It’s official that the windows 8 is up for grabs and it open for the all to have a preview of the next historical thing to happen in the world of windows computing environment.The typical quality of windows 8 that sets it apart from the rest of the OS is its user-friendly nature to its user .
The windows 8 OS sets it’s on Ecosystem in the world of computing ….taking the side of tablets, PC, and maybe phones .
There”s little but no difference in the ….UI(user interface ) to all the environment in thew windows 8 platform.
So lets just dive into the windows 8 .. right away .
After few hours of testing it was convinced that the build is stable enough, and I can take it to next level by installing it parallel to Windows 7 via dual-boot. If you too are looking forward to install Windows 8 on your computer, I would prefer you create a bootable USB drive instead of a bootable DVD.
Note: This is a consumer preview of Windows 8 and not the final stable version.
A USB drive is always faster than DVDs and the chances of failed or corrupt installation are very low as compared to optical media. So lets see how you can create the bootable USB of Windows 8 in the easiest way possible.
Necessary Prerequisites
Download the ISO file of Windows 8 on your system.
A minimum of 4 GB removable drive for 32-bit Windows and 8 GB for 64-bit Windows 8 operating system.
Backup all the data
Creating the Windows 8 Bootable USB Drive
Step 1:Download and extract WinUSB Maker on your computer. WinUSB maker is a portable application and thus does not require installation of any kind. You only need to run the .exe file.
Step 2: Run the WinUSB Maker tool with administrative privileges to start creating your bootable USB drive. (right-click on the file, and click Run as Administrator)
Step 3: In the tool, select the option ISO image bootable disk under the Functions section. Select Normal Detection Mode and browse for the Windows 8 bootable ISO (Image file) you have already downloaded on your system.
Step 4: Finally, select the USB drive and drive MBR system (if you have a single one plugged in, it will be selected by default, if you have more than one, click on the dropdown menu and make a selection from the list) and click on the button Make it Bootable .
That’s all, the tool will now format the USB drive and copy all the Windows installation files to it and make it bootable.
You can now plug-in the device into your system and select removable drive as your first boot selection preference in your BIOS and install Windows 8.
Windows 7 Keyboard Shortcuts That Might Surprise You
One of my personal favorites among the new features that Windows 7 came with was the introduction of some awesome and long awaited keyboard shortcuts. I personally use them as much as I can to save time, and I recommend the practice of using keyboard shortcuts to others too.
This article talks about 15 really cool keyboards shortcuts that are specific to Windows 7. I can bet that you don’t know all of them. Check them out, some of them will surprise you for sure.
Creating a new folder in Windows explorer is something we all need to do on a frequent basis. And until now, there was no default shortcut key available for this task. But Windows 7 changed that.
You could now use Ctrl+Shift+N to quickly create a new folder in Windows or anywhere on your computer where a folder can be created.
2. Ctrl+Shift+Click to Open a Program As Administrator
There are many instances when just clicking on the icon of the application and opening it doesn’t solve your purpose. You need to right click on it and click on “Run as Administrator” so that you can make the required changes to the app.
In Windows 7, this can be done with a keyboard shortcut. You just need to point your mouse cursor on that program and then click on it while pressing Ctrl+Shift keys to open it as administrator.
The above screenshot shows the default send to menu that I get when I simply right click on a program.
Now, if I press the Shift key, and while having it pressed, I right click on the icon, I get an enhanced send to menu. See the screenshot below to check how it looks.
4. Shift+Right-Click on a Folder to Open Command Prompt
If you do Shift+right-click on a folder, you’ll find an option that says “Open command windows here.” If you love working with the command prompt, this option should come in handy.
5. Win+Space to Quickly Show Desktop
Remember our quick tip on hiding open windows in windows 7 ? Well, this is the keyboard shortcut version of that mouse cursor trick. Pressing the Win key and the space bar simultaneously shows you the desktop immediately.
6. Win+Up/Down/Left/Right for Moving the Active Window
If you intend to quickly move the active window to make space for other apps, you could do that by using the Win key and one of the arrow keys. Each arrow key would move the window in the direction it is meant to.
