The myth of free Linux
Those of you who are considering moving away from Windows to Linux for your desktop may need to be dispelled of a certain myth. No matter what distribution you ultimately choose to download, Linux is by no means free of financial cost.
As a matter of fact, most open source advocates will readily admit, the concept of free software does not mean it costs nothing. In open source parlance, free means free access to source code, freedom to develop your own Linux distribution, freedom of choice, freedom from the constraints of a single vendor solution - that sort of thing.
In fact, if you're like me, financial cost is not the reason you would move from Windows to Linux. Superior stability and better security are my primary motivators. I want a more robust operating system and I want it to be easy to configure.
If you're so inclined, you could theoretically download and set up Linux distribution for your desktops and set up a home or small office network without paying any out of pocket costs (assuming there are no hardware incompatibilities). However, if you consider your time to be worth money and you would rather be doing more productive things than trawling Linux sites and distro forums trying to find answers, then it's false economy to suggest that paying nothing up front and spending endless hours configuring your system to work the way you want it to is free.
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The LinuxToday Zealots Pissed Him Off
It all started with nice migration plans and inclusion in Groklaw News Picks. Why did they attack the messenger, who is a journalist? I guess he did no favours by publishing a rant as an article about a problem, rather than just ask a polite question in a forum.
???
When did I had to pay anything when using Ubuntu, PCLinuxOS, or else??? Was that article written in the '90s, or the guy's just an ignorant?
Any OS is going to cost you
Any OS is going to cost you some time to get it working just the way you want. Many linux distros today are just as complete in functionality as Windows, so the argument is vague at best. I suppose you could make a case for the quarter you spend burning the CD to do the install, but otherwise linux can be easily run for zero cash outlay.
I'm afraid this guy just ran out of ideas for an article.
Re: Free Linux Myth
Microsoft Windows Vista 32-Bit Ultimate for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM Edition: 190 US dollars plus shipping at newegg.com.
Sabayon Linux 3.6 64-bit edition I downloaded yesterday: less than 1 US Dollar for the DVD plus the right to make and use as many copies as I want.
re: Free Linux
I thought you were headed toward one of those mastercard "priceless" commercial themes for a minute.
It would have worked tho:
Microsoft Windows Vista 32-Bit Ultimate for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM Edition: 190 US dollars.
Sabayon Linux 3.6 64-bit edition I downloaded yesterday: less than 1 US Dollar.
The right to make and use as many copies as I want: priceless.
I "get" what he's saying
There's a large subset of computer users who simply want to use their boxes to get the stuff they have to get done, done. They don't want to take the time to learn any more than they have to about the way the OS or hardware operates, because a) they don't enjoy it; they don't have the time; c) they don't have the knack for it; or d) all of the above. My sister-in-law is one of those people. She's not going to install a new hard drive herself; she's going to pay someone to do it.
(What's even worse is she thinks she knows everything there is to know about computers anyway, since she's been using them for so long, even though she really doesn't -- so helping her over the phone with a computer problem is an exercise in frustration -- but that's another story.)
If I were to generalize about Linux users, I'd say they both want to take the time to learn, and enjoy learning, about Linux and their computers. So they're not going to count the time they put in as a "cost," unlike this article's author.
OTOH, it's not clear why he had to write about something so...obvious.