From few days I am thinking about how to eliminate software piracy from Pakistan .What are softwares mostly used in Pakistan illegally ,The answer is straight forward “Microsoft Windows” and “Microsoft Office”. Is any open source alternative available ? I think yes its Ubuntu. The second question raise in my mind, Are all peoples satisfy with using of Microsoft Windows ? I think no because of viruses and system got slow after few month.
I started my career by using open source, I learned Java ,mostly used open source software in my development but these software run over Microsoft Windows and I disliked and were thinking about is alternative which is equally user friendly and stable.
Ubuntu is Debian distribution of Linux provides solution for my all question .Approx 2 years I was using Linux fedora but its resource hungry, not too much user friendly, lot of hardware driver issues,much work required to do on terminal, not provides complete solution for end users. When I installed Ubuntu I got surprised. It automatically installed all hardware driver (rich repository of driver) , It is light weight not much resources required and solved my all problems,It is user friendly. I am going to write few of qualities of Ubuntu that I really I like.
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User Friendly
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Easy to Install
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Automatically detect all hardware and install all driver
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Automatically install all required System utilities like
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Open office (Alternative to Ms Office )
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PDF Reader
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Archived solution
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Messenger(Pidgin)
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Email client (Evolution)
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Web Browser (Firefox)
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Audio and Video player ,
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Photo and Design Editor (GIMP Image editor like adobe photo shop).
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Add/Remove Application (Add/Remove Applications is a simple graphical way of installing and removing applications in Ubuntu. To launch Add/Remove Applications click Applications->Add/Remove Applications on the desktop menu system. It automatically searches a compatible required software from web ,download it and install it).
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Webmin Software (A Web based System administration tool for linux)
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Mac like awesome graphic
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Wine and Mono (hel to run Windows based software over linux)
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No Virus issue (Al hamd-o-lillah)
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Network Manager to configure network just like windows
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etc
Note : The above softwares automatically install with Ubuntu but there all lots of open source alternative available for these system utilities which we can install using Add/Remove Application of Ubuntu.
One more advice for those people who are really depends on windows due to some dependent software ,Use virtual box over Ubuntu and runs only dependent software on it :)
Conclusion
Ubuntu and its System utilities perfectly provide alternative of Ms windows so don't use pirate software and eliminate software piracy from Pakistan and decrease your headache of viruses :)
8 comments:
Haroon Bhai, before reading your article I had a perception that UBuntu is just a childish OS, but after reading this, it really is a useful OS with the all possible alternatives which are provided by the Microsoft.
Great article... Keep up the good work..
Lam also fed up using windows and developing software on visual studio may be it's time to shift..
I think you need to tell more about the compatibility issues that exist between MS Office and Open Office. Ubuntu is super easy but still some operations require command line with which not many users are comfortable. I am yet too see some good support of the windows games on linux which is not possible without some sort of emulation and emulation most of the times left so much to be desired.
My own personal experience is that there is nothing as good as Visual Studio development on linux. Netbeans and eclipse are good options but still Visual Studion is far more better.
I can even recall the issues I had with silverlight port on linux which simply doesn't work for me.
Graphics of ubuntu are eye candy but who cares when you want to have better performance and would rather sacrifice for the good visuals.
I thing good points of Ubuntu is definitely its security where you can play around without worrying about the viruses. Plus its performance doesn't seem to deteriorate with the passage of time as is the case with XP (I dint face this problem with Vista though)
freakyshaggy
you are right in some extent but world does not ends on silver light (I doesn't see any single production app on it) and dot net. As far as compatibility issue with Ms office ,its day by day improve. I think it is not compatible with Ms office 2007.You are dot net guy working on visual studio and you are too much dependent on windows .I wrote some software still not working on wine and mono thats why I suggest virtual box. Ubuntu can be help full for home users ,universities ,oracle developer ,php ,java c++ dev and other open source dev and may be some user of dotnet software(using mono).I agree visual studio doesn't run on ubuntu.
Awesome Haroon!! After playing with quite a few Distros Just like you I have decided to stick with Ubuntu :)
@Muzzafar
Ohh come on dude, you didn't even bother look at the massive pool of resource available for Linux and Ubuntu all over the cyberspace and you had a perception that "It is a childes OS".. seriously man what made you to have this perception ;).
Don't try to abuse Ubuntu just to praise Haroon ;).
@freakyshaggy.