7. For Dual Monitors: Win+Shift+Left Arrow Key to Move Active Window to Left Monitor
If you are on a dual monitor setup using Windows 7 then you could press the Win+Shift+Left arrow key combination to move the active application window to the left monitor.
8. For Dual Monitors: Win+Shift+Right Arrow Key to Move Active Window to Right Monitor
Similarly, if you need to move the current window to the right monitor screen, just press Win+Shift+right arrow key.
9. Win+T to Get to Taskbar Items
You could use the key combination Win+T to toggle through the applications pinned on the taskbar in Windows 7.
10. Shift+Click on a Taskbar App to Open a New Instance of the App
Let’s say you’ve got a bunch of Chrome windows open. And you need to quickly open a new blank window of the browser. Here’s the way – point your cursor to the chrome icon on the taskbar, hit Shift and click on it. There you go!
In a previous article, we talked about a technique to add more clocks to the default Windows clock in the system tray. Now, if you need to get there without using your mouse cursor, how’d you do that?
Answer – Win+B. That would move the focus on the system tray, and then you could use the arrow keys to cycle through the items, including the Windows clock.
12. Win+P for Quickly Connecting Your Laptop to a Projector
Windows 7 has a nifty projection menu feature which enables you to quickly connect your laptop to a projector or an extended monitor. Win+P is the keyboard shortcut for that purpose.
13. Win+1, Win+2..so on for Opening Taskbar Programs
Want to quickly open a program that’s pinned to your Windows 7 taskbar? You can press the Win key and the number corresponding to the location of the app on the taskbar.
14. Win+Pause helps you check System Properties
Need to take a quick look at what’s the processor model you are using, or may be check the device manager, or advanced system settings? You could use Win+pause key combination to open the system properties window.
15. Ctrl+Shift+Esc Can Quickly Open Windows Task Manager
I think this was in Vista too, I am not sure. But it’s a cool shortcut nevertheless. Just press the Ctrl key, Shift key and the ESC key simultaneously and you have the task manager pop up right in front!
So that was about the amazing Windows 7 keyboard shortcuts. I hope you find them useful. In fact, learn them if you are on Windows 7. That’s what I did and it has helped a great deal. If I’ve missed a cool shortcut, do share that in the comments.
Now, if you are on Windows XP, and would love to get some these shortcuts that are relevant to XP, we’ll have you covered tomorrow. We will tell you how you could get some of the above shortcuts working on XP. Stay tuned!
The interface formerly known as Metro (TIFKAM) makes the information applications present their UI, and developers need to realise that and stop polluting software with the kind of buttons and icons elements they’ve grown up with.
That’s the opinion voiced by Shane Morris of Automatic Studio, now a user interface consultant but once a Microsoft user interface evangelist, at Microsoft Australia’s TechEd conference today.
Morris’ talk was titled “How to be authentically digital”, a term used by Microsoft to describe its new ethic of letting pixels be pixels instead of imbuing UI elements with shading so they resemble real-world objects. Morris gleefully the term as “designer wank”. He also described the initial TIFKAM screen as the “Asian supermarket screen, because everything is yelling at you and you don’t know where to look.”
Which is not to say Morris dislikes TIFKAM, as he explained it uses proven design techniques and philosophies drawn from “Wayfinding” (signage in airports, train stations and other public places), typography (The Swiss School) and moving type (The opening titles to Hitchcock’s North by Northwest are apparently seminal so we’ve popped them in below).
Those influences mean TIFKAM doesn’t use the interactive vocabulary of the desktop GUI. Instead, Morris says, “We focus on content and the information people need to consume.”
Developers must therefore strive to “present the information well enough it can form the user interface.” Which is not to say that users are to be left without things to click on, but Microsoft has hidden them in TIFKAM’s Apps Bar and Charm bar, decoupling UI elements from apps.
“A consistent UI and place for people to look for search, share and settings means users don’t have to need to learn a new UI for each app,” Morris explained, adding that it’s not sensible to assume that users have discovered the Charm or Apps bars. Most users do so quickly, he said. Others take up to five minutes to do so.
