Linux is dead? Seems pretty alive to me.

[MurphCID]

I called our MIS guys today to see if they could help me with something on my MInt installation, and spoke with the guy who runs our mailserver and network. I asked him about linux and helping me configure something, and he told me that no one in the real world uses Linux any more except for Supercomputers, and heavy league coders working for Microsoft. Everyone else uses Microsoft products for the server farms, and email servers is what I got told. Now I might have a small complex in regards to a new Linux adopter but I thought that there were more Linux users out there doing lots of things. Is Linux really dead or dying, and Microsoft server software taking its place as the new standard? After all these years of trying to get a Linux distro to install and just work, I am a little apprehensive.

Q: did ms pay him to spout all that...

A quick Google search will indicate how many distros are around and how many of them are live.. also, a check of boards like these will indicate that linux is actually growing..

A fun fact: linux is the most heavily used os to date.. android is in the lead and android is built on top of a linux machine..

You should have blown a raspberry at him. Lol

I pretty much ignore him.

[rambo919]

The problem with market share numbers is they are fundamentally flawed in that they use internet connections to judge while many machines never see the light of the web. Still there are many more Windows machines than Linux one's because up to now windows has "just worked".... with win10 the "just work" attribute is eroding and there is no real telling whether its a bubble that will burst. Most normal people could even stick with winxp forever if it did not become as unusable as it currently is especially the older folk than dont want to re-learn anything and just want to get on with life.... u want to confuse and scare a typical pensioner have him navigate UAC or passwords nvm UEFI oddities.

So no Linux is not dead, it's kinda undead while Windows is rotting with the two meeting in the middle while Macintosh chips in from the side since it's basically a rich man's toy especially in the third world where it's extremely expensive.

[Arch_Enemy]

A fun fact: linux is the most heavily used os to date.. android is in the lead and android is built on top of a linux machine..

You should have blown a raspberry at him. Lol

Is that a Raspberry Pi?

[whm1974]

The problem with market share numbers is they are fundamentally flawed in that they use internet connections to judge while many machines never see the light of the web. Still there are many more Windows machines than Linux one's because up to now windows has "just worked".... with win10 the "just work" attribute is eroding and there is no real telling whether its a bubble that will burst. Most normal people could even stick with winxp forever if it did not become as unusable as it currently is especially the older folk than dont want to re-learn anything and just want to get on with life.... u want to confuse and scare a typical pensioner have him navigate UAC or passwords nvm UEFI oddities.

So no Linux is not dead, it's kinda undead while Windows is rotting with the two meeting in the middle while Macintosh chips in from the side since it's basically a rich man's toy especially in the third world where it's extremely expensive.

Funny but I have always found Linux to be easier to install and setup even back in 1998 when I first ran across Red Hat Linux. Of course I read up on Linux and the documentation before I installed it, but when I started using Linux full-time in 2002 and quickly end up only using Windows for gaming pretty much.

[Arch_Enemy]

I have some sad, sad news...

Today I installed..

WINDOWS 8!

There is an opening at work for a Help Desk Analyst and they run Win10, so I need to be able to manouver in Windows.

Of course, I installed it on an older, small HD just to have it installed and play with it. It's been many years since I used Windows daily, and have 7 installed on another drive basically just to print photos to my driverless Canon printers.

In the workforce, Windows is still 'de facto'.

[DAMIEN1307]

BLASPHEMY...lol...DAMIEN

[Arch_Enemy]

BLASPHEMY...lol...DAMIEN

Yeah, I know...but sometimes you just have to buck up and do it. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do!

Of course, if I ever DO get the job, I'm going to start turning them to Mint...

[lsemmens]

Of course, if I ever DO get the job, I'm going to start turning them to Mint...

Isn't that what they call "conquest by infiltration"?

[Arch_Enemy]

Of course, if I ever DO get the job, I'm going to start turning them to Mint...

Isn't that what they call "conquest by infiltration"?

Hit it right on the head!

BTW, I'm back "home" now. Mint 19!

[DAMIEN1307]

aaaahhhh a budding 5th columnist in the making...lol...DAMIEN

[MurphCID]

I have some sad, sad news...

Today I installed..

WINDOWS 8!

There is an opening at work for a Help Desk Analyst and they run Win10, so I need to be able to manouver in Windows.

Of course, I installed it on an older, small HD just to have it installed and play with it. It's been many years since I used Windows daily, and have 7 installed on another drive basically just to print photos to my driverless Canon printers.

In the workforce, Windows is still 'de facto'.

Ugh, Windows 8 was terrible, even 8.1 was terrible. While Windows 10 is the most stable of the Windows, it pretty much has completely removed my ability to "get under the hood" and tinker.

[Arch_Enemy]

I have some sad, sad news...

Today I installed..

WINDOWS 8!

There is an opening at work for a Help Desk Analyst and they run Win10, so I need to be able to manouver in Windows.

Of course, I installed it on an older, small HD just to have it installed and play with it. It's been many years since I used Windows daily, and have 7 installed on another drive basically just to print photos to my driverless Canon printers.

In the workforce, Windows is still 'de facto'.

Ugh, Windows 8 was terrible, even 8.1 was terrible. While Windows 10 is the most stable of the Windows, it pretty much has completely removed my ability to "get under the hood" and tinker.

Indeed. However, so far Win8 is better than <SHUDDER> VISTA!. I was on the beta. My last email to Microsoft: "I am writing over the hard drive Vista is installed on and reinstalling Linux. Vista is the worst operating system I have seen since Window ME. Good Luck."

[lsemmens]

While Windows 10 is the most stable of the Windows, it pretty much has completely removed my ability to "get under the hood" and tinker.

