and not support it any longer, that app quickly becomes vaporware.
Pro: The cost to use open source is $0.00.
Con: Documentation is sometimes lacking or nonexistent.
Pro: Most open source apps have wikis or forums that will provide you with all the documentation you need, plus the opportunity to ask questions if you need to. (Side note: Strangely enough, many paid software titles offer little to no online documentation other than a “FAQ” and almost no end user communication – unless you pay for it of course.)
Con: Many open source apps aren’t “pretty”.
Pro: Who cares what it looks like as long as it works?
Going anti-proprietary will ease the pain of transition when the time comes
Are you using Windows XP now? Then you know you’re running an old OS. Yes, it works – for now. But eventually it won’t. It will come to a point where it becomes so obsolete that it’s unusable in modern-day computing.
If you use and familiarize yourself with alternative open source and web-based apps, this makes the transition from one OS to another much easier. Moreover you can make your transition when you’re ready to without being forced. You will have the comfort of knowing that the stuff you use now will work no matter what newer computer you may use in the future.
How do you get started?
Stop using Internet Explorer and start using Firefox. Stop using Microsoft Office and start using OpenOffice. Stop using an e-mail client and start using a web-based version. Start transitioning as much of your computer stuff as possible to the internet (but always keep a local backup for obvious reasons). Try some of the titles linked above.
Remember: Do this now and you won’t be forced to do it later.
Now that I think about it, I’ve already started. I use Linux, gmail (webmail interface, although I used to use POP with Thunderbird), Firefox, and Openoffice. I still use Windows for some stuff, though, mostly gaming, as you said. I also run Photoshop in wine while in Linux, as I can’t stand using the GIMP.
Not even cock au vin can beat Photoshop in wine: It’s the taste!
Seriously though; Open Office just doesn’t cut it; and Microsoft Office is the industry default standard.
Au contraire; I love running the Gimp – In Windows of course.
Rich, this was to me a very interesting article, an eye opener! I took the decision to adjust only in 2007, late but not too late, I guess. We’ve had this interesting (scary to some though) debate then with some of my work colleagues and I immediately, though slowly began to set up one of the family’s old PIII desktop to run strictly on open software, strictly non-proprietary and you know what? We (family) do not rehret this as we’ve also gotten an opportunity to learn Linux-Ubuntu. One of the cons with this option is still the difficulty of obtaining compatible or equivalent software to replace the windows-based chemical structure drawing package such as “ChemDraw Software” (I am chemical research scientist involved in lots of chemical structure drawings). Being a very heavy user and supporter of Windows XP, I have also started to intergrate some of the web-based applications that you mentioned on my home Windows XP laptop. My daughter is gonna have quite a challenge after having gone fully the “Mac way” as a graphic design student – but I guess she’ll also have to adjust as time goes.
All in all, I share the same sentiment, if you like, one of those “Naustradama’s prophesies” with you as regards the future of computers, internet, OS’s, cloud computing and related issues.
Rich why have you suddenly gone all anti-Windows and started suggesting that we use only open-source inferior products? A few weeks ago you were going on about how Linux sucks: Something tells me that this is another “situation normal” where a man doesn’t know his own mind and would even start arguing with himself if he could remember what he forgot.
Inferior? Quite the contrary – many opensource applications are just as good, if not better, than their commercial counterparts. Examples are CinePaint (mentioned in the article) and Blender (www.blender.org). Both are used by professional companies in the film and videogame industries.
And you may not like Openoffice, but I have yet to find a reason to use Microsoft Office in place of it. The reason it’s the ‘industry standard’ is because Microsoft has had a stranglehold on the market for years. Now that’s slowly changing.
The reason that I use Microsoft Office rather than Open Office is that M$ Office renders everything much better; at least in IE6 & 7 – IE7 still being my favourite browser. I know I know; but it is so there. Firefox and the others just don’t quite make the same standard when running Windows XP for an os. Also I do like the GUI of Office 2007 – and I am aware a heck of a lot of people will disagree with me on that alone: I had issues with it at first – but after using it a couple of weeks I got to really like it.
You say that M$ Office is the industry standard because M$ had a stranglehold on the market until recently. Whilst I agree with you that M$ did indeed have a stranglehold on the market to a certain extent I beg to differ inasmuch as I honestly don’t believe it is because of that fact: Rather I believe it is the fact that MS Office is better developed that makes it the leader in its class. Te reason for that is that MS have thrown a load of money into developing it – Money that open-source programmers, no matter how well intentioned, simply don’t have.
Let’s face it; the fact is that money talks, no matter what the language.
Internet Explorer does not live up to standards, actually, whereas Firefox and Opera, for example, do. The reason Office renders everything better in IE is because they are both Microsoft applications.
As for the GUI of Office 2007, I must agree that it is rather pretty, and probably will never hold a candle to OpenOffice.
And no matter how much money may ‘talk’, I personally do not believe that more money invested equals a better program. Effort is key here, not cash. Building upon that, I know people say time is money, so yes, in a sense the program quality is better when more money (time) is put into a program, but as I’ve said I don’t think cold hard cash has anything to do with quality.
I don’t care for storing my personal data or information on the internet for two major reasons.
1. This requires too much trust in strangers. I simply do not trust and should not trust the people, jokers, screw ups, crooks and website administrators would who have access to my data. Why in hell should I trust them? Too much of peoples personal information has been released to the public and there are no laws or penalties which prohibit the release of personal information. Peoples private information is bought and sold like a commodity in fact.
It always seems like its computer geeks who have no problem advising people to put all their data on the internet. In many cases, its these same geeks that have access to your personal information through their jobs. Sure geeks don’t mind, they know how to protect their information…but does the typical computer user? Hell no!
2. As you said, for this to work you must have an internet connection.
if you use the internet for anti-proprietary reasons you are being proprietary of the internet so u can never truly be anti-proprietary.
BTW, I tried Open Office…it sucked big time. Nothing was intuitive. I gave up after a half hour.
Nothing was intuitive? Are you kidding me? It’s gotta be one of the easiest applications to use, and in my opinion, MS Office is the non-intuitive app.
Maybe you tried an older version of OpenOffice, maybe you should try it again. Of course, you may be talking about a different part other than Writer – I have no experience with the rest.
“Nothing was intuitive!”
So it is intuitive to find Shrink to Fit as a button on the Print Preview instead of like WordPerfects Make it Fit under the Format menu where it should be. Besides the fact that Words version is next to useless.
“I gave up after a half hour.”
If you only gave it half an hour you didn’t really trie it at all. How many people moving to Word would achieve anything in half an hour. I sense someone who doesn’t like change.
No, it wasn’t intuitive. Why should it take over a half hour just to figure out how to type a letter?
You open up Word and bam….you just start typing. File/print..and its done…period. Real easy.
It does not take a computer geek to figure it out.
Dude, you have problems if it took you that long to figure out how to type in OpenOffice, it’s exactly the same as Word, as is the Print function, AND practically every other ‘basic’ function that’s in every other word processor.
And when I say MS Office is the lesser in terms of being intuitive, it’s because I find the menu systems confusing, but that’s because I’m used to OpenOffice now.
I use Linux on a USB drive, no problems. I don’t even buy the equipment any more and I get all the apps to email, browse etc.