Morris said Developers need to understand these new elements, and also assess whether they are right for their apps. Business apps, he said may not work in this context, with more familiar icon-driven UI elements still available for apps that just won’t fit into TIFKAM’s design paradigm.
That split, he said, is not new, arguing that Microsoft has been making content-centric interfaces since the days of Expedia CD-ROMs and has continue to do so with products like Media Centre and Zune.
Mainstream developers will therefore need to come to terms with content-centric interfaces and the elements they offer, one of which is animation. Moving images, he said, even offer the chance to tap into users’ primal instincts as we are attuned to interpreting fast-moving objects in peripheral vision as worthy of attention (if only to avoid being eaten by an approaching predator). Using animation to show users something is worthy of their attention is a new interface tactic he feels will be useful.
The bad news, Morris added, is that using animation “doesn’t come naturally to me”. He’s not sure it will come naturally to any developer, given that most are used to working in rather different ways.
But developers don’t need to get too hung up on their animation skills, he added, as good design for Windows 8 apps, or any other, starts with decisions about what an application is intended to achieve, rather than just how it will look and behave.
Internet Explorer users and IE-only websites still exist, so even Chrome fans have to use IE occasionally. Why bother launching Internet Explorer when you can run it in a browser tab? IE Tab is ideal for web developers and anyone needing an IE-only website.
IE Tab for Chrome was developed by the same people who created IE Tab for Firefox. It can emulate a variety of IE versions and automatically launch IE-only websites in IE mode, so you don’t even have to think about it. User Agent Switcher for Chrome is another option for IE-only websites, but it just makes Chrome pretend it’s Internet Explorer – IE Tab doesn’t pretend, it is IE.
Uses
The IE Tab extension embeds the Internet Explorer Web Browser Control included with Windows. If you’re using Mac OS X, Linux, or even Chrome OS, it won’t work. Remember to keep Internet Explorer updated – IE Tab is only as secure as the version of IE on your system.
IE Tab has a variety of uses:
Web Development – View web pages in IE 7, IE 8, or IE 9 mode.
IE-Only Websites – Load IE-only websites within Google Chrome.
After you install IE Tab, you’ll get an IE Tab icon on your toolbar and an IE Tab submenu in your right-click menu. Click the button to load the current page in an embedded IE window.
IE Tab doesn’t integrate perfectly with Chrome – each IE tab frame has its own address bar. To bookmark a page, click the bookmark icon on the IE Tab toolbar. IE Tab will create a bookmark and save it to the “IE Tab” folder on your bookmarks toolbar. When clicked, the bookmark will load the current page in an IE Tab.
You can tell it’s using Internet Explorer because it isn’t rendering MakeUseOf properly. (To be fair, the drop-down menu works properly when IE Tab is set to IE 9 mode, but it uses IE 7 compatibility mode by default.)
Advanced Options
Open the options page by right-clicking the IE Tab icon on your browser’s toolbar and selecting Options. The options page is divided into four panes.
The IE Options button is a quick way to open the system-wide Internet Options dialog – IE Tab uses Internet Explorer’s system-wide settings.
The Auto URLs feature allows you to automatically open defined URLs in IE mode. You can define rules using wildcards or regular expressions – or just enter an exact path to a specific web page. When you navigate to any of the pages that match these rules, IE Tab will take over.
The Auto URL Exceptions box can narrow down overly broad Auto URL rules. If there’s a good page that would match one of your Auto URLs rules, you can whitelist it here.
IE Tab emulates IE 7 by default, but you can emulate different IE 8 or IE 9 modes if you have a newer version of Internet Explorer installed. You must restart Google Chrome after changing this setting.
Windows Explorer in Chrome
I’m not sure why you’d want to do this, but you can embed Windows Explorer in Chrome with IE Tab. Just type a local file system address, such as C:\, into IE Tab’s address bar.
The embedded Windows Explorer works just like the Windows Explorer windows on your system. This feature takes advantage of the close relationship between Internet Explorer and Windows Explorer.
Do you still have to use an IE-only website – maybe an internal web app on your intranet? Or have you fully escaped IE’s clutches? Leave a comment and let us know.
