Linux FAQs
I decided to create this page to aid anyone toying with the idea of
trying Linux to come to an informed decision regarding if it's for
them. Feel free to ask me anything not covered here and if it's a
good 'un, I'll add it!
Q. What is Linux?
A.
Linux was 'invented' in the early '90s by Linus Torvalds of
Helsinki University. It is a kernel, which is basically the part
of a system that deals directly with computer hardware. Since
that time many individuals and very large companies (Such as IBM and
even Microsoft!!!) have contributed code to the Linux kernel.
Again, many companies and individuals have contributed code which
works with the Linux kernel to give us the wide choice of Linux
distributions that we can use as our day to day systems.
Q. Why Linux? Isn't Windows good enough? Seven hundred and twelve gazillion people can't be wrong can they?
A.
If you want a day to day system that is safe and secure on the
internet, is very unlikely to crash/hang/freeze and with a bit of
knowledge and help can be tailored to how YOU want it then I don't
think Windows is right for you. Linux is much better at meeting
these criteria. With regard to the difference in the number of
users, it's inertia! Everyone else uses Windows, you've always
used it etc. Small pushes are changing the course slightly.
Go ahead and add your push.
Q. What about all my files I created in Windows? What if someone sends me something from their Windows PC?
A.
There are Linux equivalents to pretty much all the common Windows
applications and they are pretty good at dealing with file formats like
.doc, .ppt, .xls and lots of other widely used ones. Name me a
(Common!) file format and I'll name you a Linux app that opens it.
Q. OK, so I've got an uncommon one. I still need Windows for that!
A.
Lots of people do have an indispensible application that there is
currently no alternative to. You can have the best of both worlds
by various means like dual booting, running Windows in a virtual
machine from Linux, using the WINE application and so on.
Q. Isn't Linux illegal or something? Won't Microsoft sue me?
A.
Last I heard, Linus Torvalds was free to go about his business
and not locked up in a dungeon somewhere in Redmond... I've been
using Linux for the most part of 8 years and the police have not
knocked on my door once. All the licences you will be agreeing
to, if asked in a EULA style dialog box, are perfectly legitimate.
Q. How much is it? I've heard it's free! How can that be?
A.
You are encouraged to contribute if you use a Linux distribution.
This can include buying a subscription, making a financial
contribution or even just being an active member of the community by
asking and answering questions on an internet forum or by testing
things and reporting bugs.
Q. Will I have to do things on the command line/in a terminal?
A.
There may be things that you want to achieve as you gain more
experience and confidence that require you to use that powerful and
versatile tool called the command line! For most needs, you
shouldn't need to though. I've had to edit the registery on
Windows machines before to get things to work how I want them and
that's far risker and trickier than the Linux command line!
Q. There's no support help line!
A.
For some distributions, there may well be! Of course you
will have to pay for the priviledge. As I mentioned in the above
answer, there is a thriving community online in general and
distribution specific forums. These are all 'manned' by end users
like you and me, so some are friendlier than others but if you post a
question in a considerate manner, you are likely to get a considerate
and helpful reply back. I have had some of my questions answered
within an hour or two by the main developer in the past...
Q. Will Linux run on my hardware?
A.
Choose a distribution that looks best for you based on the
applications available, the type of desktop they use as standard, how
good the support/forums seem etc. Make a Live CD following the
instructions that should appear in their documentation and try it!
Q. Isn't Linux only for bearded commie geeks who wear sandals AND socks etc...?
A.
Absolutely not, although the above are welcome too! You may
have noticed the number of funky Netbook devices that are on sale at
the moment that have Linux installed? You certainly already use
Linux on a day to day basis. Your network router at home probably
has it as an embedded operating system and a great deal of the internet
is hosted on Linux machines running open source web applications.
I
think that covers a lot of initial concerns. As I mentioned,
please ask me anything I may have missed! Remember, there are
other operating sustems out there to consider too! OS X,
BSD, Solaris etc... By the way, the observant among you may
have noticed that I am being lazy in referring to the whole system as
Linux. Of course, Linux only properly refers to the kernel.
I suppose I could have used GNU/Linux in all of the above
or talked about Linux based distributions like Debian, Mepis, antiX,
Ubuntu, SuSE, Red Hat and so on....
Page
created 19th November 2009