[GTALUG] Advice -- Building Debian 8 PC To Replace Win XP PC;

[Alvin Starr]

On 07/28/2016 08:15 AM, Russell Reiter via talk wrote:
>
> On Jul 27, 2016 11:20 PM, "William Park via talk" <talk at gtalug.org 
> <mailto:talk at gtalug.org>> wrote:
> >
> > I'll give opposite advice from the rest.  Stay with Windows.
> >     - Windows comes free with all retail computers, fully configured.
>
Windows does not come free.
The cost of Windows is built into the price.
At one time if you tried to sell a computer without Windows 
pre-installed you would be forbidden from getting Windows to pre-install 
on other computers.

Nothing is free.

But my take is that its an easy sell to tell someone to get a windows 
computer and once they do I don't have to support them because I know 
nothing about windows and just can't help.
If I suggest a linux computer I am suddenly responsible for all the ills 
of the internet and any piece of software that gets installed.
When Windows problems crop up... "I guess you just have to buy a new 
computer and upgrade to the latest version of windows."

> The only reason this is the case is that Foss became a threat to the 
> profit model, otherwise it would be business as usual at Microsoft, 
> which is to squeeze every cent they can out of consumers.
>
> >       If you're used to XP, then you'll have short (if at all) learning
> >       curve to 10.
> >     - Components you list below, all come with Windows driver.
>

That is true that windows has better driver support.
Partly because of the dominance of the product but partly because of 
aggressive business tactics.

> >     - Windows has virtualizations -- Hyper-V and VirtualBox.  So, 
> you can
> >       run Linux if you like.
>
Linux has virtualization and you run windows with Xen(where Hyper-V 
comes from), VirtualBox, VMWare, KVM, ...
Linux also has Wine so you can run some windows apps natively.

> >     - MS-Windows and MS-Office are standard that Linux fanboys are
> >       trying to copy.  Open/Libre Office's
>
That is hardly a fair comparison.
OpenOffice has been around for quite a while.
First as StarWriter  around 1985  where word started around 1983.
Microsoft chooses to keep Word/Office as a Windows package with just 
enough support for Apple to keep them out of court.

One could claim that Word/Office are just fanboy copies of WordPerfect 
which showed up in 1980 and was a far superior product till well into 
the 1990's


[snip]

-- 
Alvin Starr                   ||   voice: (905)513-7688
Netvel Inc.                   ||   Cell:  (416)806-0133
alvin at netvel.net              ||

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