One of my favourite Ubuntu reviews...
2007.06.26
Forgive me,
this is from May but it's one of my favourite Ubuntu/Linux reviews. The best parts:
"On my Windows laptop, Windows plus the usual Office files, email and my
Web authoring software, fill up 21 GB of the hard drive. On my Ubuntu
machine, the same collection of open-source programs and the exact same
data take up exactly 3.7 GB."
"Even more startling is the speed with which Ubuntu operates. I had
long noticed that when loading files onto our Web servers, the server
side of the display would populate instantly, even though the servers
are hundreds of miles away, while the side of the window that displays
my Windows files would load about as quickly as a bunch of chain gang
workers moving rocks.On Ubuntu, both sides of the window flash onto the screen so quickly
it seems they were already there. Likewise as I move around the
different sub-directories, lists of hundreds of files pop onto the
screen instantly. It often takes 10 seconds or more for Windows to do
exactly the same thing"
Now, it sounds to me like the gentleman writing the article has had his share of malware problems. However, near the end he makes a good point:
"Did I mention you don't need anti-virus software? It's available but
chances are you don't need it, since Linux is relatively immune to
viruses. Besides, most of the vandals who are writing viruses are
aiming them at Windows."
Sometimes it's easy to lose sight of some of these advantages. He's right though, desktop Linux can be a breath of fresh air sometimes. Especially when one is digging in to Vista...