Thoughts From a Clicker
By Tiny Ruisch
At the risk of incurring the wrath of Cal, the Cajun Clickers Linux guru, this month I thought I’d share my thoughts on this mysterious operating system. For those that don’t know, Linux is an operating system. In fact, it is one of the most used platforms in use today. An operating system is software that manages all of the hardware resources associated with your desktop or laptop. To put it simply, the operating system manages the communication between your software and your hardware. Without the operating system (OS), software wouldn’t function.
The Linux Operating System is used in a wide variety of systems and environments. It powers large cloud infrastructure environments, on-premises converged infrastructure appliances, application servers, desktop computing environments and embedded systems. Linux also powers many mobile devices such as Android phones, tablets and many wearables such as watches and fitness trackers. It is also found on many netbooks.
Linux is an open sourced OS and has no cost. It is completely free to download and install. This means that anyone can modify the code for their use. This has led to many versions (distros) of Linux. As of this writing, there are more than 600.
So why isn’t Linux used by more people?
1. It seems intimidating. There are a lot of versions. Luckily, it isn’t too hard to chose. There are only four or five distributions that are user friendly for beginners.
2. There is a lack of useful software. This used to have some truth. In recent years, there are excellent programs that are comparable to both Windows and MAC. Even gaming has become better with releases of Valve and Steam engines.
3 . Its not installed. Most computers are sold with either Windows or MAC installed. Although this is starting to change a little, users usually have to download and install Linux on their computer.
As a member of Cajun Clickers, we all have an opportunity to easily change to Linux. Every month there is a “Linux SIG” and an “Extra Help for Linux” workshop. These offer a chance to see Linux in operation and get a feel for how it works. Many first time users start by converting an older computer to Linux. Why not sign up and check it out?
Thanks for reading.