I had to respond…

An article on ZDnet really got me going…
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9595-6055045.html

Here’s the post from someone else…
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Usability? How is Linux more “usable”?

If I can’t run my software on it, how is it usable? Linux isn’t superior, if it won’t do the things I want without making me spend all my time figuring out how to do it.

Windows best quality is that it does allow almost ANY user to do almost EVERYTHING there is to do on a computer without knowing ANYTHING about the computer or the software.
It’s like a car, we can all drive one, some better than others, but how many people would drive if they had to manually adjust the computer and injectors for various types of gas, altitude, or road? Most people would end up riding bicycles by default.

Same for Linux, people like the way Windows automatically does things. And that quality of automation is worth so much more than anything Linux has to offer right now.

Is linux technically superior? No, because it won’t run the software I run every day! Even though I agree that it does so many things better than Windows, Linux is not a better OS, because it won’t do the things we want easily enough.
Could it be better than Windows? I think so, but only if it gets easier to use. Some companies are doing that, but they are too incompatible; again, Linux is like having to learn how to drive a car every time you buy a new one, because this one has the gas on the left, but that one has a hand feed throttle, and the other one takes a special mix of gas and vinegar to run at all.
That’s not superior, that’s just stupid.
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Here’s my response…
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I have to question the way you think about technology? Do you view technology as a tool to solve a business problem, or a way to keep your Redmond buddies in business?

All IT pros SHOULD be asking themselves… “What do I need to solve this business or technical problem?” Then figure out what characteristics of the solution are important to you, and include that in your decision.

Example, I need to market my product/services. I want to do it with a webpage. I therefore need a web server… I could go with IIS/Windows or Apache/Linux or one of many other choices. What characteristics are important to me? Low cost, security, reliability, freedom of choice.

Low Cost — Depending on your current written-in-blood MS agreement, you could argue it’s a wash… but if it came down to it, Apache/Linux could be obtained for $0 and the hardware required for good performance is definitely cheaper with the Apache/Linux solution.

Security — It’s not the number of patches required… all software requires patches. But how many vulnerabilities are there? MS is “security by obscurity” and customers are at the mercy of MS to plug their holes. Linux is “security by transparency”. I have to give the edge to Linux here.

Reliability — Just ask the avg Windows admin how many times per month the servers need to be rebooted. You’ll have to ask the avg Linux admin how many times per YEAR. Unix reliability, at commodity hardware pricing. Advantage Linux.

Freedom of Choice — How many OS’s can you run IIS on? One — Windows. That’s it. Apache can run on not only many flavors of Linux, but also many hardware architectures (x86 thru zSeries) and on more OS’s than Linux… Solaris, NetWare, and even Windows!

As for ease of use… Take another look at Linux, buddy. SUSE for example, uses YaST to make configuring the server as easy as the Control Panel in Windows. Command line is not required! You might also consider some training… Don’t you want a knowledgeable person running your computer and software that you run the business on?!?!?!?

One last point… If the app you want DOES NOT run on Linux (yet), have you considered voicing your request to the application vendor?? They aren’t going to port their app over to Linux unless their paying customers are ASKING FOR IT! Do your part and request support for Linux (or whatever OS you want)!

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WETA Volunteer

Tonight I had a new experience… volunteer to answer phones and take pledges for the local PBS station, WETA. I went with a group of my co-workers, and we had a good time answering phones and accepting pledges from generous members of the public.

I have to say that it wasn’t quite what I thought it would be like. I thought that calls were taken continuously for a few hours. Actually, we worked about 45 minutes total in 3 segments each about 15 minutes long. The rest of the time, we just chit-chatted and socialized. The biggest shock was that a fair number of the calls we received were actually complaints about various things — not to make a pledge. Don’t they have anything better to do??

In case you were wondering, I think I collected about $300 worth of pledges during my time there. Despite my complaints, I’m glad I went. I feel like I was able to contribute in a small way to my commuity — which is always a good thing. Try it.

Linux on the Desktop?

Well, I may be a bit biased because of my involvement in the industry, but I have to say… I’ve run SUSE Linux as my production work laptop OS for a couple years now. Actually, I run Novell Linux Desktop and have been very pleased. There are some issues to deal with of course, but it’s actually quite good.

Now, Novell is working on taking it to the next level with SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 — and I’m starting to play with beta versions… I’ll let you know how it’s going. Here’s a link to the preview of what this exciting new version can do.

I’ll be at Novell BrainShare in a couple weeks getting the latest and greatest info. I’m really looking forward to the trip!

Ports schmorts…

I can’t believe lawmakers are continuing to object to the UAE running the shipping port operations. Where does it stop? Will America simply not let any company from any other country run any part of America? If we’re going to be a country that participates in the global economy, we’ve got to learn to be willing to be “borderless” — at least business-wise.

To use national security as the primary concern really makes a mockery of how serious we should be taking our security. Our political system is a complete circus. It’s really sad.

Gotta have more cowbell!

This is easily one of my favorite Saturday Night Live sketches, the “Behind the Music” where Christopher Walken professes “I gotta have more cowbell!” If you haven’t seen it, check out this website… http://www.geekspeakweekly.com/cowbell/

Deal or No Deal

I admit it… I’m addicted to Deal or No Deal! I love watching this game show! It’s so FUN to watch… even though it is probably the simplest game of all game shows — “pick a number”.

Who updates MapQuest?

We’ve lived in our house since Oct 2000. If you look up our address on MapQuest it shows the wrong location by about 100 yards. Following their directions, when you approach our street it tells you to turn right instead of left. Someone was coming to our house today and got lost because of it. The navigation system in my car has the same problem… Who’s job is it to keep these maps up to date?

Welcome!

This is my first “real” blog message. I hope I can find interesting things to write about here… I plan to just react and comment on various things that happen in my world. It should be pretty interesting…