I'm sorry but what a load of crap. I've used Openoffice for years (some quite complicated data retrieval and processing) and it always works. Sure it doesn't have all the sync opportunities that Office has but truthfully a large portion of users don't need it. Working as a tech support guy part time I installed Openoffice to an accountants brand new PC and told her to contact me back if it doesn't suit her needs...turns out it was perfect. I also know IT people who pitch Windows as the ultimate OS but those are exclusively in the sales side of things and very much out of touch with the details on how stuff works.
I have a feeling you're going to be wrong in the long run. Many Linux distributions are extremely easy to set up and use. If you understand how to burn a CD and run an installer you can run Linux. If that's too complicated or you don't want to think, then I have no idea what you're doing with a computer in the first place. Plus there is loads of support for any distribution you choose to use(Yes, I said that right. Whichever you CHOOSE to use - there are a lot of distributions). Every six months Ubuntu releases a new updated version, unlike Microsoft which takes years. Linux runs better on older computers, and is much much safer in terms of viruses and spyware. Oh and don't forget Googles OS thats coming out soon. Microsoft has no choice but to continue to crater.. it has no chance. It's like the music industry a couple of years ago. Now look at it. You're not correct. IT people DO want Linux and currently run Linux for a reason. Especially on their servers. It simply does not crash. It is as uniform and reliable as a Mc Donalds hamburger. Unlike Microsoft which crashes if you look at it wrong. I mean come on, that statement about the IT people just proves you have no idea what you're talking about. Also support for Linux is huge and it's only going to continue to get bigger and stronger. Where do you think all the Linux programmers come from? Oh ya around the world.. you think MS can keep up with that? And trust me there are plenty of programmers out there that can't stand Microsoft. That will never be in short supply. You obviously have not tried changing over(hell you can even dual partition.. even better) or you wouldn't be spouting such garbage. Oh ya and all this was typed on a Linux machine. Thanks.
Because of consolidation in the computer hardware sector, basically, nearly every computer has the same components, more or less. The basic Linux driver for Intel ethernet covers off most PC shipments. The other half is covered by the Nvidia driver. Both can be built into the same Linux kernel. Same thing with almost everything else in the PC. Hardware used to be an issue with Linux; now, everything is supported out of the box because its suicide for a h/w manufacturer, these days, to not support Linux.
First, a disclaimer. I am not a MS hater. I'm not a big fan of MS any more, but I am pretty leery of Open Source stuff - especially since the OS stuff that I have used has had a fair amount of problems. I have the new version of Office, don't particularly like it with one exception - the pivot tables in Excel are much better. There never was a compelling reason for me to upgrade to Vista, so I didn't. I personally have 4 licenses for XP Pro and am happy with that. However, when I build my next PC (either this year or next), that will be a Windows 7 machine. My brother-in-law is a big MacFan. Every time he comes over, he brings his mac, and we play some shooters. Usually I am playing for three or four hours while he tries to get a Windows XP environment set up and the game installed on his Mac. But after a while, it works. I'm sticking with Windows for now. Still, it looks like hard times ahead for Microsoft. I primarily use Mozilla now, for instance. MS needs to concentrate on fast and secure IMO. Fancy graphics are nice, but make the OS fast. Make it secure. Fight all these damn developers that want to load their POS app at boot up, put it on your desktop and on your quickstart menu, for instance. And that goes double for the #@&^ apps that want to launch at boot, then immediately check the net for new versions, then start DLing and installing that new version! Man I hate that.
quote from Bali Survivor ... Along came the Apple computer for graphics and then IBM answered with the PC ... Just to set the record straight, IBM had nothing, nothing whatsoever, to do with either inventing or popularizing the PC.* True, they tried to take credit, such as with their Ad in the seventies that said something to the effect: "IBM Brings Legitimacy to Personal Computing" (I'm paraphrasing because it was 30 years ago.) To which DEC responded with their own Ad: "The Bastards say Welcome." Truth is, neither DEC nor IBM had much to do with the introduction of PC's. IBM made a conscious effort to stay clear, thinking incorrectly that the PC would never displace mainframes. They only came into the PC market when they were forced to, and then with equipment that was childish compared to what was already available from others. Does anyone remember the IBM peanut? That total piece of junk! IBM's main contribution to the PC was to use their name and marketing to drive a number of legitimate companies with superior computers out of business. Both Microsoft and IBM tried to dominate via intimidation and other unsavory business practices. The marketing strategy for both these companies was to sell crap and offer an endless stream of pricey upgrades. Microsoft's software made more money the more it crashed!, and if a choice of a dozen plaid desktop backgrounds could help use up computer resources and foul the hard drive, so much the better. The whole idea was to sell another computer with another crappy OEM O.S. Msft largely succeeded because they were in early enough and good at stealing and intimidation. IBM got in way too late, with respect to hardware at least, and instead of stealing, produced proprietary crap that not enough customers wanted, compared to less expensive stuff that was equally or more capable. The ironic thing is that both of these companies had the resources to be untouchable in terms of quality, but both chose the low road (you can't get much lower than Vista) as being the route to greatest profit. It did not work for IBM, but it worked beautifully for Microsoft for many years, but eventually competition from Linux forced Msft to produce a really good operating system, XP, and that, ironically, was the beginning of the long road down hill. Had they done XP 10 years earlier, and they easily could have, they might have slowed Linux progress to a crawl, but they didn't. They still have an Ace in the hole though: Turbotax! There is no group of teenage Ninja Turtle geeks that can do turbotax for Linux because the entry barrier is just too high, and that's why there isn't a version for Linux, free or otherwise-- and its all courtesy of Congress, the IRS, and a million pages of the most complex tax code on the face of the Earth! This is the single most important piece of software that won't run properly under Linux, not even under Wine. Don't be surprised however, now that Oracle and Sun have combined forces, to see Oracle bring out their own version of Turbotax for Linux that wll flawlessly import Windows Turbo files. Microsoft and Intuit should team up to beat Oracle to the punch and bring out a Turbo version for Linux -- I'm not joking! Yes, Microsoft should start producing highly technical, Windows file compatible, Linux software that is beyond the capability of the geek squad, which is considerable. If they do that, they will continue to prosper. If you can't beat'em join em! *There is one thing that IBM contributed, however. They introduced and popularized the name "Personal Computer" or "PC" which caught on as a replacement for "microcomputer."
That is a very common sentiment among adults who want to use their computer to get a job done. Unfortunately, before now it was not in Microsoft's interest to produce fast efficient operating systems. Their marketing thrust was aimed at making your computer get slower and slower so that you would eventually buy a new faster computer and they could sell another OEM Operating System. Now finally, Microsoft may realize that this approach to marketing will only drive more customers to Linux. I'm hearing good things about Windows 7. Perhaps they have got the message. Let us hope there will be no more dancing paper clips, no more Vistas.
I've heard that a lot of Linux users just do their TurboTax online. I guess it's free or not that expensive. It's apparently not a problem.