Linux installation made easy

This modularity is the reason for so many distributions of Linux (commonly called distros); any person or company can mix and match the programs they find most useful and slap a name on that collection. RedHat, Xandros, SimplyMEPIS and SuSE are all examples of distros.

Some of the larger distros have copycats that use their settings, but change the included programs. This is the Linux way and the mix-and-match approach gives users more choice in the long run. DistroWatch.com currently lists over 350 distributions of Linux. Many on the list are specialised to serve a specific group of people, but all can be altered to run the same programs.

Because programs are interchangeable, the GUI is no exception. GUI's give you the look and feel of a modern OS with the mouse, program icons, menus, etc. Any Linux system (well, one that is running on a real computer, not a phone) can run one of many different GUI's, just like it can run many web browsers or different email client programs.

Want your system to look like Windows? Use FVWM with the XP theme. Want it to be fast? Try IceWM. Want it to be more "full featured"? Try GNOME or KDE. All of these GUI's have benefits and drawbacks, but they all present the user with an interface that can be manipulated with a mouse. Although this may result in every Linux screen looking different, all of the GUI's are still doing the same behind-the-scenes work for you; just use your eyes and often it is not hard at all.

3. Hardware, software, and everything in between
Linux has come a long way in the few short years of its existence. It is less than half the age of Microsoft Windows and yet it is more powerful, more stable, less resource-hungry and graphically equal (if not superior) to this costly, buggy OS from Redmond.

One thing that Linux doesn't yet have going for it is vendor support. If you really like Intuit's QuickBooks, for example, you cannot natively run it in Linux. There are projects to make Windows programs run in Linux, such as CrossOver Office and Wine, but these work with varying success, depending on the Windows program. Until software companies decide to port their programs to Linux, you will not be able to run them natively.

Not all is lost, however. Open Source software has upward of 15,000 of programs that run natively in Linux. Because these programs are (usually) free of charge, they vary in quality, but the majority of programs are wonderfully written and constantly improved. These programs can import and export non-native file types as well. GNUCash can read those Quickbooks files just fine and OpenOffice.org can read MSWord *.doc files. If you dislike GNUCash , don't despair. There are other similar programs also available for free and more and more software companies are releasing Linux versions of their software.

These same issues apply to hardware. Just as you cannot expect just any piece of hardware off the shelf to work with an Apple, the same can be said for Linux machines. Most standard hardware works perfectly; hard drives, RAM, flash drives, motherboards, NICs and digital cameras usually have little trouble under Linux. Newer, cutting edge hardware...

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