Re: Linux - Software that doesn't deliver
Thanks for sharing your real life experience on professional works.
Much appreciated.
"Frank Bright" <Brightbelt@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:9F29FE9B-1539-4294-975B-74D19501BE19@microsoft.com...
>
> "Lang Murphy" <lang_murphy@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:0494211B-0B41-4CCD-A6C1-565D4D7B76CF@microsoft.com...
>> <snip>
>>> GOOD THINGS ABOUT LINUX:
>> <snip>
>>
>> Yes, there are good things about nix...
>>
>> <snip>
>>> Failures of Linux:
>> <snip>
>>
>> Yes, there are places where nix fails...
>>
>> From my perspective, which maps very much to your perspective, nix
>> requires -too much time- of it's user to get things working as expected.
>> I'm playing around with Ubuntu 7.04 right now. There appears to be pretty
>> good support in alt.os.linux.ubuntu, but, like here, depends on who
>> responds to one's queries. No doubt my view is slanted by being one of
>> those folks who, pretty much, has no problems with Vista. Sure, I've got
>> my one or two nits that I don't like about Vista, but, generally, I'm a
>> happy camper.
>>
>> All that said... ultimately, no pun intended, one must spend a fair
>> amount of time learning nix's different way of doing things. If one is
>> willing to invest the time, from what I've read, there are few things
>> that nix won't do that Windows can. Can't comment on the gaming aspect...
>> not a gamer. But if one is a gamer, and that support happens to be, in
>> fact, one of the major deficiencies of nix, then, no doubt, I can see
>> that as being a major road block to moving to nix as a desktop
>> replacement for Windows.
>>
>> Like yourself, I like to keep an open mind on nix and dip my toes into
>> the nix pool every couple of years, just to see how things are
>> progressing. I think some folks may take your indictment of nix as an
>> indication that you're closed minded. Well... you never would have come
>> to the conclusions you did, without having attempted using a nix distro.
>> Whether you invested as much time as nix fans might deem appropriate, is
>> beyond me. No doubt this thread will generate plenty of replies from that
>> camp, given the number of nix aficionados who hang out in this ng.
>>
>> Thanks for the detailed post; appreciated!
>>
>> Lang
>
> I'm a technological agnostic, so I go for what works and runs well. I am a
> dual-booter. (Vista/Mandriva & XP/Ubuntu Studio) That said, I do identify
> with the author of this forum, although I won't get into dismissing Linux
> the way he seems to do. I try to keep an open mind, so...
>
> I've been fooling around with Linux for 3 to 4 months now. Ubuntu IS easy
> and I've learned a lot from it. And while I am grateful to Ubuntu for
> helping me enter the Linux world, I must say this in all honesty: Ubuntu
> is UgLy!! (Studio is a lot better) Please, get a web designer in here
> fast, a color coordinator, anything !! And for those who love the 'Eye
> Candy' argument, since when do people NOT care how their OS looks and
> operates? It IS important, especially if I'm staring at it for 2+ hours a
> day. Sure, I can customize my desktop in Ubuntu Feisty, but there's only
> so far one can go unless you use Compiz or Beryl, and that software is
> still very much in the beta phase.
>
> I believe the predicament of Linux is not entirely Linux's fault - in
> other words, combine an Open Source Philosophy with a free market and mix
> in intellectual property and stock shareholders and you get Linux's
> justified feeling of alienation from a market that only cooperates when it
> has profits coming in as a result. As a result, most hardware developers
> have no interests in sharing vital information with driver developers in
> the Linux community. So developers must sometimes work backwards to
> develop drivers for Linux and that takes ......time.
>
> That said, Linux has a long way to go to satisfy my needs as a
> professional. I'm a professional musician/publisher and so I use many
> different functions that cater to musicians/publishers. And the nature of
> technology is to be on the cutting edge, to offer things that one has Not
> been able to do before. Here are some of my functions that Linux as yet
> cannot supply:
>
> 1) I use Finale to do music notation and write charts on my computer. I've
> tried to get Finale/Midi configured for this in Ubuntu Fesity and others
> have as well. We have not found any solutions thus far. There ARE music
> notation programs for Ubuntu, but they look cheesy and amateurish in
> comparison to Finale. Charts ARE about looks and presentation, and anyone
> who claims that other music notation programs can come close to doing what
> Finale does simply does not know what they are talking about.
>
> 2) I use my computer for Pro Audio and use Sonar 6 Producer Edition on XP.
> Linux has Ardour 2.0 which looks impressive. But the quality of plugins
> cannot even come close to what I get with my Waves Audio Plugins, which
> are used by many professionals in the business. I have tinkered with
> Ardour and found that I'd be searching the web night and day to find
> half-way suitable plugins, and even then I question that. I hold a little
> bit of a grudge against the author of Ardour because I made a generous
> donation and got no thank you whatsoever - no acknowledgement of my gift
> or anything. And yes, I wrote him about that directly. I don't care who
> you are. One should say 'Thank You' when they receive a gift.
>
> Open Office did say 'Thank You' to me and for that, they will probably
> receive more money from me in the future.
>
> 3) I do OnCD printing for many of my projects. Turboprint for Linux
> actually supplies this driver now and I bought it as well. However, I
> asked Turboprint what program to use here (thinking templates etc) and
> they could only suggest Gimp and Open Draw. With no templates I'd be
> shooting in the dark for half a day and wasting CDs in order get the
> printing aligned right, not to mention lack of color/resolution control.
>
> 4) Turboprint recently completed making the driver for my Epson RX580, but
> as yet they cannot support the scanner function of this Epson model. While
> I AM grateful that they have made a driver for this (I bought it
> remember?), supporting half a product is kind of typical in Linux.
>
> 5) I can get Flash MX to work in Linux through CrossOver but my project is
> more advanced and requires at least Flash Studio MX 2004. That version
> will not run on CrossOver, nor will other, more recent versions.
>
> I really could add more but I hope my point comes through. I really do
> like Linux and for the record, I think Mandriva is just as easy as Ubuntu
> Feisty to use and is a LOT better looking. I dual-boot with Vista/Mandriva
> on my desktop at this point, although I did have to relocate my modem and
> go in wired to the internet as a result. I have yet to get my wireless
> Linksys WMP300N to work with Mandriva (or Ubuntu for that matter).
>
> Thanks to anyone who read this long post,...Frank B.
>
> www.frankbright.com