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What makes Linux better than windows?

I hear many people saying how good Linux is and how it is far superior to Windows, but I do not see how it is better. I tried Ubuntu but was very underwhelmed by its ease of use, features and appearance. Can someone please tell me what is the point of getting Linux?

I do not want to have answers like:

Because it is not windows.

Because it is free.

Because it is open source.

10 Answers

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  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    I cant install Linux, Knoppix,Ubuntu because every time when i want to install the Pc crashed, so i dont know the answer.....

  • 5 years ago

    About the only advantage that Linux has over Windows is the price. Linux is free, Windows is not. Beyond that, Windows has all the other advantages. However if you are a large company needing to put an OS on hundreds of PCs, getting it for free is a huge advantage. There is very little software and no games for Linux. It is only as solid as the drivers and kernal you are running. It has little to no support if you have a problem with it. And good luck finding anyone who knows something about it. Most computer shops are clueless on repairing a Linux PC. Linux is commonly used for Internet servers simply because the Unix system on which it is based already had network abilities build into it in the late 1960's, before there was an "Internet". So at the time the Internet first appeared, you had to run the servers on Linux because there was no Windows software for doing it. Linux has a "command line" (similar to Windows DOS) which is very powerful and allows you to do many things with a simple command that would take more work in Windows, because the networking is build into Unix/Linux, not added on. If you are a large corporation wanted to save money, or an ISP that needs Internet servers, then Linux many be a reasonable alternative to Windows. But for the average home user, it sucks.

  • 1 decade ago

    1. Because it's a Proper Operating System, which Windows isn't. Windows is 25 years of bodges, bad decisions and patches. Linux is a clone of Unix, an excellent professional operating system.

    2. Because Linux is nothing to do with Microsoft, a universally disliked corporation who are currently being fined $1.4 million by the EU for anti-competitive practices.

    3. Because it's free! That has to be worth something, doesn't it?

    4. Because it's far more secure than Windows. Generally Linux users don't have to worry about malware because Linux is much more secure (it's a properly designed operating system).

  • 1 decade ago

    Linux offers you the opportunity to control EVERY aspect of the operating system. You have full control the hardware. Ubuntu, for instance, comes with a free office suite (OpenOffice) a free graphics manipulation program (GIMP, which is far superior to paint). It offers you the choice of multiple desktop environments (gnome, KDE, Xfce, Fvwm, etc). Furthermore, you can get the source code for most applications so you can KNOW what its actually doing (as opposed to closed source everything in Windows). Its all about choice and customization in my opinion.

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  • 1 decade ago

    I've never used Linux but have heard good things about this operating system so i may give it a try one day , Windows Vista is the biggest joke i've ever tried and to think some boffins spend years thinking up these systems, money for old rope, i wish someone would challenge Microsoft big style.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    It's stable

    It's free

    There's no such thing as malware & viruses are extremely rare.

    It's highly secure

    It's well documented

    There's a wide variety of free software for it

    It's highly customisable to do whatever you want it to do

    It looks better than windows

    You arn't supporting Bill Gates monopoly on operating systems

    You are feeling underwhelmed because you dont understand the immense power of Linux yet....

  • 1 decade ago

    Adding application software is free, and easy, on Linux. Whenever I add software on Windows it costs money, sometimes serious money.

    Modern Windows (XP or Vista) won't run on older hardware - Linux will. I have an 8-year-old laptop that is still usable because of Linux.

    To run Vista, you have to buy new high-power (therefore expensive) hardware - and what does it give you over XP? Nothing. Put Linux on your XP machine and it will fly! and cost nothing more.

  • 1 decade ago

    Definitely there's pros and cons for both. Personally I use Linux (Ubuntu 8.04) because It seems to be quicker than Windows, there's much less going on in the background. It does take a bit of getting used to though

  • 1 decade ago

    virtualy virus free for teh home users

    not paying into a corupted corperate entity

    not at the mercy of the DRM

    virtualy crash proof

    much easier these days then a few years ago

    it may not be for every one but it is for me perhaps its not for you but maybe youre needs require a differant distro also linux mint is just right for me becuase of my net usage and movies each person will have to determine that for themselves the bottom line is linux can do most of what windows can and most of it better then they can

  • puma
    Lv 4
    1 decade ago

    well basically it's

    it is not windown

    because it's free

    and it's an open source

    hehe

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