No offense but, We assume that you have a Licensed M$ Office 2007 Enterprise Edition right?
Dude can you shade some light on the compatibility issues of Huge list of software (including games) between windows XP and Windows Vista? you couldn't even install SQL server 2005 on vista without that ironic warning about the Known compatibility Issues.. you have to install some Service Pack 1(.3.3.4.18....) to fix it.
M$ can't even figure it out how to fix there own compatibility shit.. and they have decided to ship a XP Virtual Machine in Windows 7.
But the good part of Open Office is if you came across one such issue you can fix it by your own self as the source code is available and you can hack some real code (or the least you can create a ticked in the real system to request a fix).
Yeah some operations on Ubuntu requires command line and you don't have to use windows command line.. coz windows command line just SUCKS.. you can't use it for any thing.. (ohh actually you can for few things). M$ command prompt according to todays standards is just good for nothing tool, and yeah M$ know this that is the reason Power Shell exist (which still sucks ;)) and that is what is being promised by M$ in Server 2008 and onwards a Command line which can actually use full, a command line which can be used to control the system. Ohhh not many users are comfortable with command line .. Remember your early days with windows how comfortable were you (I wasn't.. my hands were shivering when the first time I click on yes on a Prompt for some deletion on win 3.1.x ;)). Not many drivers are comfortable with Ferrari so Ferrari is Bad (and my Bike is Awesome!! of course it is ;))
I can share my views on IDEs but leaving it for pros (but still.. it depends on what and for which platform you want to develop and how much $$ do you have to invest (Rails dev are just extremely happy with TextMate))
Agree on the moonlight thing, there is nothing in this (software) world which doesn't have Bugs (Haroon YKWIM ;)). There is nothing like "one size fits all". Yes There are things in Linux I just HATE, there are things in Mac OS X which are just creepy..
But unlike M$ Os you are welcome to fix them in Open Source world. It is the culture we are favoring.
You want to sacrifice Some eye candy for Performance hmm (disable it ;)) go for some light weight Desktop Manger (e.g. xfce and others) What other alternatives I have when I am on windows.. let me see .. KDE.. (you really don't want to compare performance of Linux and windows, or do you?)
You didn't face the performance deteriorate problem with vista .. Good for you.. go tell the millions of people who downgrade to XP, go tell Ballmer please stop shipping XP vista is better :) and please don't ship XP Virtual machine in Windows 7.
(Nothing against Microsoft they have some really good minds on board, I don't bash them I still use it now and then)
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Regards
Mubbashir
I very much agree with you Haroon.I have tried Ubuntu and its working with me.
@Mubasshir
dude i m using licensed windows and office unlike the losers who have a lot of shit to say about Microsoft and still using Microsoft (pirated)...there are always compatibility issues between different OS and windows is not exception...if you have a crappy hardware then you can run linux for as long as you might like...for sql server issue the community is very strong and they would tell you about the workarounds before an official patch is released...
the problem is that you are assuming that the every user of you so called open source software is a nerd programmer who whenever faces any problem would fire up and ide (oops, there is no real ide for poor linux) and would play around the code and fix it :) how much would you like him to pay if he learns a programming language, and then fix it for the communoity?
have you ever tried paying for the software that you buy in the form of cheap software? and since you are just using pirated copies then you do not have any right to complain abt performance of windows and other software...you cant get everything for free...
try someone from your family making sit in front of windows and ubuntu and you would know the difference...stats speak for itself, windows still has 88 percent of market share while the rest of the fools are making and patching and some open source crap...
rails dev is good on linux but who the hell would like to switch to ruby if you are doing some other lang...it means that for a php project you would ask you client to switch to ubuntu and ruby so that you can have good dev exp...sounds like a good business deal...digg in and tell me how much pain in the a** ruby dev is for newbies...
@Freak Shaggy
It is good to hear that you have license windows and office but most of people doestn't have.I have also vista license which I have to purchase with my laptop.I switch on ubuntu from vista due to vista issues which are listed on web and you can find how many peoples fixing in these issues even Microsoft accepted these issues and announce that new window 7 and tell that its better and it solved all vista issues.
Open source community is strongest community who always welcome to solve public issues no need to fix issues byself and I personally experienced Microsoft support I was very much disappointed
where as interface and friendlessness is concern I agree in past it not comparable but now you compare with windows and Mac try latest ubuntu
Both has prons and cons, you are Microsoft oriented developer be happy on windows
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