Last time for our Linux beginners guide we took an in depth look at exactly what Linux is and covered a few of the basics of Linux. For a full understanding of everything we covered, you can read the full article here. But what exactly are the benefits of Linux? What reason would you have to abandon Microsoft Windows or Mac OS X for yet another operating system that you would have to learn? Well, there are many reasons and a many benefits of choosing Linux over one of the commercial operating systems.
The Cost
Linux at its most basic, is a completely free operating system. Whether you choose Linux for a server or your workstation, you can choose to install and run it with no hard cost whatsoever. This is a much more attractive alternative to the high price of Microsoft Windows. Of course nothing is completely free. Linux distributions make money through support. So, while you can install it and support it yourself absolutely free, you will have to pay if you need more advanced support with any part of the process. This is still not a bad deal, though when you compare it to other operating systems that charge for the operating system and then charge you again for support.
Open-Source Software
Along with Linux, there is a huge collection of software that is every bit as free as Linux itself. For virtually every single type of commercial software out there, there is a free version that works great and is every bit, if not more, powerful. For example, you could pay the high cost of Adobe Photoshop, or instead, you can install GIMP and get a graphics editor that is every bit as powerful. You can choose LibreOffice instead of Microsoft Office. Most of these software packages are designed to open and save files in the commercial version formats as well so you won’t be left out in the cold if someone sends you a document made in the commercial software.
Linux is Reliable
Probably one of the greatest features of Linux is its reliability. Computer crashes aren’t completely unavoidable no matter what operating system you use, but they are drastically reduced in the world of Linux. This is one of the reasons major corporations such as Google and Amazon use Linux to support their entire business structure. What does this mean for you? No more blue screens of death!
Freedom
Linux is a truly free platform that is widely scalable and customizable so you can setup then environment exactly the way you want it. Because of the free nature of Linux and the software for it, you can easily install only what you want, when you want and even customize your very own version specific to your needs.
Linux is here to stay
One thing we know for sure is Linux is most definitely not going anywhere. It’s true, different distributions cease to exist but new ones always pop up to replace them and regardless of what distribution you choose to use, the platform will remain familiar to you. You don’t have to worry about a company ending a particular operating system or dropping support for an older operating system that you still happen to use.
As you can see, there are many compelling reasons for switching to Linux. It’s true, there will be a slight learning curve when you make the switch. But, I think you will find that it’s not as much of a curve as you might think especially if you make the right distribution choice for you. Next time, we will take a look at exactly what a Linux distribution is and show you how to choose the best distribution for your needs.
