10 Reasons to Replace Windows with Linux

[Pierre]

Haa - - who needs a Power Failure ?.

+
Windows Is Updating - - 97% - 98% - 99% - 99% - 99% - 99% - 99%

Windows Update Has Experienced a Problem.
- windows will now restart . . . . . . .

Linux Is Not Windows.

[JerryF]

...
Who still needs a DVD drive?

Lots of people.

[JerryF]

[*]Support for older hardware
Yes, but it's getting harder with some versions of Linux, including Mint. I've looked into running 19 on some older computers and not getting good results. 18.3 is fine.

I disagree here.

I run 10 year old desktops (All brands prebuilt and home built) and I run old laptops (Dell and Acer).
I've had zero problems with Linux Mint 19 or Ubuntu 18.04 supporting older hardware OOTB.

I find Linux supports plenty of old hardware or at least all of my old hardware.

I didn't say no support, just that it's getting harder, now that some of the kernels have been whittled a bit.

[151tom]

.

[JerryF]

...
I didn't mean to say you did although it does sound that way.
My Apologies.
I suck at explaining myself when I have to explain what I mean in writing.

I can only base my Linux experience on my own old outdated computers.

[BG405]

I have had other Dell laptops and I believe they all had the same system.

My Dell Inspiron 1525 has the side caddy as well. I confess to having spent a while trying to work out where the hard disk was - and how to get to it - before I realized ..

If there is one time you really need to use your computer, it's when you turn it on to use it!

Exactly. Wonder how many have powered on their Windows 10 machine to use during their lunch break & it sits there the entire time doing updates .. .. mine, I just press a key & the screen lights up, within seconds it's ready to use. Even a cold boot doesn't take long. No messing around.

[ud6]

..mine, I just press a key & the screen lights up, within seconds it's ready to use. Even a cold boot doesn't take long. No messing around.

When hibernation still used to be a thing in linux mint, I didn't ever shut down fully. Ironic that a system that never needs to be rebooted (linux) seems to always have hibernation problems and a system that does need rebooting (windows) hibernates well.

[GS3]

My Dell Inspiron 1525 has the side caddy as well.

Such a laptop is ideal for "double booting". Just swap the drive and you are in another OS. No muss, no fuss. Initially the reason I bought another HDD for the laptop was that I wanted to try a drive with Full Disk Encryption so I bought a Seagate Momentus 7200 FDE which is totally transparent to the OS. When I installed it I thought I might as well install a different OS on it. Now I can switch between the two ... if I used that laptop at all. I have it kind of as a backup.

[BG405]

Ironic that a system that never needs to be rebooted (linux) seems to always have hibernation problems and a system that does need rebooting (windows) hibernates well.

Actually I haven't yet configured hibernation on the Manjaro machine. Think I'll need to add the swap UUID to the grub config..

Suspend usually works fine but I've been getting a weird intermittent issue lately (I think due to a kernel update) where the mouse pointer is invisible when it wakes up! Have to restart Plasma to restore it, doesn't kill any apps thankfully.

I used to have hibernation issues issues with Windows 7. Sometimes it would fail to resume properly .. & when the battery reached critical level, the OS would simply REFUSE to stay in hibernation - went through the motions but immediately woke up again - forcing me to carry the machine home to prevent it cooking itself in my bag, late at night, having to be very careful to avoid shocks whilst urgently needing to get the thing home & plugged in before it shut off. NOT ideal.

Such a laptop is ideal for "double booting". Just swap the drive and you are in another OS. No muss, no fuss.

It is indeed convenient. The machine is well overdue a replacement HDD (I have one I'm preparing; just haven't decided which OS & DE yet) & saves having to take the thing to bits. I'm also tempted to put a HDD caddy in the optical bay as although I do use the optical drive (& it's a decent one) I do also have a USB one.

Also, this:

Haa - - who needs a Power Failure ?.

+
Windows Is Updating - - 97% - 98% - 99% - 99% - 99% - 99% - 99%

Windows Update Has Experienced a Problem.
- windows will now restart . . . . . . .

Linux Is Not Windows.

[Valsodar]

The title of the post says it all...link provided below...enjoy...DAMIEN

http://dailylinuxuser.com/2018/08/10-re ... ystem.html

11th reason:



That's why I'll never install Dumbows 10, even if Micro$hit payed me to do so!

[JerryF]

...
When hibernation still used to be a thing in linux mint, I didn't ever shut down fully. Ironic that a system that never needs to be rebooted (linux) seems to always have hibernation problems and a system that does need rebooting (windows) hibernates well.

Hibernation works well for me.

[KBD47]

Windows 10 update policy is just insane. You would think a company with that much money could find a better way to handle OS updates. You get a choice when shutting down and it needs an update:

Update then shut down - which means you must babysit your computer to make sure Windows doesn't hang or otherwise screw up the update. Oh, and then when you do restart it you must wait for it to finish updating.

Shut down and restart - which requires babysitting your computer again, to make sure it doesn't hang or break.

