stupid question

[mindwave_21]

I'm a windows only user and was wondering what freeBSD was. I saw some pics at linear1.org and the layout seemed pretty sweet, and it looked as though windows programs were running. Oh yeah, what can you do with Linux/Unix systems that you can't with windows? I ask these questions because, frankly, I'm tired of spoon feeding Bill Gates
I'm asking these at this forum because I noticed that people here are willing to help out. By the way, thanks to all who looked at or responded to any of my posts!
peace!
mindwave

[Statica]

Hi mindwave:
freeBSD is a distribution of a type of UNIX called BSD UNIX. In the UNIX/Linux world, since the source code is essentially free, it gives a large number of companies to "distribute" their own version of the operating system. While the heart of the operating system, and its interaction with the hardware is essentially the same, there are minor differences between the distributions, that give the distribution its identity. For example, some distributions might install the operating system in a particular way, while some might come bundled with a whole lot more software, some others may be geared to the core user, which may not be user friendly, but is bloat free etc etc. Essentially, what you must get at is that all of it is essentially the same, its not like you have to learn multiple operating systems.
Over the last few years, UNIX and UNIX-like operating systems- like Linux etc etc (coined as the NIX), have had a move towards a better GUI to attract the uninitiated into the NIX world. This has given a lot of people like yourself, tired of Windows and Gates, the impetus to try it out. But again, at the heart of it all, is that DOS screen like console that gives the power. As you might well realize by the number of M$ desktops vs Linux desktops, that the GUI still has a long way to go, but for those that have actually had the patience to start off and learn the workings, its a most rewarding transition experience.

Now regarding, the difference between say a Linux (I will use Linux here, because most new users will benifit from the user-friendly confines of Linux, to a BSD) and Windows, well I could be here all day typing out why I laugh at Windows, but let me paraphrase with what I believe are key points to why I like it:
* more secure - the only caveat is that you need to know what to do
* more stable - at the heart of it, the NIX come with a beautiful set of file systems; applications are very conservative in use of memory, and dont crap up the entire system.
* faster with available hardware - windows is unnecessarily bloated, for the amount of tasks it does
* is more powerful than windows will ever hope to become
* gives you more choice than anything M$ will offer. Because the NIX arent necessarily the personal golden-egg-laying farm animal, you will find a lot more apps, a lot more desktops, a lot more ways to do things. I mean look at it .. a person wants linux .. *bam* there are 100's of distributions to choose from .. a person wants to install a GUI *bam* there are scores of desktop types to choose from .. compare to that one interface Windows gives you (which is incidentally stolen too) .. you want to configure your network .. *bam* .. there are dozens of WAYS to do it, from editting out the conf file to typing commands on a console to using your mouse and clicking here and there to ... ... you want to install an FTP service *bam* you have 1000s of free servers out there waiting to be used, heck the distribution CD will itself come with about 5-6 to choose from .. you want to set up a mail server .. you guessed it .. you have 100s to choose from .. .. heck, if you wanted the choice of having your computer run with loads of operating systems .. the NIX will accomodate that and will peaceful coexist with them all .. till win2k & XP were shoved down people's throats, all you had a choice of was being able to use FAT/FAT32 filesystems (which incidentally is garbage), Linux natively supports more filesystems than most people can count .. will even support Microsoft's filesystems .. along with BSD's or whatever ........ well you get the general idea.
* Nobody tells you what you can or cannot do with your computer (within limits of course) .. say you want to run a terminal service, you do not need M$ to tell you how many people u can serve information to .. there will be no MSN messenger service crapping up your computer if all you want to use is Yahoo ...
* its free

am sure there are many more that more people will help you with, but these are what I can muster this early.

Now to the grim reminder... most who try and then proceed to format out Linux; this is because they assume that since they've used Windows and can get around that they know what their computer is or they know what the NIX is. No, this works in a very different way, what you might think is your C drive is called differently in the NIX - there is a learning curve to getting the OS. So get yourself a book .. do the research in the beginning.

[Computer Hobbyist]

Click on this link if you want to learn more about FreeBSD. I think you will find the read interesting. Essentially it is a free NIX that was developed from the Berkley flavor of UNIX. It is primarily server software of the very highest order. It has had difficulty gaining a foothold in the face of Linux.

As to Linux -- it has seized much of the server market. Many (if not most) of the internet servers you routinely encounter run Linux. Why--its a whole lot less expensive than M$ and is at least as good if not better software. It is being used by folks in the handheld market who don't want to be beholden to M$ for an overpriced OS.

One point where I would disagree with my friend Statica is his assertion that the desktop gui needs more work. Actually in the last year the principal desktop gui's (KDE and Gnome) have both improved to the point where you can call them world class. XP's gui might be better and OSX's desktop might be better, but not by much in either case, and some would disagree that either is better in any case. Legacy M$ apps are the only reason I don't move completely to Linux.

Microsoft considers Linux to be the biggest threat faced by the company in at least the last decade. The reason Linux is such a threat is simple--open source which means the os source code is freely available to anybody who takes the time to download it. Because it is open source, untold thousands of folks are working with Linux source code on a day to day basis, while just a relative handful of Microsoft employees are working with Windows source code.

