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Author Topic: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux  (Read 3870 times)

Offline sam

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Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« on: May 02, 2009, 18:02 »
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I've been writing Linux guidebooks for some time, and it's fair to say that most people who buy my books are Windows users looking to make the leap to Linux (or perhaps just wondering what the fuss is about).

Because of this, I've heard a lot of excuses why people quit Linux, and return to Windows. I'm happy to say that the excuses are getting far less common nowadays, compared to 2003, when I wrote my first book. But I still hear 'em.

Here are the top seven reasons I've come across. No doubt you've heard them too.

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/164205/top_7_reasons_people_quit_linux.html
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Offline GillE

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2009, 20:20 »
I'd add a number 8 - Linux is lousy for recording television programs and subsequent processing of the videos.
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Offline sam

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2009, 22:30 »
is it? MythTV (http://www.mythtv.org/) is pretty advanced and well used by a number of devices.

I also use video editing software on ubuntu fairly often, albeit not very advanced (well the ones I've used), but dvd:rip and kino are pretty good packages. Using Wine its normally trivial to get decent windows apps working.

Though I think your point comes under either "Linux doesn't have the software" or "my hardware doesn't work" aspects.
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Offline Simon

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2009, 23:25 »
Number 3 is the barrier for me, apart from the hassle of changing from Windows, and getting new software.  Having to remember commands, instead of just clicking a button to get something working, seems like a backwards step to me.
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Offline GillE

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #4 on: May 03, 2009, 00:14 »
MythTV doesn't have a reliable UK compatible epg as far as I know.  To my mind, that doesn't amount to a "Linux doesn't have the software" or "my hardware doesn't work" so much as a "Linux isn't up to scratch".  Tell me my knowledge is out of date and I'll gladly consider Linux more seriously - I loathe Microsoft Vista!  Mind, the command line edit screen is something which commercial operating systems have effectively rendered obsolete and it would take a lot to persuade me that I should take a backward step into the realms of BBC Micro computing.

When it comes to editing videos using open source software, VirtualDubMod is a nifty program.  However, Windows-based programs are simply... better!
There is no opinion, however absurd, which men will not readily embrace as soon as they can be brought to the conviction that it is readily adopted.

(Schopenhauer, Die Kunst Recht zu Behalten)

Offline sam

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2009, 08:47 »
Number 3 is the barrier for me, apart from the hassle of changing from Windows, and getting new software.  Having to remember commands, instead of just clicking a button to get something working, seems like a backwards step to me.

I'm never going to convince any of you of the power of the command line since you do not need todo that kind of computing but i'll argue that with the modern versions of linux you hardly ever need to use the command line. Most things are graphical and simple. The occasional thing needs to be done on the command line but this is no different to having to open up notepad and edit some setting in windows - or having to install some driver with a cd (but in a different manner). Oh and just because the command line looks old doesn't mean it isn't fantastic - all the programs you run just run the command line stuff you just never see it (which I can see is an advantage).

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MythTV doesn't have a reliable UK compatible epg as far as I know.

I think you are right there - though the MythTV wiki says:
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EIT (EPG) data is available in various forms in the UK. For Freeview/DVB-T and FreeSat/DVB-S services 7 days of data are provided. For Virgin Media, EPG is provided per channel for 3-4 days, and further 7 day listings are available on a channel marked only as "Home EPG", possibly for Virgin's own DVR solution "V+". Sky only broadcasts Now/Next information with advanced listings available via the OpenTV system. MythTV does not seem to pick up correct channel assignments for every channel on Freeview/FreeSat from broadcsted data, i.e. via a channel scan. There is a simple database change that can be completed to update the channels quickly as using the channel editor is very slow to make many changes. UK-DVB-Channels
See here:http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/UK_Television with the fix here: http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/UK_Channel_Assignments

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Tell me my knowledge is out of date and I'll gladly consider Linux more seriously - I loathe Microsoft Vista!

I personally feel it is! Then again I would have told you that a few years back. Recently however, Ubuntu 9  came out and that is very very good and will probably not need for you to go to the command line (though your video card possibly will).

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Windows-based programs are simply... better!

That's the curse of someone who hasn't been given the chance to use a good linux system (i.e. because they don't come pre-installed and you are going into a sea of unknown with linux you don't know what it could be like) - trust me no one I work with thinks windows-based programs (maybe with the exception of a few adobe products) are better - we write our own programs todo sophisticated numerical analysis - which if we ran on windows would be slowed down by all the crap on there.

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Offline Simon

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2009, 09:33 »
Good responses, Sam.  :)  As I've always said, if I had a spare machine (which I do), and the time to just sit and play (which I don't), I'd probably give it a more serious go than I did with the Eee PC, but it's either one or the other for me.  Windows does what I need, and, in general, hasn't given me any reason to want to switch, although, if I was forced to use Vista, it might!
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Offline sam

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2009, 09:43 »
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Windows does what I need, and, in general, hasn't given me any reason to want to switch, although, if I was forced to use Vista, it might!

Fair enough, I understand that point - XP used to do me fine (until I discovered how quickly I can do most of my other tasks using Linux)...
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Offline Simon

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #8 on: May 03, 2009, 10:06 »
You don't give up do you!  ;D
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Offline GillE

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #9 on: May 03, 2009, 12:30 »
You're in the wrong business, Sam - you should have been a salesman :) .

I guess I'll always be sceptical until I actually see a Linux system with good TV/video editing being operated in front of me.  I do like the idea of writing your own software, though.  I've one or two ideas which I would love to develop if only I knew something about databases.
There is no opinion, however absurd, which men will not readily embrace as soon as they can be brought to the conviction that it is readily adopted.

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Offline sam

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #10 on: May 03, 2009, 13:29 »
I guess I'll always be sceptical until I actually see a Linux system with good TV/video editing being operated in front of me.  I do like the idea of writing your own software, though.  I've one or two ideas which I would love to develop if only I knew something about databases.

databases - you are talking one of the things I find fun... I haven written quite a few pieces of software for dynamically driven webpages using sql. Actually some of the astronomy research I do uses large webbased database and how to mine the interesting data out.
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Offline Simon

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #11 on: May 03, 2009, 13:36 »
databases - you are talking one of the things I find fun...

Oh, that's f***ing tragic!   :)x
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Offline GillE

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #12 on: May 03, 2009, 14:21 »
databases - you are talking one of the things I find fun...
Oh, that's f***ing tragic!   :)x

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Not only do I bet Sam made himself proper exam revision timetables when he was at school - I bet he adhered to them too!
There is no opinion, however absurd, which men will not readily embrace as soon as they can be brought to the conviction that it is readily adopted.

(Schopenhauer, Die Kunst Recht zu Behalten)

Offline sam

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #13 on: May 03, 2009, 19:21 »
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Oh, that's f***ing tragic! 

Indeed - you just need to ask the young lady about it - and oh you can't poke fun without my database skills we would still be dead with YaBB SE

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Not only do I bet Sam made himself proper exam revision timetables when he was at school - I bet he adhered to them too!

I did make myself revision timetables for my GCSEs but I never stuck to them - I got out of that type of organisational skills a while back - still I do have a rather nice and tidy google calendar and have sorted it suck that works via my commandline.... yep geek.
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Offline GillE

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Re: Top 7 Reasons People Quit Linux
« Reply #14 on: May 03, 2009, 19:31 »
Geek indeed.  But you're our geek.

 8-)
There is no opinion, however absurd, which men will not readily embrace as soon as they can be brought to the conviction that it is readily adopted.

(Schopenhauer, Die Kunst Recht zu Behalten)


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