If your laptop uses software from UPEK, it’s exposing your Windows password.
An image from UPEK Protector Suite 2009.
Fingerprint-reading software pre-installed on laptops sold by Dell, Sony, and at least 14 other PC makers contains a serious weakness that makes it trivial for hackers with physical control of the machine to quickly recover account passwords, security researchers said.
The UPEK Protector Suite, which was acquired by Melbourne, Florida-based Authentec two years ago, is marketed as a secure means for logging into Windows computers using an owner’s unique fingerprint, rather than a user-memorized password. In reality, using the software makes users lesssecure than they otherwise would be. When activated, the software writes Windows account passwords to the registry and encrypts them with a key that is easy for hackers to retrieve. Once the key has been acquired, it takes seconds to decrypt the password.
“After analyzing a number of laptops equipped with UPEK fingerprint readers and running UPEK Protector Suite, we found that your Windows account passwords are stored in Windows registry almost in plain text, barely scrambled but not encrypted,” said an advisory issued by Elcomsoft, a Russia-based developer of password-cracking software. “Having physical access to a laptop running UPEK Protector Suite, we could extract passwords to all user accounts with fingerprint-enabled logon.”
When Protector Suite isn’t activated, Windows doesn’t store account passwords in the registry unless users have specifically configured an account to automatically log in. Security experts have long counseled people not to use automatic login.
That means computers that use the UPEK app are at a severe disadvantage compared with people who use a strong password to log in to a Windows account. The most obvious disadvantage is for those computers that have a Windows feature known as Encrypting File System enabled to prevent third parties from accessing sensitive files or folders. The key that unlocks that encrypted data is controlled by a Windows account password. Once the password is retrieved, the EFS-encrypted data stored on the computer can quickly be decrypted.
Further, having quick access to the account password could unlock other data that might otherwise be harder to obtain. The Windows Data Protection application programming interface, for example, is also closely tied to account passwords and controls access to credentials used by Outlook, Internet Explorer, and possibly other applications. Of course, any time a PC is physically controlled by a hacker, its passwords are vulnerable to cracking attacks that have grown significantly more powerful in recent years. But without the use of the UPEK Protector Suite, hackers have access only to one-way password hashes, which, depending on the complexity of the underlying passcode, can take years or centuries to recover using brute-force methods. Use of the fingerprint software guarantees the success of the cracking operation, and it can also significantly reduce the time it takes.
The easily cracked passwords are stored in the Windows registry even after the Protector Suite software has been deactivated, according to the Elcomsoft advisory. It is only removed when a user manually deletes it. The precise registry location of the encrypted password is not yet known. This article will be updated with instructions for locating and removing it if that information can be obtained.
Authentec no longer actively markets Protector Suite, but according to archived data from the UPEK website, the app ships—or used to ship—on laptops manufactured by 16 different companies. In addition to Dell and Acer, other PC makers include Amoi, Asus, Clevo, Compal, Dell, Gateway, IBM/Lenovo, Itronix, MPC, MSI, NEC, Sager, Samsung, Sony, and Toshiba.
It’s unclear if Authentec officials plan to recall the product or issue an advisory warning laptop owners of the vulnerability. Company representatives didn’t respond to Ars Technica e-mails requesting comment for this article. The Elcomsoft findings follow research published last month that showed thatpassword hints are easily extracted from Windows 7 and Windows 8 machines.
The discovery serves as a useful reality check for marketers who portray fingerprints and other user biometrics as a panacea for the difficulty of remembering and securing passwords. In fact, biometric readers are only as secure as the software that implements them. And even when devices are free of such implementation errors, biometrics such as fingerprints and iris scans may be vulnerable to cloning, opening up the possibility of a new class of attacks on the alternate authentication methods.
According to Elcomsoft, Authentec officials have already said they’re aware of the weakness. If true, it’s disappointing that the company has yet to share that knowledge with the millions of people who likely have the software installed on their computers. A tutorial included with UPEK Protector Suite 2009 installed on a Sony Vaio touts the convenience of the application with the tag line: “Protect your digital privacy.” It goes on to emphasize the benefits of using Protector Suite to encrypt files and folders. Now that a weakness has come to light that seriously undermines those assurances, Authentec should recall the software, or at the very least warn users that it is susceptible to serious attack.
