Whats the deal with Linux?

Question

What is the big deal about Linux I hear about everywhere? I know its an OS, but there are so many different versions like "Mandriva"? Can anybody give me a brief overview of this and where I would go to get started on my own using Linux?

A bit less brief - bit more complex.

Answer 1

First answer: hoping help you clean up some confusions, "Mandriva" "Fedora Core" "Ubuntu" "Knoppix" "SUSE"... they are company (or community for the case of grass-root projects) brand names, GNU/Linux is the proper unbranded name of this OS that I am running, Ubuntu 6.06 is the brand (with a release version number) I am using. In a hypothetic scenario think of Windows XP as an unbranded name, "Microsoft" "Novell" "IBM" "Corel" they all produce branded version of Windows XP then you have those Microsoft Windows XP, Novell Windows XP... so on so forth.

Ubuntu is easier to setup (1 CD disc, preset software until manual network install from a fully up system), that's why I ditched Fedora Core and others since they provided cluttering choices upfront. I have heard someone speak of Gentoo on regard of ease and I almost spill my morning juice.

Answer 2

Linux is a variant of Unix. The idea was to bring it into the public domain (incl source) so that the IT industry could co-operate and develop it. But only a fairly small number of companies have the people with enough time and knowledge to collaborate in this fully.
IT puchasing decisions are made by the board, not the IT manager or department. They tend to adopt the attitude that anything you can get for nothing is worth exactly what you paid for it. So...........
A number of companies have developed "packaged" Linux that seems (correctly) more respectable because you have to pay for it - this is not a bad thing because those companies have a financial incentive to develop/maintan/support the product, rather than relying of a group of altrustic professors/anoraks/experts who tended to work on the linux project on their own time, usually when there was nothing good on TV i.e. 24/7. I can't legitimately name those companies without violating the Y community guidelines.
mysql is to databases what linux is to unix.
Us old dinosaurs who started working in IT before PC's prefer Unix and its derivative because it's not full of really annoying messages like:
delete *.* are you sure?
the file abc.exe is a program file - deleting it may make your computer inoperable
The files in this folder are hidden - go away
(and my personal favourite in an older version of a well known WP prog):

"You don't need to do that".

Unix assumes that if you give a command then you know what you're doing (except when you want to run time backwards)

Answer 3

The big deal is that there are releases of Linux that are free. Mandrake linux is I think a free download. you can also pay a fraction of the cost to get a professional copy of Redhat or Suse linux. They cost like $100 bucks compared to the $199.00 for Windows XP Pro.

Linux is built on the UNIX model. It is a secure and stable OS.

However I must say that comparing it to Windows is hardly a fair comparison. The Linux GUI does not come close to the User friendly Windows GUI. Also the real power in Linux is knowing UNIX commands. I've worked on most of the flavors of LINUX and UNIX and I've found that the two that I most like and enjoy working on are SuSe Linux and Sun Solaris (UNIX).

Answer 4

The best Linux for you depends on your hardware and what you want to do with it.

Start here for a 'master list' of most linux distributions out there.

http://distrowatch.com

Download a few, try them on your machine. (look for "live CD" -- this lets you try it without actually installing anything).

Answer 5

It is free and works better than microsoft window



Go to Fedora's website and download it for free