very interested in learning about Linux

[Nooyawkah]

I'm very interested in learning about Linux. I have a few basic questions?
1. Why would someone want to use Linux as an OS?
2. Is it difficult to master? (I'm not a programmer).
3. Is there much good software available? (Not talking about games).
4. Why do all the Linux magazines I've seen on the stands seem to be for programmers and/or server users? (I don't understand a word in them).
5. Does Linux present Internet problems uncommon to Windows users?

Thanks.

[HewittC4]

1. Why would someone want to use Linux as an OS?
It is more stable than Windows, it is cheaper, it is easier to modify

2. Is it difficult to master? (I'm not a programmer). It is not as obvious as M$ Windows, but you just have to learn how to do it the Linux way. Most distros come with a GUI, usually either Gnome or KDE. You can do almost everything in the GUI very easily.

3. Is there much good software available? (Not talking about games).
Yes, but most of them are downloads, that I've seen.Most stores sell what is popular, which means Windows software.

4. Why do all the Linux magazines I've seen on the stands seem to be for programmers and/or server users? (I don't understand a word in them). Linux is popular with programmers because it is programmers that helped create Linux. Linux Format is a good magazine that doesn't focus on programmers. It is more for the average person. It is a British magazine, so you have to look for it in the US.

5. Does Linux present Internet problems uncommon to Windows users?
Can't answer that one, I use my M$ Windows computer to access the net. I know that Linux supports TCP/IP very well (Linux is considered an excellent OS for networking). I think the biggest problem would be making sure you ISP supports Linux. AOL doesn't support it, but many of the other ISPs do.

[john5211]

<i>1. Why would someone want to use Linux as an OS? </i>

Depends on the person, I suppose. Some people just want to try something new, some people have philosophic reservations about licensing software, some people like the configurablity of Linux. I'm sure there are many other reasons as well; personally, I started using Linux a couple of years ago because I wanted to learn to play around in a Unix environment.

As a side note, it has been my experience that over the last couple of years the introduction of Windows XP coupled with the common usage of GUI's and support of a larger body of hardware in Linux has closed the stability gap substantially; especially for home systems.

<i>2. Is it difficult to master? (I'm not a programmer).</i>

Yes and no (and you don't have to know any programming). You do have to be able to look around for answers and be willing to try stuff out; that said, there are 'How To' documents all over the place that will walk you through doing just about anything you might want to do. If you want to plug it in and have it work with the smallest amount of tinkering, however, you will probably be disappointed.

As an example, if you want to set up a home network Using Windows XP, you set up the hardware and run the network wizard. In Linux, you will probably set up the hardware, spend a while figuring out which software package you need to install/set up (SMB, btw), find resources that help you figure out how to set up all the config files and such, and then spend some time actually getting everything set up. I don't want to scare you away, but it takes longer to figure out how to do lots of stuff in Linux.

<i>3. Is there much good software available? (Not talking about games).</i>

Depends on what you mean by good. There is software that will let you do almost anything, and much of it is free. You will be frustrated, however, if you have to interact a lot with MS Office. Also, free software usually doesn't come with spectacular tech support.

<i>4. Why do all the Linux magazines I've seen on the stands seem to be for programmers and/or server users? (I don't understand a word in them).</i>

They are the people willing to buy magazines about Linux :). There are several books and numerous online resources available for people in a home environment.

<i>5. Does Linux present Internet problems uncommon to Windows users?</i>

Depends on what you mean by problem :). It can be harder to set up an internet connection especially if you are using a dial up modem (no winmodems, for example!), but I think this is getting easier and easier as time goes on (I have a cable modem + router and it was no more difficult to set up a connection than with Windows, then again I knew what I was doing).

As for security, there are different concerns than with Windows (for example, you have to be very careful which services you run by default), but again there are many resources and people who can help answer specific questions.

John