DOS on Steroids

Do you remember the "old days" of DOS? You'd turn on your computer and see something like

C:\>

How intuitive!

Then you'd have to remember what command to type to load the program you wanted to run. Want to see a listing of your files? Type

DIR

Want to make a copy of a file?

COPY OLDFILE.EXT NEWFILE.EXT

If you mistype even one letter you see the oh-so-helpful

BAD COMMAND OR FILE NAME

Want to run more than one program at a time? Sorry, other than small background terminate-and-stay-resident utilities, DOS couldn't handle it.

Then came Windows. (Actually, then came the Apple Macintosh, which has always been better than any contemporary Windows system. But we'll spare you our Mac evangelizing ... for now.)

With Windows you had a somewhat friendlier Graphical User Interface (a GUI) that made your computer easier to use -- when it worked properly -- at the cost of some speed. But Windows still ran on top of DOS and still suffered from the limitations of DOS: slow speed, poor memory management, limited disk capacity. And to get some things done, you often had to go back to the command prompt.

Newer versions of Windows no longer run on top of DOS, but they still provide the old command prompt, and you still have to use it for some things you just can't do through the GUI.

Now there's a new kid on the block, getting a lot of attention -- Linux. What is Linux? How does it differ from Windows? Should you use it?

Linux isn't really new. It's been around since 1991 when its creator, Linus Torvalds, started it as a hobby. And Linux's roots go back to 1969 when Dennis Ritchie and Kenneth Thompson invented Unix while working at Bell Labs. Unix is still the dominant system on many high-end servers. Now Linux is quickly growing into popular usage for both home workstations and corporate servers. IBM even has Linux commercials on television.

In some ways, Linux is like DOS on steroids. While the DIR command had about 14 options, the equivalent Linux command has more than 50! And while there were a couple of dozen DOS commands, there are hundreds in Linux, and they can be combined in countless ways. While Windows point-and-click GUI made many functions easier, Linux commands are much more flexible, and therefore more powerful. There are many things you can do at the Linux command prompt you just can't do in Windows. And in the hands of a skilled Linux user, even comparable tasks can be carried out just as quickly, if not quicker.

However, Linux too has a GUI front end, with icons, menus, and dialog boxes. In fact, it has several that are just as attractive and functional -- if not more so -- than Windows.

What really sets Linux apart from Windows is its greater speed (similar applications tend to run faster), stability (it's much less prone to crashes), and security (it's harder for hackers to infiltrate.) Of course, some Microsoft zealots will dispute these claims and they're welcome to; the only way you'll know for sure is to give Linux a try.

The reason for these differences is found in the way Linux is developed.

Windows is owned by Microsoft and, for the most part, only Microsoft programmers, perhaps a few thousand people, have limited access to portions of the Windows source code. (Recently, when a part of the Windows source was stolen and posted on the Internet, Microsoft's legal team jumped into action with threats of law suits against anyone who even looked at the code.)

Linux, on the other hand, is open source, released under the GNU General Public License. Everyone is allowed to view the source code and use and modify it free of charge, on the condition that any modifications are made public under the same terms. Thus, tens of thousands of developers around the world contribute to Linux. This peer review makes for a very stable, secure, and rapidly developing platform. Bugs and vulnerabilities are quickly spotted and corrected. Features that a profit-driven corporation wouldn't waste its time on because they only appeal to a limited number of users can be developed and refined by volunteers.

Of course an operating system -- even one as advanced as Linux -- is useless if there are no applications to run on it. While Windows seems to have the lead in this round, that lead is slipping. First, there are the many applications originally written for other versions of Unix that can be recompiled for Linux with little or no modification. Then there's the plethora of open source -- read "free" -- applications, many of which rival their commercial counterparts. (Open Office (http://openoffice.org/) includes word processor, spreadsheet, drawing, and presentation programs compatible with Microsoft Office, but with features that Microsoft's $400 US commercial package doesn't include.)

There are also utilities available that let you run Windows applications (both those produced by Microsoft and by third-party developers) under Linux. Check out http://www.winehq.com/ for more information about that.

Cashing in on the growing popularity of this operating system, many commercial vendors are writing programs specifically for Linux. And yes, there are games for Linux too. Check out http://www.linuxgames.com/

There are many distributions of Linux, each bundled with added features and utilities. Some you can download for free, others you have to pay for. (Linux itself, in accord with the GNU General Public License, is free; you're paying for support and consulting.)

If you'd like to give Linux a try, start with http://www.linux.org/ and http://www.linuxquestions.org/ Read the forums and ask questions. Download a few different distributions and give them a try. Support abounds with hundreds of internet sites and forums staffed by volunteers and professionals. And, naturally, there are even Linux For Dummies books, some of which come with CD-ROMs that include Linux distributions and applications. (http://www.dummies.com/)

DOS may be dead, but Linux lives on.