Linux vs Windows: The Netbook Question

1 comment | 1I like it!
May 15, 2009, 11:32 AM —  PC World — 

Jim Getten is planning to buy a netbook. Should he go with Linux or Windows?

That's a good question, and one that I haven't yet decided for myself. Here's how I see it:

Linux is smaller, faster, free, less prone to crashes, and much less likely to get infected with malware.

On the other hand, you already know Windows, so going with Linux requires a learning curve.

Another problem: There's less software available for Linux, and what is available isn't always what you're used to. For instance, if you work primarily in Microsoft Office, Linux will require you to learn an alternative like OpenOffice. That's yet another learning curve.

I recommend you try Linux on your current PC before making your decision. Ubuntu Linux is one popular distribution that's extremely easy to set up and get running. You can boot it directly from the CD (which you burn from a downloaded .iso file), install it from inside Windows, or put it onto a bootable flash drive.

Add your comments to this article below. If you have other tech questions, email them to me at answer@pcworld.com, or post them to a community of helpful folks on the PCW Answer Line forum.

PC World

Sign up for ITworld's Daily newsletter
Follow ITworld on Twitter @IT_world

I like it!
Close

On Twitter now

linux

Powered by Twitter
You are logged in | Sign out
Sign in and post to Twitter

What are you thinking?

Cancel Tweet sent

On Twitter now

Comments

Linux on 'netbooks'

The 'Windows-only' issue isn't very relevant, if you use the Wine compatibility layer. A little slower, but it works.

Windows users might like a distro that uses the IceWM windows manager. A good one is the Vector Linux 6.0 Light Edition:

http://vectorlinux.com/downloads

When installing, use either the XFS, or JFS filesystems (the installer gives you a choice). Also, use the simple Gslapt package manager to install OpenOffice and/or AbiWord--these have compatibility with MS Word.

Another good distro, this one using the Xfce environment, is PC/OS:

http://www.pc-os.org/2009/08/pcos-20093-released.html
| reply
peer-to-peer

jfruh
Apple syncing patent can't come soon enough

pasmith
New Twitter features borrow from 3rd party clients

Esther Schindler
Open Source Changes the Software Acquisition Process

mikelgan
How to set up continuous podcast play on the new iTunes

David Strom
Five important Windows 7 mobility features

sjvn
Guard your Wi-Fi for your own sake                        

Sandra Henry-Stocker
Grepping on Whole Words

 

Sidekick: The Good News & the Bad News
Either way you look at it Microsoft Data Center management did not follow standards or best practices in this failure. In which case it makes me wonder more about the outsourcing of corporate data much less personal data.
- mburton325

Join the conversation here

The Daily Tip

The Daily TipQuick, practical advice for IT pros. Made fresh daily.

Hot tips:

Want to cash in on your IT savvy? Send your tip to tips@itworld.com. If we post it, we'll send you a $25 Amazon e-gift card.

Newsletters

Subscribe to ITWORLD TODAY and receive the latest IT news and analysis.

I would like to receive offers via email from ITworld partners.
By clicking submit you agree to the terms and conditions outlined in ITworld's privacy policy.
Featured Sponsor

AISO founders envisioned a Web hosting company that was environmentally friendly. While the company employed energy-efficient innovations like solar panels, its infrastructure produced unacceptable power and cooling requirements. Find out how AISO leveraged AMD technology to overcome their challenge in this case study white paper.

In this whitepaper, Scalar explores the opportunity to change the landscape with respect to mission critical databases built around Oracle. Leveraging technologies such as Linux, high-end commodity processing power and Oracle RAC technology to architect, design, build and maintain database infrastructure that delivers maximum availability, reliability and performance at a fraction of traditional cost.

On a typical day, weather.com, the Web site for The Weather Channel in Atlanta, serves up between 15 million and 20 million page views. But in September 2004, when back-to-back hurricanes ransacked Florida, the peak traffic on one day more than tripled: over 70 million page views by more than 7 million unique visitors. Read the full success story now.

Marketplace