Surprisingly, open source means greater security. Why? Simple, threats are just easier to identify and because lots of people are working on solutions, solutions come immediately. Many of the security problems with Microsoft products persist long after they could have been fixed because of the nature of manpower allocation in a closed source environment. Also, because it is open source, product cycles are much shorter hence my willingness to say that the gui problems have largely been solved.

None of this is to say that open source doesn't have its problems.

The biggest is the relative lack of application software, particularily in the gaming arena. This is the result of a negative feed back loop. A developer needs a substantial market to make shrink wrapped software pay. There isn't a substantial Linux market. Therefore, developers won't develop shrink wrapped desktop software for Linux. But a substantial Linux desktop user base won't develop until there are shrink wrapped packages for the Linux desktop, but a developer needs a substantial market to make shrink wrapped software pay. Get the picture.

Even in this environment there are a lot of really good applications available--mostly you have to download them. You will never see them in your favorite Best Buy. Which leads people to the idea that there are no consumer applications for Linux, and that Linux is only for the server market. Wrong, Wrong, Wrong. Actually, your basic Linux distribution from RedHat, Mandrake or one of the others contains a full suite of applications far more than you ever get with M$.

I have rattled on too long.

CH

[Statica]

Hi CH:

I should perhaps have clarified with my statement on GUIs needing more work .. have moved over full time to Linux as a desktop solution starting with the now buried Eazel. The reason its lacking is not in the interface or the functionality, but in the idiot-proofing. It still isnt the hands-free MO that linux GUI proponents would like it to be .. for that I would have to give the honors to Apple & M$. There is a stability issue with GUIs as well (of course the good news is that it always gets thrown out onto the CL) - installation is still dicey in a lot of cases, agreed its not any more dicier than finding BSODs on Windows .. but its not up to Linux-standards, of stability.

Mindwave, CH brings up an extremely important point, that I forgot to mention, as I dozed off with my rambling .. Linux and the open source community has far superior support than Windows. For every error you get, there is probably about 60,000 documented reports and bug fixes (and most of them even in English). There have been occasions where I could directly email the author of a software code, and discuss the issues with her/him. Its not that the distribution isnt supported - if you buy the OS from the company direct, it gives you the same level of support that a M$ product would give you .. except often times it just isnt needed. As always, I like to point out that NIX heads are referred to as the Linux community or the BSD community etc ..
As CH pointed out, bug fixes are rapid, I mean, if you discover a security hole in your system .. you also have the source code with you, you could, if you knew what was going on .. patch it yourself, or you could wait for any one of the millions out there to patch it and contribute it.

[Computer Hobbyist]

Sorry Statica, I sometimes forget that the freedom to screw up a desktop is considered a weakness by some Linux proponents.

We should point out that by its very nature if I screw up my User desktop, I probably haven't screwed up my entire computer. One of the advantages of Linux is that it is a true multiuser OS and only the administrator (root), or somebody intentionally employing administrator powers delegated to him/her by the administrator, has the power to do real damage to the OS.

CH

[mindwave_21]

Thanks for all the info. CH, did you say that you don't move completely to Linux because of Legacy MS software? What kinds of programs are those? I'm guessing that I can't make the switch yet, considering I'm super-dependent on MS word, IE, and the usual computer game. Why can't all programs be compatible with multiple OS's?...awww cra...
(Oh yeah...BSD was developed at Berkeley? I'm going there in the spring to study CS...that's kinda nifty.
Oh one more thing, where can I find a good read about NIX software, I'm tired of bugging you guys, and I'm sure you're tired of me.
Mindwave

[Computer Hobbyist]

Word does not tie me to Windows. There are good Linux word processors that translate word documents. IE doesn't tie me to Windows either. Mozilla, Netscape, Opera, et al are every bit as good as IE. The only game I play on a regular basis is freecell and it is available on Linux.

The legacy software that ties me to Windows are an office accounting package, a time and billing package and a common calendar package. All of them only come in Windows versions and reside on my NT server. My office staff has spent too much time learning them to make any cold turkey conversion financially attractive. I have to admit that the time and billing package is not very good and if I could find a replacement I would.

My paralegal uses a Windows based bankruptcy package. If I had to I would just keep one Windows machine around for Best Case.

At home my personal machine is Linux. My daughter has an ME machine which I could swap to Linux if I could pry her fingers off the keyboard. Like a lot of teenagers for her the computer is an internet communications device and there are standard Linux apps that let you do instant messenger and video just like Windows. I think I am going to swap her out the next time I upgrade her machine. My wife's machine has windows98se. Like Windows98 machines everywhere it routinely falls victim to the BSOD. The only program my wife really is wedded to is Quicken which only comes in Windows, but I have been secretly experimenting with a program called moneydance on my Linux machine which does everything Quicken does. When she tells me that she is sick of all the crashes, I am going to upgrade her to Linux and Moneydance. I will import her data and she will be able to carryon as always.

The only other thing holding me back is that I recently installed a phoneline network, and I am waiting for the community to develop Linux drivers. If they don't I will just run an ethernet line to my wife's machine.

CH

[Computer Hobbyist]

You also asked for a good read about Linux. You might try going to www.linuxdoc.org and looking at the Linux Documentation Project.

CH

[aym]

Other good sources for learning Linux:
http://linuxnewbie.org
http://www.linuxquestions.org