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Image credit: © riekhavoc

Don’t worry, I’m not talking about, or suggesting, a world where Microsoft and Apple do not exist.  I just want to explore the possibility of getting through your day without having to rely on Microsoft or Apple software.  That is… any of their software.  From the operating system up.

The Big Question First — Is It Possible?

OK, lets tackle the big one first… Can you get through your day without using any Microsoft or Apple software?  The short answer is: YES!  How do I know?  That’s easy, I’ve been doing it myself for the last 15 years.

The last time I used any Microsoft (Windows) software on any of my computers was back in 1995.  Although, in those days I was using OS/2 more than Windows.  It was this year (2010) when I first laid eyes on Windows XP, and I still have yet to see Vista, ME, 2000, or even NT.  Perhaps there are others that I don’t even know about?  What about Microsoft Bob?  Did that take off?

Interesting side note… Somebody told me once that the theme I use here on Steve Youngs dot Com mimics some version of Windows (Vista, I think).  I had absolutely no idea, I just picked it because I liked it.  :-)

Apple/Macintosh?  Well, I’ve seen pictures of them, but I’ve never owned or used one.  Oh, not entirely true, I did come in contact with a Mac once in the early 90′s.  And if you promise to keep this secret, I’ll tell you of the encounter…

My friend, Don, had a home business retailing hardware and software.  One of his customers had ordered a new Mac and Don asked me to unpack it and set it up in his office to make sure that it was all in good order for the customer.

Sure, Don.  No worries, mate

Famous last words.  I could not figure out how to turn this pig on.  I looked and looked for the power button in all the normal (and logical) places.  But I couldn’t find it anywhere.  Surely this thing has got a power button?  Got to be a bloody on/off switch somewhere.  In the end, after about 20 minutes of searching, hunting, and cursing (which was growing louder and louder), I grabbed the manual.  Yes, I had to find out from reading the manual how to turn this contraption on.

I guess, I’m really not a Mac person.

If Not MS or Apple

All right then, so what are the alternatives?  Actually, probably a lot more than you realise.  I came across one site while I was researching this article that listed 568 different operating systems.  Admittedly, a lot of those were old, crusty, and now defunct OS’es.  But a lot were current ones as well.

Here are a handful of alternative operating systems that are in wide-spread use today, and are still in active development (meaning… they’re not about to disappear any time soon)

• eComstation — Based on OS/2.   (I’m very keen to try this one if I can get my hands on it.  I loved OS/2)
• FreeBSD — A free derivative of BSD (Berkeley Software Distribution), which, in turn, is a derivative of one of the original UNIX’s
• NetBSD — Another BSD derivative.  This one purports to be the most portable operating system in existence.  That means it runs on the broadest selection of hardware. (not sure, but I think Linux might be a contender here)
• OpenBSD — Hey, we like our BSD’s  This one puts it’s emphasis into security.  Supposedly, it is the most secure operating system there is. YMMV (your milage may vary)
• Haiku-OS — This one is big in Japan.  It is an open source version of the now defunct BeOS.  It has a huge following though.
• Linux — I’ve saved the best till last  This is sometimes referred to as “GNU/Linux” because it uses so much of the GNU suite for the userland tools and software.  Linux itself it just a kernel.

Of those, eComstation is the only commercial one that would cost you any money to get your hands on.  The rest are all freely available for download, and released under an Open Source licence.

Not  Just For Geeks

But aren’t all these operating systems just toys for geeks?  Absolutely not!  But surely, you can’t be suggesting that people use them for anything real or critical?  Absolutely yes!  I’m going to speak of Linux here because that is what I have the most experience with.

You’ll find Linux running on everything from game consoles, cell phones, and PDA’s, up to gigantic super computers that have thousands of CPU’s and terabytes of RAM.  From home desktops and laptops, to multi-national corporate servers.

The netbook computer I’m writing this article on is running Linux.  The server that hosts my blog and is displaying this article to you is running Linux.  And I must point out, it is no hassle to do so.  I need to jump through no more hoops than a Windows user.  In fact, quite often, I need to jump through fewer hoops than my Windows using colleagues.

I’ve heard of Linux, but…

…it’s not ready for the desktop.  OMG, the number of times I’ve heard that one!  People who say this have no clue at all.  I literally live in a Linux desktop.  My 8 year old son uses Linux on the desktop every day.  Yes, folks, Linux is indeed ready for the desktop (and has been for at least 15 or more years).

…there’s no software available.  I’m sorry, but you are just not looking hard enough (read: at all).  This is simply not true.  There are literally thousands and thousands of software applications, utilities, games, and whatever, available for Linux.  Try out this new-fangled thing called “Google” and see for yourself.

…hackers use it, I’ll get a virus.  Yes, hackers do use Linux, but guess what? They use Windows and Mac’s too. (“hacker” is the wrong word there.  A hacker is not a bad or evil person, they’re not criminals, contrary to what Hollywood would have you believe).  As for the virus thing… no you won’t get a virus.  You won’t even need any anti-virus software (unless of course your Linux computer is a gateway to some Windows computers).  Why?  Becasue there is no such thing as a Linux virus.  And even if there were, you’d have to be some kind of special stupid to allow it to do any real or significant damage.  There is infinitely more danger of PEBCAK (Problem Exists Between Chair And Keyboard) than there is from a virus on Linux.

…I can’t use it because I need MS Office.  Open Office runs on Linux.  Open Office can read and write MS Office files.  So we’ve got you covered.  If you do have software that you can’t live without and doesn’t have an equivalent Linux version, there are emulators and virtual machines that let you run Windows apps in Linux.

