Ubuntu Linux Vs Windows Vista

Filed in archive Software on April 29, 2007

Operating systems is usually a dull subject. No one wakes up in the morning and immediately says, "I gotta buy a new operating system." That is, unless your operating system is a real pain.

Information Week have done a good job in comparing ubuntu linux and Windows Vista (thanks to tuxmachines.org and Vista.Blorge.com team who diverted my attention to the Information Week article.) The only issue, identified by Tuxmachine.org, is that Information Week did not declare a winner.

Should you be concerned about which operating system you use on your computer? What about your next computer or laptop? If you are running Windows XP and it is working fine, is there really a reason why you might want to, or have to, upgrade to Windows Vista?

A part of me says "if it ain't broke then why fix it" but there is that other part of me that says you need to keep up with technology because the new sometimes gives us better and new things to do that will help me get business things done. However, there are more things going on outside your computer that is more valuable to be spending time and effort on.

Outside your computer are all the "on-demand" services running "Software as a Service" often given the acronym of SAAS, or SaaS. Examples of Software as a Service include Google's Docs and Spreadsheet, Zoho and ThinkFree. This is just a small sample of on-demand products, or should I say services. Will give a bigger rundown of services later, in another post.

In the meantime, you might want to think about operating systems if you are changing hardware. With all the services out there, obtaining an operating system is not really about choosing the operating system as it is in asking once I have xx operating system what will it allow me to do with all the services?

Ubuntu is free, Windows is not. For me the cost savings in running Ubuntu is what mattered to me. All software free of charge including all the services online.