2009-07-06 01:16:03 UTC
-Ease of use
-Stability
-Security
-Use of resources
-Scalability
-Gaming(ability to play games, not the actual games available to the operating system)
-Total cost of ownership
-Speed
-Rate of growth (frequency of updates and new releases)
I myself think Linux(not talking about the kernal, just Linux in general like Ubuntu and Fedora) is a prime contender for being the best operating system. Give reasons why once I get input from others. Also don't be afraid to talk about operating systems that aren't as well known as Linux, Windows and Mac OS X such as BSD and Solaris.
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I like Linux. Here are my reasons why:
Ease of use-It takes time to learn like any new OS since I was raised on Windows, but it only took a few hours to get the gist of Linux. Ubuntu Linux was very easy to use, as the GNOME desktop was very well organised. Also Linux came with workspaces, which meant I could switch between different desktops that ran different programs so that it doesn't feel cluttered. Even if I have a lot of programs running, I can just click a button to minimize all of them to find what I need.
I can also use Synaptic package manager. This makes finding and installing new software easy, as I can find whatever is available in repositories via incremental search and click to apply changes. This is much more efficient (in terms of time, safety and being less of a hassle) then searching the internet and finding a program that can potentially carry malware when you install it. I also don't have to see if the software will even work.
Even if I don't like the software, I can just uninstall it with Synaptic. One big advantage this has over Windows is that I don't have to worry about losing money from buying something I don't like since it came free anyway.
Another thing I want to mention is that installing of Linux is very easy. I could download Linux for free, burn the ISO onto a CD, and boot my computer with it. The main difference between a Windows installation and Linux installation was that I could install Linux to my HDD while doing stuff like browsing the internet and writing a text document. I can't say the same about Windows, since I had to install Windows to even use it, and even then it didn't come with certain drivers to make my hardware work.
Stability-Linux is superb in this field. I have never had a kernal panic when I use it. I used to have the notorious BSOD with earlier versions of Windows, but I have had good luck with XP and Vista.
However, if I was a person who ran servers for a large website or a business, you can count on me using a Linux kernel to run them. If there is one thing I would hate, it would be disgruntled customers who complain of my servers being down all time.
Security-I never have to worry about getting a virus or other malware when using Linux. This worry free mentality lets me surf the web with comfort. But don't think I'm not careful when using Windows, as I am careful about what content I'm viewing and what e-mails are risky to open.
Even so, it feels good that I don't need any virus protection that would consume system resources and cost me money.
Use of resources-Linux is very efficient in this field. I no longer hear constant blips when I use it, whereas my computer would be louder when running XP and even more so with Vista. It also helps that there is no virus protection and other programs running just to keep the computer secure, as this only consumes resources. I have noticed an extension in battery life for my laptop because of this.
Scalability-Another field Linux excels in, and this can go hand in hand with stability. However, it is worth noting that it can handle a large amount of data without crashing since it works great for clusters. This, and the amount of money saved from using a free operating system, makes it ideal for servers. In fact, many of the top websites on the web like Google and Amazon use Linux for their servers, along with countless other web sites.
Gaming-Linux doesn't have many games available compared to Windows. This is one of the areas Linux is lacking. However, I have found that a game running on Linux will inherently run better on it than on Windows. This would stem from how it is a beast in terms of scalability and stability.
Even if a game doesn't run natively on Linux, I can use WINE(WINE Is Not an Emulator) to run it. With WINE I can even run other programs that would run only in Windows under normal circumstances.
If an operating system were to run games better than Windows (and there are distributions of Linux tailored for a gaming environment) and it were to be free to download and distribute, then it would seem logical for developers to expand their business to a platf