Can't believe how dumb their update policy is.

Edit: nearly as bad - Onedrive. Microsoft shoves that down your throat, and it seriously slows down your computer, particularly during startup. I set a policy to disable it from syncing https://www.howtogeek.com/225973/how-to ... indows-10/. The the stupid thing still was running during startup in the startup applications and had to be disabled in a second place.

[Portreve]

The article contains any number of basic reasons to use GNU+Linux, but I have two niggles with it:

1. It misses the point when it talks about free and freedom; and
2. Using is not the same thing as switching, and this article isn't particularly motivating in that regard

I know from my own experiences that it's not about running GNU+Linux; it's about getting your data migrated so that you escape the bonds of entrapment. I admit to having exotic (or, perhaps better started, more exotic than usual) needs in that regard, but I also had an enormous amount of backgrounds and knowledge going into the process. Most folks barely have a clue what files are, and there's no way "the masses" have the competence or the interest in putting any effort forward.

[carum carvi]

It's about getting your data migrated so that you escape the bonds of entrapment. Most folks barely have a clue what files are, and there's no way "the masses" have the competence or the interest in putting any effort forward.

I agree with that. The one reason why I waited to make the switch was the fear of something new and how I would get my old data transferred to Linux. But that fear can easily be countered by the fact that Linux is FREE. I got to know LM17 because of a free cdrom that was attached to a german pc magazine. I put the cd rom inside my pc and it worked. Testing it without installation is by far the best hands on reassurance that somehting new isnt something troublesome. Those Live Dvd Iso's or Live Usb Iso's are the best charm offence that Linux can make. Try it out for free. And guess what ? It works splendidly.

The reason I switched to Linux for good was when I started using Windows7 for internet purposes. Before I had used Windows7 as a standalone pc. When I encountered the numerous update issues with Windows7 I decided to throw it out. Those updates errors drove me mad.

The other compelling reason why I really wanted to switch to Linux was because it is much more safe and secure than Microsoft.

Furthermore I endorse, support, cheer on any alternative to the monopoly of multinational corporations like Microsoft.

[Valsodar]

Windows 10 update policy is just insane. You would think a company with that much money could find a better way to handle OS updates. You get a choice when shutting down and it needs an update:

Update then shut down - which means you must babysit your computer to make sure Windows doesn't hang or otherwise screw up the update. Oh, and then when you do restart it you must wait for it to finish updating.

Shut down and restart - which requires babysitting your computer again, to make sure it doesn't hang or break.

Can't believe how dumb their update policy is.

Reading all over the internet about Dumbows 10 updates, I think that function should be renamed to "Sit down, restart and drink a few coffees. This process may take forever, please wait...".

There's also something that amazes me about Dumbows 10 updates - whether on a PC or on a mobile device: updating does take forever. While I was using the Lumia 532, every time it needed to update it downloaded an update between 500 MB and several gigabytes. The smallest update took an hour. As a matter of fact when I upgraded from Windows 8 to 10 (that Lumia came with Windows , this whole process took much less time than any of the next updates.
For comparison - when I bought my new phone - Redmi Xiaomi Note 5A with Android 7.1.1, at first run there was a huge update - 1.2GB update file. It was downloaded in 20 minutes (bc I'm in Eastern Europe and the update server is most probably in China) and the updating process took about 5 minutes. It all happened so fast I didn't even notice when it was completed.
And it's the same with all the distroes I have ever tried (Mint included) - downloading happens even faster cuz I choose local mirrors and everything updates in less than 5 minutes. Not a single time I saw a message "Updating process failed. Restoring previous version, please wait for a few hours".
That alone should be enough reason to kick Windows in its S and replace it with a distro of the user's choice.

[AZgl1800]

for me,
I just put the Windows computer on the local WiFi network.

then in Linux, I just navigated to where the files were that I wanted, and sucked them onto the Linux data folders where they belong.

I also have a 6 TB HDD that backs up the Win7 computer, so I could just shuffle that over to Linux and pull them off that if I wanted it all, which I don't.

[BG405]

I think that function should be renamed to "Sit down, restart and drink a few coffees. This process may take forever, please wait...".

There's just one issue with that .. omit the "please" and it better reflects the process. They don't ask, so even though politeness is inferred, it is meaningless.

There is no excuse for a desktop OS to schedule an update requiring and forcing a restart without user (or admin) interaction. Period.

[rui no onna]

There is no excuse for a desktop OS to schedule an update requiring and forcing a restart without user (or admin) interaction. Period.

This is absolutely correct.

[Valsodar]

Can you imagine a plane run by Windows 10? In the middle of the flight when the plane is up high in the sky, Windows 10 decides to update and here comes the message: "Windows update process has begun. Shutting all engines down. Sit tight and hold on to something in the next 24 hours".

[catweazel]

Can you imagine a plane run by Windows 10? In the middle of the flight when the plane is up high in the sky, Windows 10 decides to update and here comes the message: "Windows update process has begun. Shutting all engines down. Sit tight and hold on to something in the next 24 hours".