Cat5e 0 Report post Posted October 10, 2008 Well, I have old computers. And guess what, old computers aren't fans of Windows XP + Virus and Firewall programs running constantly ... so, I got Ubuntu and now my old laptop runs smoothly. I love it. Also some people about 70 years old at my church wanted a computer and internet access, so I gave them an old computer for free that I put Ubuntu on. They don't' even know what Linux is, but it works great for them. They dont' have to worry about all that hacker stuff Just plain simple. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Diffusr 0 Report post Posted October 10, 2008 I first tried Linux a few years ago, not because I was completely against Windows or anything like that, but just because I had some free time on my hands. I started off with Mandrake 9.0 which was very user friendly and Windows-like. After reading through a bunch of message boards and learning which distros are good for what, I soon realized my current distro was great for Linux noobs. So then I decided to try something a little more advanced like Slackware which I knew had a steep learning curve.Since then I've been using Slackware as my main OS and couldn't be happier. Of course somethings are a pain in the *bottom* to configure, but that;s Slack for you. If it ain't hard, then you won't learn anything from it.That's my story, I basically started to learn Linux because I was bored.I like the philosophy. I got into linux when I built my own desktop with various parts. My project was to build the best pc I could for as cheap as possible. So when it came to os choice, well, aside from pirating Windoze a linux distro was the best choice. I installed it and it worked smoothly. I've been hooked ever since! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wwilliams 0 Report post Posted October 11, 2008 (edited) i first tried linux because i had heard alot about it and wanted to see it first hand... that was back when i had dial up, and i dont know how many people have tried to use dial up on linux... with a winfax modem.. but after finding out that you had to pay for a driver for linux for the winfax modem i switched back to windows.. then i finaly got dsl and tried out ubuntu and never looked back... we use ubuntu desktop and i have a ubuntu server that i use for a file server/dns server/LAMP server.. never found any other OS i like better than Ubuntu, they have more hardware support and user friendly than any other distro i have found while still having low system requirements and great stability also if you have a problem ubuntuforums.org will be of great help Edited October 11, 2008 by wwilliams (see edit history) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
travstatesmen 0 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 I used to be a Microsoft OEM System Builder, and a Microsoft VAR, selling both the Microsoft RBP and MOLP licenses. I am an MCP and an MCT, having lectured in both CompTIA A+ Certification and Microsoft Windows desktop operating systems. I have been using Microsoft Windows since Win3.0 and have installed and used every version of both Windows and Windows NT since then (only minimally with Windows Millennium, and no experience yet with Vista). I am currently not working in the computer industry per se. I am working for a large multinational corporation in a service industry. This is like an overseas experience for me! I'm working as an end-user instead of as an administrator. I am doing this purposefully in order to gain experience as an end-user in a corporate network environment. I am gaining useful insights into the problems experienced by corporate end-users. I have access to IP telephony, online helpdesk, an intranet, Exchange Server, Proxy Server, roaming profiles, group policies, SIM, and I daily use applications delivered through Terminal Services / Citrix. Much of this type of technology I have installed and administered in the past, but this is the first time that I have used much of it as an end-user in a production environment. I am learning what some of the hassles are that end-users face, so that when I later rejoin the ranks of the administrators I will be more understanding of my users. This is something that I have done for myself, to advance my own career. I have been looking at Linux for quite some time now, dipping my toe into the water every now and then. As you can see from the explanation above, I am very conscientious about advancing my career in the computer industry, and I happen to believe that experience with GNU/Linux will also help me in the future. I have finally "taken the bull by the horns" and started converting my home computer network to GNU/Linux in an effort to achieve this. This is just another string to my bow, and something that I am doing to advance myself. I am not likely to rush out and become a Linux convert, never to touch a Windows computer again. I am balancing my Windows and Linux experience in the hope that having knowledge of each will be beneficial. I have also done some Novell Netware work, and I treat that experience exactly the same way. By contrast, I don't expect my future work in the computer industry to bring me much into contact with the Mac OS, so I have stayed well clear of it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
