What would make you switch to Linux?

[chk071]

I think the main problem is that people think they have to stop using the former OS, when installing a new one. Why not use, and profit from both? On my laptops, i have Mint/Ubuntu installed, because i don't need anything more when browsing the web, checking emails, and doing rudimentary video cutting or picture editing. On my desktop i have Windows 8 installed, because i like to play, and make music once in a while. I think especially the Linux people are way too narrow-minded, and ideologically hardened to even consider using both. And Windows user often think Linux is only for scientist. Be open, use both. My words of wisdom for tonight.

Oh, and i even consider it as a mistake immediately writing over a Windows installation, when you get a new laptop, and want to switch to Linux. I'm frequently browsing a Linux forum, and there's loads of users who, after some time of using Linux, miss their favourite Windows apps, and have not found a decent equivalent in the Linux world. There's hundreds of examples. The solution to emulate a Windows environment by using Wine very often won't work satisfactory. Mostly due to copy protections which are not working properly under Wine. Actually, i never even been able to run programs without flaws, even if they were freeware, and have no copy protection. Wine just literally never worked for me. So best to really carefully think whether you really want to fully get rid of Windows.

[t3toooo]

This thread is so wrong on so many levels.

Sorry for the harsh words but...

[UncleAge]

OS and hardware are secondary to the daw, instruments and fx. The ones I use are not available on Linux. Simple decision really.

With that said, I do wish there was a movement amongst devs to move things to Linux and develop that platform. I'm pretty sure that won't happen unless they are forced to do so.

And the programs mentioned earlier that have Linux versions are not the tools I use.

[VitaminD]

I had my interest in Linux 16 years ago, then in 2000 I bought Suse from a computer shop. It was nice and ok for basic needs and learning programming but after time I realised it is not ready for my other needs (music, web design and games). Then this occured again and again (almost every two years). I download a distro (or three!) and trying them, then spend one month or so , then reach to the same conclusion "It is nice and OK but not ready for my needs".

Three years ago, I stopped completely trying Linux (I also abandoned Java programming). I am now a happy user (sometimes C# programmer) of Windows 8, although to be honest I really dislike Metro and the online user (actually I hate it, so stupid), but other than that I'm faster in everything (more than OSX or Windows 7). Press the Windows key, scroll with mouse, click the desired program! Done! If it is not there, type some letters, and when it appears in the list, right click and pin to Start. Done!

Google offline user for windows 8 -- your account in Win8 doesn't have to be attached to a Windows/Live account.

Also google Classic Shell to boot to the desktop and get your start button/menu back.

[t3toooo]

...hmm need to write more to avoid misunderstanding.

Why Switch?

Just use it too

I recently recovered a broken 2006 medion laptop for a neighbor,she is short on the money and a ide hard drive would be not worth the investment.

I bought an 8 GB Kingston data traveler G4 and installed Ubuntu 14.04, created a minimal installation and installed Chrome.
Now she is using a modern os and an up to date browser.

Total cost 7 $.

Uhm,yes it's possible to download Blender and use it instantly with a double click.
The new energy xt beta is working too.

It's even nice to recover some data's from a f**ked up Windows installation...

A big thanks to Mark Shuttleworth.

[EnGee]

I had my interest in Linux 16 years ago, then in 2000 I bought Suse from a computer shop. It was nice and ok for basic needs and learning programming but after time I realised it is not ready for my other needs (music, web design and games). Then this occured again and again (almost every two years). I download a distro (or three!) and trying them, then spend one month or so , then reach to the same conclusion "It is nice and OK but not ready for my needs".

Three years ago, I stopped completely trying Linux (I also abandoned Java programming). I am now a happy user (sometimes C# programmer) of Windows 8, although to be honest I really dislike Metro and the online user (actually I hate it, so stupid), but other than that I'm faster in everything (more than OSX or Windows 7). Press the Windows key, scroll with mouse, click the desired program! Done! If it is not there, type some letters, and when it appears in the list, right click and pin to Start. Done!

Google offline user for windows 8 -- your account in Win8 doesn't have to be attached to a Windows/Live account.

Also google Classic Shell to boot to the desktop and get your start button/menu back.

Thanks for the reply, but I already have local user and using it. But, if you want to install something from the web store of MS, they require you to login with Online user. Maybe, there is a way around it. I will search further.

Oh, I don't think I need the Classic Shell. Actually I like the Start menu in Win 8.1 (all my used apps/synths/games are there). I use it all the time. It is faster than Windows 7 Start or Windows XP Start

[VitaminD]

I had a long winded response to the original post.. but I will say, instead, the same reasons people don't use Linux (over Windows) today are the same reasons they had 10 years ago.

Linux (as a whole) missed the bus by starting off with a different destination (corporate and research).

[ghettosynth]

I had a long winded response to the original post.. but I will say, instead, the same reasons people don't use Linux (over Windows) today is the same reasons they had 10 years ago.

Linux (as a whole) missed the bus by starting off with a different destination (corporate and research).

Yes, thankfully, Linux has kept itself reasonably grounded in the corporate/research setting where it is exceedingly useful and, IMNSHO, the best choice by a long shot.

