10 Misconceptions about Linux

Posted by TechXilla on July 4, 2010 in Linux, Softwares · 15 Comments

1) Linux is an OS!

Linux is not an OS, it is actually a kernel which is the middleware between your Apps and Hardware! The Better the Kernel, the better the system responds! and better error handling!

The Complete OS is called a Linux Distro! there are many like Fedora, Ubuntu, Gentoo, OpenSuse , e.t.c

492667 Ubuntu 3D Logo 620 10 Misconceptions about Linux

2) Linux is Black and White! No Graphics!

This Misconception was true about a decade ago, but today the Linux is available as a Desktop OS, with a lot of different themes. It has got different GUI’s Gnome, KDE Being the most popular!
The Aesthetics of these GUIs will take your breath away!

10 Misconceptions about Linux

3) Linux is for Geeks!

It was as a matter of fact used by geeks , because the power of Linux is best understood if you do nasty (Geeky) stuff with it! But with todays Linux Distros it is targetting all Computer Users whether Home, Office, or Students!

4) Installing a software on Linux is like digging a well

This is still true is some cases of Linux Distros! But majority of the Software is Click , Next , Next , Install!
Many Package managers are available with the popular Linux Distros which make searching, and installing Software packages as easy as 1,2,3! example rpm, deb packages.

5) No one around me is using Linux

Oh Come On! The Linux User Base is ever increasing as the result of some Successful Linux Distros i.e. Ubuntu, Fedora, OpenSuse! Ubuntu has about 8 Million Users!

6) No New System comes pre installed with Linux

10 Misconceptions about Linux

Dell is now shipping systems preloaded with Linux, plus many Netbook vendors are shipping preloaded Linux optimized for Netbooks.

7) I cant work on Linux!

Linux Distros are now packaged with Office Production, Graphics, Multimedia, Internet, IMs and many application to do your work ! OpenOffice, GIMP, Totem Player, FireFox, Pidgin , e.t.c are some packaged with Ubuntu Linux.

Oh i want to try Linux but how?

Trying Linux is now easy like never before! Many Linux Distros are now giving Live CDs which you simply insert and boot into a Working Linux Desktop! You can try it out without installing it!
Plus install it if you like it!
Linux has the advantage to be booted from a USB which makes it a Portable OS for Users on the Wheel.

9) Ok! Linux is great , but how can i dual boot it with Windows?

Popular Linux Distros present you with option of keeping your Windows installation intact while installing Linux on a seperate partition and giving you a boot option each time you turn on your PC.

10) Help! Where to Look for help?

Google is always the Swiss Knife for troubleshooting if you are able to get help online! There are many User Forums, IRC Channel with thousands of people out there to help you! Linux has a proud user base who help each other forming a Linux Community! But you can also get technical help from popular distros like Fedora , Ubuntu , Opensuse!

Tags: GIMP, Linux Distros, Linux PC, Netbooks, opensuse, Pidgin, Totem Player, Ubuntu

TechXilla

Atifmasood

Nice Article
http://gouthaman.wordpress.com/ Gouthaman Karunakaran

Whoa. This is ONE awesome article. I've never used Linux before and this article inspires my to at least try once.
JustSomeNick

Great article Nice to see someone point out the things that somehow have been less obvious to the general public.

I'm a Linux user for over a year and a half now, formerly Windows. Not turning back.

“I can't switch because of games” is another one. True, there are some Windows-only games that do not run fully on Linux as of yet, but let me tell you… This is changing. http://www.winehq.org is a project that is active and constantly updated. To those not familiar with Wine, it stands for Wine Is NOT an Emulator. It acts as a 'translator' between Windows programs (That use Windows API) and Linux (Obviously, with Linux API). I so far am running Starcraft 2 (Beta, but can't wait for the game to come out ), Heroes of Might and Magic 5, Quake 4, Diablo II: Lords of Destruction and plan to install Fallout 3 tonight. All of these runs without a hitch or with a minor modification.

Yes, the Linux user base is growing
Osugi Sakae

Good article. I want to correct a small detail with #2 though. I was using Linux 11 years ago and it certainly had a GUI then. Not as nice as what we have today of course, but back then the current MS Windows was Win98. KDE 1.x (maybe 2.x? don't recall) compared very nicely with Win98. So you would have to go back more than 10 years to find a time when Linux didn't have a good GUI.
Acient User

Stupid article. Linux has had graphics about a decade ago, duh. I've been using linux since 96, and guess what, it had graphics (XFree86, remember?)!

Gnome 1.0 was released in 1999. KDE was started in 1996, and had the first release in 1998.

Do your homework.
http://twitter.com/Azerthoth Jim Cook

And CDE before that even.
Imran

Nice Article Hisham. Pretty much conceptual and straightforward
Thedavil

What about wifi never working? it’s useless unless on a desktop or as a server !!!
anonymous

I have never had any real issues with wireless networking.
Saras Cle

screw dell where system76 and frostbite
Robert Pogson

Good article! I have used GNU/Linux for ten years and the article describes things as they have been for about five years now. It’s not just for us geeks. I use it in schools where kids and teachers from K-12 use it. It’s fast and free from malware as well as being low-priced. The licence allows use, examination, modification and copying so it’s legal to file share the distro. Must-see sites for GNU/Linux are http://distrowatch.com and http://www.debian.org . For questions, check out http://linuxquestions.org

Enjoy.
http://twitter.com/saproducts SmartAssProducts

It’s good to see others clearing up myths/misconceptions about Linux. I’ve done the same, most recently with this post, “A Linux user wonders, can Windows do this?” — http://smartassproducts.blogspot.com/2010/09/linux-user-wonders-can-windows-do-this.html — which illustrates the beauty and versatility of today’s Linux distros. I have yet to hear from a windows user who can tell me everything shown in my post can be done on windoze, WITHOUT buying anything extra.By the way, you’re using one of the products from my shops, the “Geek by birth, Linux by choice” coffee mug in #3 — http://www.zazzle.com/smartassproducts/gifts?cg=196567940840145164 — as a counterpoint to the idea that it’s not necessary to be a geek to use Linux. While I agree that it’s no longer necessary for one to be a computer geek to use Linux, the slogan is still pertinent. Ever hear a windows user claim to be a super geek? Yeah, right! For people who identify as computer geeks, Linux is the only way to go, since Micro$oft doesn’t allow its users to totally control their environment.
http://twitter.com/saproducts SmartAssProducts

I don’t know what you’re doing wrong, but I’ve had wi-fi working on Linux for years. My desktop computers have never been a problem, but because my laptops have all had the infamous Broadcomm BCM43xx card, it used to take some effort to get wi-fi working, i.e., using ndiswrapper.

However, those days have been long gone for a while now. Starting a few versions ago, Kubuntu Linux has correctly identified and configured wi-fi on my laptops with no effort on my part.

So, yeah, it’s a little odd reading that wi-fi NEVER works on Linux, considering I NEVER have problems. *confused*
Jimbell

Give! Up! With! The! Exclamation! Point! Already!
Kazuyz_raks

just one thing : linux still cant play all windows game even wine still suck for newer game