Why Linux♥ is Awesome
Host: OpenUTD
Speaker: Calvin Jay Ross
Contact: cjayross@utdallas.edu
Linux?
Linux is an
operating system?
At first, I thought
Linux was cute
^ An
operating system
(OS) is software that is responsible for managing how programs access and utilize hardware such as the CPU.
This limits the compatibility of programs between OS's since they may not share the same features or restrictions.
Overall this means that different operating systems often result in different user experiences.
Windows?
What I was asking from my OS was changing
What I learned that year...
Windows was a black box
What wasn't a black box
was a mess
I learned so little that year...
I considered dropping computer science
Windows™
This is no time to not understand
how our software works
So, Linux?
The "do-it-yourself" version of Linux
Although it was difficult...
...I learned more about my operating system
in just one month of using Linux
than in the years I spent using Windows
Linux sucked at being Windows...
...Because Linux was something
fundamentally different
Yes, Linux.
Linux is an open source
operating system
Linux specializes in using
open source software
Open source software is often designed to be small, specialized, and modular
Modularity implies
software dependencies
Software is installed, tracked, and updated via a package manager
Linux is often
modified and redistributed
These redistributions (distros)
provide operating systems
for a wide variety of niches
Linux is entirely transparent
Linux is configurable
Links for: |
Linux is secure
Linux is different
because it is open source
Open Source...
Open source software allows anybody to
view, modify, and redistribute
the software's source code
Linux and Windows therefore sit on opposite ends of software development
But neither is a
perfect operating system
The modularity of Linux
means that is flexible...
...But difficult to learn
The monolithic design of Windows
means that it is inflexible...
...But easier to adopt
Proprietary software often
benefits monolithic software
While open source often
benefits modular software
Yet, over recent years,
this has begun to change...
There is no permanent decision
to be made here...
^ A more precise definition of open source software is provided in this article:
- Users are allowed the freedom to use open source software for any purpose.
- Users are allowed access to the source code of open source software.
- Users are free to create derivative works based on the source code of open source software.
- Users are free to distribute software either as a copy of open source software or as a derivative work of open source software.
- Users are free to combine open source with other software.
Options
We aren't here to tell you
that Windows is evil
We are here to let you know
that there are more options
And in the end...
...Knowing both sides of software
will make you a better developer