So I made the decision to switch my laptop to 64-bit Ubuntu Linux, and have accepted that there are certain things which will be more difficult. I have been looking at Cedega (A.K.A. WineX), but decided that something I have to pay for, especially when the results with Civ3: Conquests were marked as unreliable, would not do.

My laptop configuration is:

Ubuntu64
Vmware Server (free edition) running a spare Windows 2000 licence running my copy of Civ3: Conquests!

I accept that the sacrifices I am making are (in no particular order):
printing over the network (until I get a separate print server, it’s being done as a share from my Windows desktop)
file sharing over the network (I have been emailing the files to myself!)
flash player (not available for 64 but OSsen, and I can’t be bothered dealing with the hassles of installing a 32bit version of Firefox!)
some convenience

What I am gaining:
no licencing fees
no way for someone to hold my files hostage (see the Vista licence, especially the bit about media files – a media *company* can decide to void your “licence” to listen to “their” MP3s!)
security (I have a strong firewall and a rapidly patched OS, use an open source and rapidly patched browser, IM client, email client)
no AV software soaking up my CPU cycles and RAM

I am not one of the Linux evangelicals, who say “EVERYONE MUST RUN LINUX!!!!oneone!!!eleventy!!!BBQ!!!” – I know that the decision for each person will be very much personal, and varies hugely on individual circumstances. For me, the “show stopper” is the ability to play Civ3: Conquests.

But this works out OK for me – running Windows as a virtual machine, with a network connection *I* control, which is already firewalled by the time a TCP/IP packet hits the Windows machine – and I would humbly commend this course of action to everyone.

Well, here is my take on why I do not like Microsoft:

1. The company is a convicted criminal.
2. Their sock puppets, the SCO group, have been involved in a long running attempt to discredit Linux and open source.
3. Their monopolistic behaviour (see point 1) sickens me.
4. Their blatant manipulation of markets sickens me.
5. Their blatant attempts to destroy their only viable competiton – Linux and Open Source – sickens me.
6. Their continuing ties to legacy code in their OS is an active danger to OS security.

Hey, Microsoft – if you are reading – stop trying to destroy Open Source, stop trying to destroy Linux, then maybe we can talk. ‘Till then, you are on the “naughty” list.

Hand them a new laptop running Windows which has 2 accounts configured on it – userA (administrator account) and userB (regular account). Ask the unskilled user to change both passwords.

Hey, Microsoft – why do different things happen depending on which account is logged in? On the admin account you get the security box when you press ctl-alt-del. On the non-admin account you get the task manager.

… what?!!?

Let’s have a look at this.

So, you take your average Joe Sixpack (JS), and give him a PC with a blank hard disk, a Windows XP install CD, and an Ubuntu Dapper Drake (or similarly modern alternate distro).

Watch JS boot from the Windows install CD. Which file system. OK, what the hell does that mean? Where do you want it installed. How the heck do *I* know?!? Copying files…. installing… rebooting… copying files.. wait, weren’t we just here? OK, blah blah… eventually you get a GUI which looks horrible in VGA. Then JS gets bombarded by driver requests… what’s a driver? Why isn’t it working? And so on. Hang on, how about antivirus software? Windows patches? And then all you have is Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, and Wordpad. Or notepad. Joy.

Boot from Ubuntu Dapper. Starts up with a nice GUI with a nice bug icon in the middle of the screen saying “install”. So, you hit install… asked a few questions… the installer asks you if you want to configure the hard disk or automagically do stuff…
When the install completes, you have a choice of web browsers and email clients and instant messenger. And you have a choice of office suites, including one that looks kinda like MS Office. And the hardware all works. And so on…

Yeah. User friendly Windows? My hairy white… bottom!

Welcome to my world!