In less than a year from now Microsoft will cease support for Windows XP, even now XP users (myself included) are hanging on to a burning rope, so my question is what will that actually mean for XP users when support finally ends next year, will it make XP completely un-usable forcing users to upgrade to a more up to date OS ? and if so what do you think that will mean for Linux adoption ? Can Linux fill the gap ?
Windows 8 isn’t exactly setting the PC world on fire which doesn’t surprise me (have you ever seen such an ugly desktop), so what will XP users do if and when they’re forced to move to another OS, many will likely upgrade to either Windows 7 or 8, some may shift over to Mac, some may scrap their PC’s altogether and go tablet, but what will it mean for Ubuntu and other Linux distributions, is this an opportunity for Canonical to increase it’s market share to a point where third party hardware and software vendors will have to sit up and take notice and start seriously supporting Linux
Personally I think most people won’t install a new operating system on their existing PC’s or laptops, they’ll simply buy a new one and if Linux/Ubuntu is to cash in it’s got to get itself pre-installed on these machines and into the retail market
I am one of those with Windows XP but I wont change to mac because of the programmes that only run on windows. On eBay there are upgrade discs from XP to windows eight. I am considering getting another hard disc caddy for this purpose and keep XP for as long as I can. Oh yes, thanks for trying to get my scanner working on linux.
so my question is what will that actually mean for XP users when support finally ends next year, will it make XP completely un-usable forcing users to upgrade to a more up to date OS ?
It will still work but will become even less secure than it is now, as exploits are found and not patched … and newer hardware probably won’t have drivers for XP.
what will it mean for Ubuntu and other Linux distributions, is this an opportunity for Canonical to increase it's market share to a point where third party hardware and software vendors will have to sit up and take notice and start seriously supporting Linux
I don’t see the demise of XP as a Linux opportunity (most of those people will move to Win7/Win8), I DO see the current failure of Win8 as an opportunity … probably more for Android/ChromeOS, but hey they’re Linux too.
I’m convinced (traditional) Linux will eventually win the desktop, but slowly as support and user awareness comes through the (Android/ChromeOS) back door, and Windows continues its slide into oblivion.
As for Mac … nah, there’s a limited number of people willing to be ripped off for perceived (but sadly wrong) elitism … so either Mac goes mainstream which is unlikely as elitism works for them, or the masses go to whatever fills the gap vacated by Windows (which realistically can only be one thing … Linux).
I was browsing around PC World this morning and discovered you can run windows on mac, I don’t know if you can run linux on it. The computer engineer that looks after my computer for repairs, etc. Does not recommend windows 8 at all. He knows all the systems windows, macs and linux. He favours linux above all of them which was how I got into linux. I have heard people say that macs are superior to windows but I don’t know why this so.
I have heard people say that macs are superior to windows but I don't know why this so.
If by “macs” you mean the operating system … OS X
Because it’s a *nix OS like Linux so much more secure that Windows … albeit crafted with the same vendor “tie in” in mind, as Microsoft products are (more so, as they’re tying you to their specific hardware too).
And because the people that are saying it are probably Mac users with a weird elitist attitude that sometimes borders on stupidity … like the OS X fans who attempted to defend the lack of a “cut” function here: http://forums.macrumors.com/archive/index.php/t-183472.html
which still cracks me up every time I read it ;D
In most ways OS X istechnically superior to Windows … but then it’s pretty closely related to Linux, so it would be
NO … whilst OS X and Linux are “UNIX like” OS’s, and share some some components (including CUPS), there are also a lot of differences.
So if the printer driver was a simple PPD then it could be loaded through CUPS (Common UNIX Printing System) in both OS X and Linux … if it’s a binary (or package) they are not compatible.
I’m afraid “Closely related” doesn’t necessarily mean “Binary compatible”, and definitely not “Package compatible” … and that’s the way Apple like it :o
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When I say “closely related” think more along the lines of “third cousins twice removed” rather than “siblings”, they may have a common heritage but genetically they’ve diverged quite a bit.
I’ve never used a Mac come to think of I don’t think I’ve ever seen one unless you count my daughters Ipad which to be honest did not impress me at all, I remember thinking as it was being proudly demonstrated to me “All that glitters isn’t gold” although I never said it out loud,
Apparently the missus is to be offered an Ipad from her employers soon, I asked her to refuse it on point of principle and tell them she has no wish to incarcerated in a walled garden but she would accept the money instead, but unfortunately she doesn’t share the same principles as me so there could be one in house soon but you’ll not find my fingerprints on it.
Getting back to the original post It’s an unfortunate fact that as Linux users we need more mainstream adoption for Linux to progress and realise it’s full potential, because we need more third party support, I can’t personally dispense of Windows completely as much as I would like to because applications I need for my buisness just isn’t available in Linux and there is no viable alternative for me at present so it looks like it’s gonna be Windows 7 for me untill the software vendors I use see linux as relevant enough to port their applications to, but I can’t see that happening untill we see Linux PC’s and laptops pre-installed on retail shelves
I’m on a different computer at the moment running zorin. Mozilla firefox shows no spell checker in the browser but it should be the same as ubuntu’s fire fox with no spell checker, unless there is a special toolbar for it.
From what I understand, without an interner connection GooglechromeOS is as much use as an ashtray on a motor bike or a chocolate teapot, call that an operating system if you like.
it seems to me Google want us all to do our computing on their servers, now I don’t know what the full implications of that are (if any) but there’s something i don’t like about it.
Google is a multi million dollar company and I trust them no more than I trust Microsoft or Apple
My point isn’t that ChromeOS is any good as is (Peppermint is better ), but that it’s a “proper” Linux distro, albeit cut back at the moment.
But as I (and SeZo) pointed out, the internal storage is growing on Chromebooks and I have a feeling that it will (legitimately) gain the ability to run local apps.
They are already on shelves, and apparently desired … people are finding ways to install local apps (which can only be “proper” linux apps).
So consider this … chromebooks become desired and sell … either third parties or Google give them the ability to run local apps … do you then think the software houses will find them an interesting proposition as Win8 is a flop ?
And remember (unlike Android) if software runs on ChromeOS it should run on any other Linux distro
From what I understand, without an interner connection GooglechromeOS is as much use as an ashtray on a motor bike or a chocolate teapot, call that an operating system if you like.
Not as useless as it presumed to be. To start with the hardware is quite nice for the money.
Just go to PC World and test run any them (ask them to disconnect from the interweb).
