Is linux worth using

[Scoot]

Is linux worth using? and is it really free

[Sulimo]

As far as I know the Linux source is completely free, but that there are some companies that make their own version that ask for a payment for their trouble.
And i've got no experience with it myself, but I can't really see myself using it since most games are windows only.

[Scoot]

Are you are a gamer looks like you are in the right place I have read things about the the owner of this site and they say he has big plans for his good members, if its true or not I dont know (sorry off topic)

I wounder why Linux is free, also dont you think its a little unfair that people try charging for them doing some moding to it?

[clarise]

Someone I've met in forums who uses Linux said she doesn't even need an antivirus for Linux. I suppose that is true since she uses it and gets a considerable amount of time online. Windows has vulnerabilities. I wonder what it is with Linux that makes it as invulnerable as the Linux user said.

In the university where I went, they were changing platforms from Windows to Linux. It is open source and free, whereas Windows can be installed in only one computer system at a time.

I hope I got it right, there is another free OS called Unix although Linux appears to have more users.

[carol]

Howdy,

You'll have to forgive me as I'm using my girlfriends account to post this as I don't have an account with this site... She saw this post and figured I could answer the question better..

To give you some background on myself, I work for the second largest Vulnerability and Risk Assessment Company in the Industry and I moderate a computer security forum. Those of you looking for more information can either respond here or email me directly @ ht@computerdefense.org

Now... on with the details:

Linux is an operating system... just like Windows, Mac OS X, and all the others. A brief history would go something like this... Unix is the biggest and most widely used of the operating systems but it's expensive... a Uni student in Finland (I believe) develops something similar but makes it freely available (Linux). It has grown over the years to what it is today... As was mentioned there are free and paid versions of Linux... Some of the more common free ones are Ubuntu, Debian, Slackware and Gentoo... The most popular free versions are RedHat and SuSE (although SuSE also has a free version... OpenSuSE)...

It's common place to hear "Linux is better than windows because of ..." or "Linux doesn't need ..."... This is similar to the current Mac commercials... where they claim that Macs don't need to worry about viruses... The virus market depends on OS Distribution... Right now Windows has the majority share of the OS Market, so the Majority of viruses are aimed at Windows... However there are Mac viruses and there are Linux viruses... they are less common, so people feel comfortable running without AV (this shouldn't be happening... it just does)..

As for vulnerabilities... Linux actually has more published vulns that Windows every year... The reason for this isn't the core operating system... but when you download Linux, generally you get all the software you need... you don't have to install much after the operating system install... This software is notorius for holes that hackers and crackers will exploit... I've put test installs of Linux systems online and had them hacked in under 24 hours... similar to the time frame for a Windows system...

People that brag about their systems generally don't really know what they are talking about.... Your best bet is to use the operating system you are most comfortable with on a regular basis as that will be the most secure system... solely because it's the system that you can best secure... If you want to have a second system to play with something like Linux... then I highly recommend it... I use it on a regular basis (but I use Windows XP and OS X just as often)... I'd also recommend Ubuntu as it's the easiest distro to learn and it's a little more like Windows (automatic updates, an easy to use start menu, etc). There are also LiveCDs (Bootable operating systems) that you can get to test most different types of Linux... these are great alternative if you just want to learn it..

Lastly, Unix and Linux are seperate things... Unix came first... Linux is sort of like the child.. similar in some ways but ultimately it's own entity... Unix is paid software, however there are free versions... FreeBSD (the most commonly used that I know of) and OpenBSD (claimed to be (and so far is) the most secure default installed operating system)...

There are a few things to remember... Most games and programs you're used to don't really run on Linux... some of them do these days but not all and some of them only run with modifications.. which cause them to run slower... You don't just make the move to Linux spontaneously because someone said it's better.. do you own research, experience it for yourself and remember that a lot of stuff will be harder to install in Linux and that updating isn't automatic and the holes that you need to patch are sometimes much larger...

I thought I'd already said lastly but I forgot something... To the person who commented on the charging for certain versions and feeling it wasn't fair... They don't charge for the OS itself.. the OS is still open source and freely available (technically)... They charge for documentation, support, the nice box set and some of the bells and whistles that they've added themselves...

Good luck and feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.

[modric]

All Linux distributions are really free - only if you buy a whole complete of one distribution on CDs you pay something for CDs and/or for shipping. It is free since creators decided to be free...There is a licence known as CopyLeft (oposed to CopyRight), and all Linux distributions undergo this licence. One of main points of it is that nobody is allowed to sell Linux for money or charge anyone while distributing any part of a Linux code. But if you ask someone to write a program in Linux for you, then you two can agree about any payments. Linux as an operating system is free, but (as I know), this is not necessary for programs written for it.