Have you ever lost office 2010 product key ? And you spent hour and hour to find that office 2010 cd key for office reinstalling. This article shows you how to find office 2010 product key from installed office 2010 application.
Simple steps to find office 2010 product key:
1. Download Product Key Finder software (Trial version) and install it to the windows where your office 2010 is installed in.
2. Launch Product Key finder software, and then click “Start Recovery” to find office 2010 product key. Many product keys will be listed. if the office 2010 has been installed, its product key will be displayed too.
3. Click “Save as” to save these product keys to a file.
There are plenty of Linux Distros out there but there’s only very few that is truly for beginners. So I have picked 5 distros that suit the category. You might be curious about the factors that I considered when picking the Top 5. Well, out of the box support is very important in picking beginner distros. Other factors include: User friendly UI, easy installation and great online support. The Distros below are well-known for excelling in those areas.
Ubuntu is the #1 and the most popular distro out there. Even though Linux Mint appeals more to new users Ubuntu has a rigorous release cycle and tends to have more features implemented in each release. Ubuntu does not come with a load of software and codecs pre-installed like Linux Mint. So new users may have trouble playing certain media formats and may require a few command line installations but due to the excellent community support they can be sorted out within minutes.
EDIT: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS was released in April and I only have great things to say about it. Unity is now VERY stable and polished. There have been significant improvements to the interface since 11.04. So I highly recommend that you try out 12.04 if you have not used unity since 11.04.
Linux Mint is known as the second most popular Linux distribution simply because of its user friendliness. It comes with loads of software carefully picked by the team, media codecs and drivers. The distro works so well out of the box you will not be spending any time trouble shooting. The Distro focuses on what is best for its users and provides what the mainstream Linux users demand (most of the time). Linux Mint 13 comes in 2 editions. The Cinnamon edition includes a modern Gnome 3 desktop with a familiar and traditional layout. The MATE edition comes with a Gnome 2 desktop. Compared to the cinnamon edition, the MATE edition is more stable but is quite boring. Cinnamon is a fairly new desktop that is being developed by the mint team.
Pinguy OS is an Ubuntu based distribution that comes with A LOT of software pre-installed. It is great for users who want to explore the extensive software that Linux has to offer. It is also very convenient because it includes almost all the software that a user may require. Pinguy OS is a fairly new distro but it is gaining popularity quickly. Pinguy OS includes two Docks by default and the overall look of the desktop leans toward OS X. Pinguy OS 12.04 includes a customized gnome-shell.
Zorin OS is optimized for users who are transitioning From windows. It looks quite similar to Windows 7 and comes with “zorin look changer” that can make your desktop look similar to older Windows versions and Mac OS X. Zorin OS also offers four premium versions (Ultimate, Business, Multimedia, Gaming) which are available upon donating. There is also a free version that does not come with as much software pre-installed.
Peppermint OS a very light distro that comes with LXDE desktop environment. LXDE is very simple to use and many will find it to be a straightforward DE. The OS boots up quite fast which makes it ideal for older computers or netbooks. Peppermint OS 3 is based on Lubuntu 12.04. It includes an elegant theme by default and includes media-codecs out of the box.
Having access to the source code is probably the single most significant difference between Linux and Windows. The fact that Linux belongs to the GNU Public License ensures that users (of all sorts) can access (and alter) the code to the very kernel that serves as the foundation of the Linux operating system. You want to peer at the Windows code? Good luck. Unless you are a member of a very select (and elite, to many) group, you will never lay eyes on code making up the Windows operating system.
You can look at this from both sides of the fence. Some say giving the public access to the code opens the operating system (and the software that runs on top of it) to malicious developers who will take advantage of any weakness they find. Others say that having full access to the code helps bring about faster improvements and bug fixes to keep those malicious developers from being able to bring the system down. I have, on occasion, dipped into the code of one Linux application or another, and when all was said and done, was happy with the results. Could I have done that with a closed-source Windows application? No.
