Most of the times when I see disappointment from people after trying Linux, the cause turns out to be their expectation that the distribution is a clone of Windows. This is what I felt when I read Walt Mossberg’s Ubuntu review. Of course there are distributions that make your life easier, but there is a difference in the core, that cannot be hidden by makeovers. The easier distributions make the learning curve more gradual, but they can never hide the underlying.
You need to acknowledge the difference when you try a Linux distribution. The problem with expecting a clone is that you will expect the same ways of working and the same inefficiencies as well. Believe me that the biggest advantage of using Linux is not lesser money, but freedom, quality and community contribution.
If you do try a Linux distribution, give a thought to what do you really want from your computer instead of trying to make it behave like Windows. Do not try to replace Windows, try to find better solutions to your problems. You might improve your productivity, even if it means unlearning some of the Windows ways. Linux does many things better than Windows, and it can be better only by being different. See the difference, enjoy it and you will reap the benefits.
September 18th, 2007 at 8:29 am
Amen to that - too many people are looking for an alternative to Windows instead of something better.
September 18th, 2007 at 11:27 pm
I have to say that Mossberg’s review made me reconsider my intent to switch to Ubuntu. You make a very good point though. Now I’ll have to think.
September 19th, 2007 at 3:02 pm
Easier said then done. People have grown up using Windows, and using a Linux distro means it will be compared to Windows.
September 19th, 2007 at 4:00 pm
Thanks for your comments.
David, I will be glad if this helps you reconsider.
Rohit, I completely agree with you about the comparison. However, the comparison should help us understand which is a better solution, not how one clones the other. Better might mean changes, but you might not see the betterment if you do not accept the changes.
October 14th, 2007 at 10:28 am
[...] Vixta is a new distribution that is a Fedora based Vista clone. I wonder how far the cloaking will go, but it sure can pull people to use Linux. But I think they will continue using it when they start enjoying the difference. [...]
December 30th, 2007 at 5:10 pm
[...] whenever you give it a try, do not expect it to be a clone of your existing system. It cannot be better unless it is [...]
January 8th, 2008 at 11:27 pm
[...] also believe that things have to be different to be better. In fact this is something I have been using to decide whether to jump into learning a programming [...]
March 17th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
[...] it. It is fun to see that your contributions get accepted. Once you cross the initial hurdle of the difference from your existing environments, Linux is all [...]
April 25th, 2008 at 9:38 am
[...] This is a great article about the difference in Linux that I’ve read a couple of times. I thought it would be appropriate to share with it being Ubuntu Day. Linux is different. Enjoy the difference. [...]
August 11th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
[...] Bob Sutor, VP of open source and standards at IBM, has advice for Linux developers - do not copy Windows. True, I fully agree with him, Linux can be better than Windows only by being different. [...]
August 12th, 2008 at 11:25 pm
I am a long time Windows user who is curious about alternatives. I have absolutely no experience with Linux and when I saw the title of this article I was hoping for some specific examples of how Linux is different from Windows.
October 16th, 2008 at 10:55 am
[...] The other reason which was highlighted as usability problems, was perhaps an education problem, which we, as a Linux community should acknowledge. The worst way of adopting Linux is to get it to do things the way Windows does it. Linux can be better than Windows, but it can better only by being different. [...]