Hi all,
Thanks for all the advice about different programs, which I will follow up
where
I have not already been looking.
Operating Systems: I have already tried Linux. I made this machine a dual-
boot system with Debian Linux a few years ago.
It caused me no end of grief. For a start the only Linux program I could
reliably get to run was Midnight Commander, equivalent more or less to
Windows Explorer, XTtree Gold, or PC Tools. The other available programs I
thought it installed just would not run.
Secondly, when I tried to set the parameters so I could run a GUI screen,
there was no direct setting for my monitor, and I set what I concluded were
the correct default settings for my fine-resolution screen. The result was a
ruined monitor which I could not replace exactly, or even close, at a
reasonable price. I am now running a second-hand Digital unit which is OK..
Thirdly, Linux, on booting, opens a lot of critical files, which the
instructions
tell are ruined if shut-down is done improperly. With Windows, (and DOS) for
all their imperfections, next start-up might be tricky, but critical files are
not
ruined if there is an improper shut-down. To my mind this is a major flaw of
Linux. One can never tell if something may cause an improper shut-down.
Get an un-interruptible power supply. Why? They system should have been
designed from the outset to cope without requiring extra expense..
Also, some people say that once booted-up, machines should be left
running. To my mind that is a waste of electricity.
Lastly, over recent time the size of distributed systems of Linux has grown
almost exponentially. Some distributions now require 3 CDROMs or more. I
think this is ludicrous extravagance.
I know there is a Linux system called Knoppix which runs from a bootable
CDROM; I might give this a whirl just to see what it is all about.
I have so many Windows programs now that I use regularly, and which I
understand, that it is difficult for me to see any advantage changing to
another system for which the equivalent programs may not exist, or which if
they do I would have to learn.
What a lot of negatives. I must be feeling grumpy.
Cheers, Brian
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