#2: Licensing freedom vs. licensing restrictions
Along with access comes the difference between the licenses. I’m sure that every IT professional could go on and on about licensing of PC software. But let’s just look at the key aspect of the licenses (without getting into legalese). With a Linux GPL-licensed operating system, you are free to modify that software and use and even republish or sell it (so long as you make the code available). Also, with the GPL, you can download a single copy of a Linux distribution (or application) and install it on as many machines as you like. With the Microsoft license, you can do none of the above. You are bound to the number of licenses you purchase, so if you purchase 10 licenses, you can legally install that operating system (or application) on only 10 machines.
#3: Online peer support vs. paid help-desk support
This is one issue where most companies turn their backs on Linux. But it’s really not necessary. With Linux, you have the support of a huge community via forums, online search, and plenty of dedicated Web sites. And of course, if you feel the need, you can purchase support contracts from some of the bigger Linux companies (Red Hat and Novell for instance).
However, when you use the peer support inherent in Linux, you do fall prey to time. You could have an issue with something, send out e-mail to a mailing list or post on a forum, and within 10 minutes be flooded with suggestions. Or these suggestions could take hours of days to come in. It seems all up to chance sometimes. Still, generally speaking, most problems with Linux have been encountered and documented. So chances are good you’ll find your solution fairly quickly.
On the other side of the coin is support for Windows. Yes, you can go the same route with Microsoft and depend upon your peers for solutions. There are just as many help sites/lists/forums for Windows as there are for Linux. And you can purchase support from Microsoft itself. Most corporate higher-ups easily fall victim to the safety net that having a support contract brings. But most higher-ups haven’t had to depend up on said support contract. Of the various people I know who have used either a Linux paid support contract or a Microsoft paid support contract, I can’t say one was more pleased than the other. This of course begs the question “Why do so many say that Microsoft support is superior to Linux paid support?”
#4: Full vs. partial hardware support
One issue that is slowly becoming nonexistent is hardware support. Years ago, if you wanted to install Linux on a machine you had to make sure you hand-picked each piece of hardware or your installation would not work 100 percent. I can remember, back in 1997-ish, trying to figure out why I couldn’t get Caldera Linux or Red Hat Linux to see my modem. After much looking around, I found I was the proud owner of a Winmodem. So I had to go out and purchase an US Robotics external modem because that was the one modem I knew would work. This is not so much the case now. You can grab a PC (or laptop) and most likely get one or more Linux distributions to install and work nearly 100 percent. But there are still some exceptions. For instance, hibernate/suspend remains a problem with many laptops, although it has come a long way.
With Windows, you know that almost every piece of hardware will work with the operating system. Of course, there are times (and I have experienced this over and over) when you will wind up spending much of the day searching for the correct drivers for that piece of hardware you no longer have the install disk for. But you can go out and buy that 10-cent Ethernet card and know it’ll work on your machine (so long as you have, or can find, the drivers). You also can rest assured that when you purchase that insanely powerful graphics card, you will probably be able to take full advantage of its power.
#5: Command line vs. no command line
No matter how far the Linux operating system has come and how amazing the desktop environment becomes, the command line will always be an invaluable tool for administration purposes. Nothing will ever replace my favorite text-based editor, ssh, and any given command-line tool. I can’t imagine administering a Linux machine without the command line. But for the end user — not so much. You could use a Linux machine for years and never touch the command line. Same with Windows. You can still use the command line with Windows, but not nearly to the extent as with Linux. And Microsoft tends to obfuscate the command prompt from users. Without going to Run and entering cmd (or command, or whichever it is these days), the user won’t even know the command-line tool exists. And if a user does get the Windows command line up and running, how useful is it really?
#6: Centralized vs. decentralized application installation
The heading for this point might have thrown you for a loop. But let’s think about this for a second. With Linux you have (with nearly every distribution) a centralized location where you can search for, add, or remove software. I’m talking about package management systems, such as Synaptic. With Synaptic, you can open up one tool, search for an application (or group of applications), and install that application without having to do any Web searching (or purchasing).