[VitaminD]

I had a long winded response to the original post.. but I will say, instead, the same reasons people don't use Linux (over Windows) today is the same reasons they had 10 years ago.

Linux (as a whole) missed the bus by starting off with a different destination (corporate and research).

Yes, thankfully, Linux has kept itself reasonably grounded in the corporate/research setting where it is exceedingly useful and, IMNSHO, the best choice by a long shot.

Agreed.

[ghettosynth]

I think the main problem is that people think they have to stop using the former OS, when installing a new one. Why not use, and profit from both? On my laptops, i have Mint/Ubuntu installed, because i don't need anything more when browsing the web, checking emails, and doing rudimentary video cutting or picture editing. On my desktop i have Windows 8 installed, because i like to play, and make music once in a while. I think especially the Linux people are way too narrow-minded, and ideologically hardened to even consider using both. And Windows user often think Linux is only for scientist. Be open, use both. My words of wisdom for tonight.

If by that you mean having more than one machine, I agree. My work machine is Mint and I have two music machines, one running win 7 the other running OS/X. I made the mistake of trying to dual boot into windows 7 and linux on my old music machine. That by itself isn't a problem, but, writing to the NTFS partition from linux while win 7 was in the middle of an update was. I had forgotten about the update and had been booted in Linux for days.

I have had great luck with wine but mostly for fairly limited programs. I use it a lot for small obscure engineering programs. That said, Matlab works great under wine as well, and, in some sense, I prefer it to the native linux install.

But as far as why linux users don't like Windows/OSX, I think it depends on who you mean by linux users. I hate windows, really, I hate it, and there are a thousand reasons why, but, it's not because it's "closed source", per se. Moreover, I'd rather use it and get stuff done than cripple my music production with linux.

[fedexnman]

I dual boot tried to switch gave it a year and realized I missed VST plugins . Won't fool with WINE and VST either what a p.i.t.a. If Live Suite 9 came out for Linux , I'd switch for good or Reason 7 . Bitwig wasn't what I was hoping for. I like Ardour , Mixbuss , Tracktion , ReNoise and Hydrogen but patching it all together with JACK is not fun . Linux has some descent EQ plugins and there is ir lv2 reverb . I feel they need a Glue type buss compressor still they are lacking in the Plugin area still . As for hardware just do your research and homework before you buy.

[ghettosynth]

I dual boot tried to switch gave it a year and realized I missed VST plugins . Won't fool with WINE and VST either what a p.i.t.a. If Live Suite 9 came out for Linux , I'd switch for good or Reason 7 . Bitwig wasn't what I was hoping for. I like Ardour , Mixbuss , Tracktion , ReNoise and Hydrogen but patching it all together with JACK is not fun . Linux has some descent EQ plugins and there is ir lv2 reverb . I feel they need a Glue type buss compressor still they are lacking in the Plugin area still . As for hardware just do your research and homework before you buy.

I use Linux every single day, for hours, but, I never try to convince people that they should switch to it as if it's some reasonable alternative to Windows/OSx. If you need Linux, then usually you know that you need it and there are no other serious choices.

[robogone]

I dual boot Windows 8 with Ubuntu Linux. Best of both worlds - Windows 8 for music, and Linux for everything else.

[metamorphosis]

Linux is generally slower than Windows for most (consumer) tasks - which is understandable given that it does not have the money and time behind it that MS can afford, combined with the fact that we have optimised drivers written by manufacturers for windows, and seldom for linux - however - that is only for consumer tasks ie. those that require a graphical interface. In windows components of the interface is built into the kernel, in linux it is separate.
I can switch an older XP machine to Xubuntu - the speediest of the current generation of UI distros (bar lubuntu, which doesn't have the same graphical capabilities as either of the former))- and watch it slow to a f**king crawl.
I can do the same with switching from Win7.
However.
OS gui and usability Speed is not always relevant.
For IT support stuff I use linux.
If I were doing command-line-only work and had a choice, I'd use linux.
If I'm doing music, I want my VSTs to work, I don't want to f**k around. I use windows.

[AstralExistence]

Modern Linux desktop distros like Mint, Ubuntu, opensuse etc require about as much terminal usage as Windows or OSX ie not much, if any. The more advanced stuff you do, the more the terminal may creep in under all OSs.

very very true. i check in on linux every few versions. for me linux is based on an on going and indefinite empty promise. audio production never gets any better, the audio programs are mostly crappy diy projects that never get finished. wine, lol wine sucks! its such a joke. linux did have krita, which is an awesome painting application but now krita runs on windows too. steam games are hit or miss and you never know when you buy a game if it will work or work like shit. i believe spotify actually works now on linux took long enough!


open source sucks, inkscape brags about now being open source and still isn't v 1.0 yet after 14 years of there stupid summer of code project. linux is such an incredibly bad os and that will never change. i have to say for what it is, linux is making strides but that's just it, linux makes 1 stride, microsoft and apple make 100 after all, to see what linux could have become had it the funding simply look at apple. apple is unix based and is essentially a very successful ubuntu.