Until Patch Tuesday in January, I would have agreed. That was what drove the last nail into the coffin of Windows for me. Not to mention the "Hurry up and wait whilst we install......."

[Arch_Enemy]

While Windows 10 is the most stable of the Windows, it pretty much has completely removed my ability to "get under the hood" and tinker.

Until Patch Tuesday in January, I would have agreed. That was what drove the last nail into the coffin of Windows for me. Not to mention the "Hurry up and wait whilst we install......."

I used to love Windows. I was a Windows Whiz. I was the GoTo guy at the helpdesk for Windows issues. '95, 2000, 3.11...great stuff. Then ME came out, followed by Vista. Then Win 8. I call Microsoft the "Every other version" company.

Oh, I was a DOS whiz kid, too. Batch File Master. Those days are gone!

The only reason I'm running 8 is because I got a copy when I was a Dell tech. I think I have a copy of 10 around here...somewhere...

Truth is, I installed 8, used it for 2 days, said UGH as went back to my Arch installation. Then came back to Mint. The only reason I installed 8 again is the company has an opening for a helpdesk tech!

[lsemmens]

I started off back in DOS, too. ME has the dubious honour of lasting the shortest time on any of my machines, (15 minutes!) M$ has always been Miss and Hit. I started with Dos 2, did not bother with 3 or 4, Windows 2 was Ho Hum, 3 was my go to until W95 came out, Strangely enough, I never did find any advantage to W98. ME (I call it Missed Edition) drove me to look elsewhere and Windows 2000 became my goto OS until XP. Vista? (Hissta more likely) W7 was a breath of fresh air, Windows 8? should have been left in the stalls. Windows 10 was great until they started mucking with it. After numerous BSODs (which I thought were finally behind me) I decided that Linux is worth another look. I even considered OS/2 as a great alternative to Windows, but it just could not gain any traction. I dabbled in various builds of Linux but were too much work to get running smoothly. Mint, just works!

[MurphCID]

While Windows 10 is the most stable of the Windows, it pretty much has completely removed my ability to "get under the hood" and tinker.

Until Patch Tuesday in January, I would have agreed. That was what drove the last nail into the coffin of Windows for me. Not to mention the "Hurry up and wait whilst we install......."

I used to love Windows. I was a Windows Whiz. I was the GoTo guy at the helpdesk for Windows issues. '95, 2000, 3.11...great stuff. Then ME came out, followed by Vista. Then Win 8. I call Microsoft the "Every other version" company.

Oh, I was a DOS whiz kid, too. Batch File Master. Those days are gone!

The only reason I'm running 8 is because I got a copy when I was a Dell tech. I think I have a copy of 10 around here...somewhere...

Truth is, I installed 8, used it for 2 days, said UGH as went back to my Arch installation. Then came back to Mint. The only reason I installed 8 again is the company has an opening for a helpdesk tech!

Good luck. Helpdesk, that is painful.

[BG405]

I used to love Windows. I was a Windows Whiz.

Same here, from the DOS days. Had ways of getting Windows to install on old dinosaurs by moving DOS stuff to himem & using DoubleSpace to avoid the "storage too small" error etc.. & years of being the one on the end of the phone whenever someones' computer crashed ...

Win95 "C" was, I think, the first to support USB. Even with Win7 (maybe later), they still hadn't got it right .. & of course, later on the fight to keep GWX & related stuff off the system. Then the OS died the last time I connected the USB flatbed scanner. Of course it now works fine in Linux & it's great that it actually doesn't matter at all which USB port one plugs things in to, in Linux, which is how it's supposed to work.

[KBD47]

Until Patch Tuesday in January, I would have agreed. That was what drove the last nail into the coffin of Windows for me. Not to mention the "Hurry up and wait whilst we install......."

For me it was the April update that ended it for me. I went 5-6 years Windows free, then bought a computer that had Windows 10 on it and decided to use it awhile so I could figure it out. After April update my computer slowed down and started running hot. That was enough Windows for me. Back to Windows free and don't miss it.

[Portreve]

Win95 "C" was, I think, the first to support USB. Even with Win7 (maybe later), they still hadn't got it right .. & of course, later on the fight to keep GWX & related stuff off the system. Then the OS died the last time I connected the USB flatbed scanner. Of course it now works fine in Linux & it's great that it actually doesn't matter at all which USB port one plugs things in to, in Linux, which is how it's supposed to work.

I still get a laugh out of how there was an entire era of x86 hardware hobbled by Microsoft's failure to embrace new standards.

While PC users were buying USB-equipped hardware, Mac users were buying computers which actually made use of USB. In fact, it's likely the last era of innovation from Apple, and certainly an end of a period where I could without question feel proud to have been a Mac user.

[Arch_Enemy]

I used to love Windows. I was a Windows Whiz.

Same here, from the DOS days. Had ways of getting Windows to install on old dinosaurs by moving DOS stuff to himem & using DoubleSpace to avoid the "storage too small" error etc.. & years of being the one on the end of the phone whenever someones' computer crashed ...

Win95 "C" was, I think, the first to support USB. Even with Win7 (maybe later), they still hadn't got it right .. & of course, later on the fight to keep GWX & related stuff off the system. Then the OS died the last time I connected the USB flatbed scanner. Of course it now works fine in Linux & it's great that it actually doesn't matter at all which USB port one plugs things in to, in Linux, which is how it's supposed to work.

Yeah. I had '95 "With USB support" and never was able to get anything to work! Even 2000 had teething issues with USB. When I was repairing Dells the OS would go through, take inventory, boot to the GUI and it was still a few seconds before the KB became active. And that was Win 7!