Windows has nothing like this. With Windows, you must know where to find the software you want to install, download the software (or put the CD into your machine), and run setup.exe or install.exe with a simple double-click. For many years, it was thought that installing applications on Windows was far easier than on Linux. And for many years, that thought was right on target. Not so much now. Installation under Linux is simple, painless, and centralized.
#7: Flexibility vs. rigidity
I always compare Linux (especially the desktop) and Windows to a room where the floor and ceiling are either movable or not. With Linux, you have a room where the floor and ceiling can be raised or lowered, at will, as high or low as you want to make them. With Windows, that floor and ceiling are immovable. You can’t go further than Microsoft has deemed it necessary to go.
Take, for instance, the desktop. Unless you are willing to pay for and install a third-party application that can alter the desktop appearance, with Windows you are stuck with what Microsoft has declared is the ideal desktop for you. With Linux, you can pretty much make your desktop look and feel exactly how you want/need. You can have as much or as little on your desktop as you want. From simple flat Fluxbox to a full-blown 3D Capiz experience, the Linux desktop is as flexible an environment as there is on a computer.
#8: Fanboys vs. corporate types
I wanted to add this because even though Linux has reached well beyond its school-project roots, Linux users tend to be soapbox-dwelling fanatics who are quick to spout off about why you should be choosing Linux over Windows. I am guilty of this on a daily basis (I try hard to recruit new fanboys/girls), and it’s a badge I wear proudly. Of course, this is seen as less than professional by some. After all, why would something worthy of a corporate environment have or need cheerleaders? Shouldn’t the software sell itself? Because of the open source nature of Linux, it has to make do without the help of the marketing budgets and deep pockets of Microsoft. With that comes the need for fans to help spread the word. And word of mouth is the best friend of Linux.
Some see the fanaticism as the same college-level hoorah that keeps Linux in the basements for LUG meetings and science projects. But I beg to differ. Another company, thanks to the phenomenon of a simple music player and phone, has fallen into the same fan-boy fanaticism, and yet that company’s image has not been besmirched because of that fanaticism. Windows does not have these same fans. Instead, Windows has a league of paper-certified administrators who believe the hype when they hear the misrepresented market share numbers reassuring them they will be employable until the end of time.
#9: Automated vs. nonautomated removable media
I remember the days of old when you had to mount your floppy to use it and unmount it to remove it. Well, those times are drawing to a close — but not completely. One issue that plagues new Linux users is how removable media is used. The idea of having to manually “mount” a CD drive to access the contents of a CD is completely foreign to new users. There is a reason this is the way it is. Because Linux has always been a multiuser platform, it was thought that forcing a user to mount a media to use it would keep the user’s files from being overwritten by another user. Think about it: On a multiuser system, if everyone had instant access to a disk that had been inserted, what would stop them from deleting or overwriting a file you had just added to the media? Things have now evolved to the point where Linux subsystems are set up so that you can use a removable device in the same way you use them in Windows. But it’s not the norm. And besides, who doesn’t want to manually edit the /etc/fstab fle?
#10: Multilayered run levels vs. a single-layered run level
I couldn’t figure out how best to title this point, so I went with a description. What I’m talking about is Linux’ inherent ability to stop at different run levels. With this, you can work from either the command line (run level 3) or the GUI (run level 5). This can really save your socks when X Windows is fubared and you need to figure out the problem. You can do this by booting into run level 3, logging in as root, and finding/fixing the problem.
With Windows, you’re lucky to get to a command line via safe mode — and then you may or may not have the tools you need to fix the problem. In Linux, even in run level 3, you can still get and install a tool to help you out (hello apt-get install APPLICATION via the command line). Having different run levels is helpful in another way. Say the machine in question is a Web or mail server. You want to give it all the memory you have, so you don’t want the machine to boot into run level 5. However, there are times when you do want the GUI for administrative purposes (even though you can fully administer a Linux server from the command line). Because you can run the startxcommand from the command line at run level 3, you can still start-up X Windows and have your GUI as well. With Windows, you are stuck at the Graphical run level unless you hit a serious problem.
Silent Poison Hack 