Where Can I Get This Linux Thing?

The hard part here is that you have so many options and choices.  There are at least 500 or more Linux distributions to choose from.  You can even build your own from scratch (that’s what I do).  There is a list of distributions (with links) at the Linux Online site.  I personally started with Slackware Linux, which I highly recommend.  Another good option, especially if you are not too sure, is to try a “live cd“.  This is a CD or DVD with Linux on it that you can run from the disc itself (nothing to install).

Can Anyone Run Linux?

In my opinion, yes.  However, that doesn’t mean that everyone must run Linux, and it doesn’t mean that everyone should run Linux.  The point that I wanted to get across in this article was that there are alternatives to Microsoft and Apple.  Alternatives that are every bit as good (quite often, better) as the Microsoft and Apple solutions.

Till next time…

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I'm just an ordinary guy. Trying his best to make his way in the world. Sometimes I get there... Sometime I don't. Read a better rundown of me, or connect with me on Twitter... I'm @SteveYoungs there.

Steve Youngs

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1. Horst Günther Burkhardt III says:

   2010/11/27 at 11:23 am

   Technically speaking, OpenBSD’s focus is on correctness more than security – it just so happens that when you do your coding right you don’t get gaping holes in your OS.

   These days NetBSD is all but a joke in the free software world – its structure makes it really easy to port, but apart from its use as a research kernel or a good way to teach Systems Architecture it’s not really seeing widespread use.

   I’ve found a happy medium in a combination of these, I find OpenBSD makes my servers utterly sing, FreeBSD is good when I’m feeling geeky, and my Linux desktop does absolutely everything I need it to – which frequently includes running apps compiled for Windows (via Wine).

   Good to see you’ve returned to writing for us!

   Twitter: HorstBurkhardt
   • Steve Youngs says:

     2010/11/27 at 4:25 pm

     Hey Horst!

     Careful, now! Your geek is showing.

     What you’re saying about NetBSD… I had those exact reasons for not including Solaris. One of the reasons I did include NetBSD is that it is still actively maintained. NetBSD 5.1 was released only a week or so ago on Nov 19th. Gotta be some users out there somewhere.

     It is good to be back in the writing saddle again. I am a little surprised that I was missed, but it’s nice to know that I was.

     Appreciate you stopping by, mate. Always a pleasure!

     Kind regards,
     Steve

     Twitter: SteveYoungs
2. Steve from Lifestyle Design says:

   2010/11/28 at 12:36 am

   I certainly know that I COULD use opensource, and that in as many ways that it is inconvenient it has just as many ways that it is BETTER.

   I guess as speaking as someone who is not particularly tech savvy, it seems to an outsider that you need to have a great knowlededge of operating systems and functions to make open source work, where apple and MS are sort of a “dummy” version.

   I have no doubt I “could” learn enough, and that in many ways it could be an improvement, but I think for many of us it is a feeling of inferiority because most people I know who do use linux (etc.) are usually also very knowledgable.
   Steve@Lifestyle Design wrote: Short Term Income vs Information Product Income

   Twitter: stevescott1
   • Steve Youngs says:

     2010/11/28 at 8:36 am

     I hope you realise that you DO use open source. A pretty significant part of your software arsenal is open source… WordPress. Good chance that many of your WordPress plugins are too. I know that ALL of mine are, and my theme.

     in as many ways that it is inconvenient

     I find that remark very interesting. That’s pretty much how I view closed source proprietary software. I’m trying to imagine what possible inconvenience you could be seeing, and all I can come up with is: too much flexibility and choice. Is it that? Or is it something else?

     it seems to an outsider that you need to have a great knowlededge of operating systems and functions to make open source work

     I can assure you that this just is not the case. You need no more knowledge of operating systems and stuff than you do for the software you’re already using. One of the differences between open source projects and Microsoft is that the latter has departments and people dedicated to customer service who believe they can translate customer wants into programming code, and the former (open source) has programmers who believe they can translate programming code into customer wants. The reality is that all too often, neither can do what it believes it can. I personally know some of the most talented computer programmers on the planet, and even though most of them are really nice people, they kinda suck with the people skills and understanding how humans work. Consequently their software can sometimes be better suited to machines than for humans.

     I think for many of us it is a feeling of inferiority because most people I know who do use linux (etc.) are usually also very knowledgable.

     Wow. I had no idea there was that sort of sentiment in the closed source world. Sadly I have seen it the other way around where open source people get a superiority complex (which sickens me, BTW), but I’d not seen it the other way with the “them” feeling inferior. Can I please personally apologise for that. I’ve been involved with and contributing to the open source community and projects for well over a decade now, so in some way I feel partially responsible for how you feel. Sorry.

     Thanks for taking the time to comment, Steve. It was eye-opening, and I learned some things.

     Kind regards,
     Steve

     Twitter: SteveYoungs
3. Marcus says:

   2010/11/28 at 3:09 pm

   I’m about 99% sure that linux has blasted past NetBSD on the number of architectures it actually runs on.

   NetBSD has some nice things around the source tree for making it quite the easy to port… Seems the amount of linux users/devs compared to NetBSD users more than makes up for this.
   • Steve Youngs says:

     2010/11/28 at 3:19 pm

     Hey Marcus!

     Welcome back, mate!

     Yeah I was pretty sure that was the case (Linux running on more iron than NetBSD), I just wasn’t sure enough to say I was certain.

     Twitter: SteveYoungs