Why are Windows users so sure Linux will not do the job?

[rch1231]

Why is it people who have never used Linux are so sure it is not any good? The impression I get from most of the people I run into running Windows Server is that they are experts on how Linux does not have the same capabilities as Windows. They seem so confident about the lack of support and capabilities of Linux systems when in most cases they have never used the Operating System. They continually make outrageous claims and list inadequacies of a Product they refuse to even try. They claim it is not used in many places and gloss over the fact that MAC OS X is simply a custom version of Linux.

The best analogy I can think of would be a man running a freight business with a fleet of Pickup trucks. Although he has see others using big trucks he refuses to consider an 18 wheeler saying "Those things are to hard to maneuver and take to long to load. They won't haul small loads to several locations and it is impossible to back them up straight. I can do the same job with these eight pickup trucks even though it costs me more to pay the eight drivers, insurance on trucks and drivers and fuel for all eight trucks."

Personally I use both operating systems (all three if you consider MAC OS X separate). But I use the right tool for the job. If I need a server that will be accessed by a large group, needs to be secure, will run without much attention while being fast and responsive I run Linux. If I am setting up a laptop for a company VP I install Windows An a current Anti-virus application. If I am building a laptop for a graphics engineer or designer I use OS X.

The company I work for has 12 engineers to maintain 700 Windows servers or 1 for every 58 servers. They are always busy correcting a problem or patching the applications or OS so they will perform to original specs. We also reboot almost all of the Windows servers monthly if not weekly to keep the servers running smoothly. We run about 90% of them as guest servers under VMware (Which is using a Linux Kernel).

At the same time we have two engineers to support just over 250 Linux servers or 1 for every 125 servers. Once the system is set up and the applications are installed they rarely have to do any work on the systems. Most of the time they are not busy and are looking for something extra to do. We rarely have to reboot the servers and some of them have been up for over three years without a reboot.

I would be curious to hear from them why they won't even take it for a test drive and why they are so quick to accept unsubstantiated claims that it won't do what they need.

[CimmerianX]

Believe it or not, a lot of the push back comes from management, not the real I T people. Many times its the open source tag and no cost that is the issue. It just 'looks' better when you budget for 500k worth of stuff and people for a project. 'If its free, its probably not good' is the misguided mentality

[BigPaw]

Due to the complex nature of Linux there is an elitist mentality out there in their forums. I've seen many people intrigued by the eye-candy for Linux, sign up to a forum to get help with the learning curve of a particular flavour of Linux only to be told to go and read the manual. Or, given instructions to enter a list of commands in Vi, not knowing what Vi is or where to find it, what the commands will do, they ask about these things and are told they should know, should read the pinned posts, should put up with some elitist's 'tutting' attitude.

Linux's worst enemy is its elite, not all of them, just the majority of them. While the Linux elite stay small minded, the amount of those willing to tolerate them will remain small. Their forums, on the whole, need a personality transplant.

Sorry, this is a pet gripe for me... :-)

[rch1231]

BigPaw,

So again you are a Windows user with a preformed opinion on Linux? And your main complaint is you think the forums for Linux are too elitist. Have you considered that the forums for Windows could be considered the same? I often see references to editing the windows registry to make a change that are not well documented on how or why. Again I use both of the Operating Systems and still feel Linux is superior. How can you honestly take a position on a product you have never used?

[BigPaw]

I have been dual booting Ubuntu for many, many years. Before that I would use Suse & Mandrake, and before that Solaris. Hey, I still have the Coffee Mug and 'T' shirt Sun Microsystems gave me from when I was invited to their design and configuration facility.

Linux does outclass Windows technically, but its elite users often suffer from Small OS syndrome. Daniweb is what I would describe as a Technically Cosmopolitan Forum, with a strong Windows contingency. It's a wonderful place with a really good ethos. It carries the weight of its users very well. Many Linux forums have some kind of chip on their shoulder.

So, when we look at the way the market is positioned now, we see a lot of Linux in the 'machinery' of the Internet, but end-users at home liking the friendliness of Windows, and the overall positive enthusiasm of the Microsoft message.

[david.phillips.902]

i have installed a lot of linux distros over the years looking for a better system than windows, the best i tried was an extreme version of ubuntu put together by pc world i think, it was the only platform that would install and run 3d games, my hobby. I found linux to be the most frustrating system to use, everything had to be done thru command type windows ans the vernacular was just confusing. The thing about windows is that you just install it, load a few drivers and away you go, its uses easy to follow instructions and you don't need a degree to run it, just my thoughts.