[thechat] Can you survive on Linux alone?

[Jeremy Ashcraft]

On Monday 04 June 2001 13:02, you wrote:
> This is for all the Linux people out there. I have just about had it with
> windows and in particular Microsucks. I am seriously thinking of
> reformatting my hard drives and changing over to Linux (Red Hat in
> particular). 

good for you

>What I am wondering is this. Can someone survive in this day
> and age running a home computer on Linux and Linux alone or do I need to
> look at some form of dual boot idea with my computer? (You can dual boot
> windows 98SE, windows 2k, and Red Hat can't you?) Are there truly enough
> programs out there for the Linux os to make it viable to run only that at
> home or am I crazy for even thinking this?

I've gotten along fine using linux as my home OS for almost 3 years now.  
There is a comparable Linux app for every M$ app out there.  The only time I 
ever use windoze at home now is to do my taxes(Turbo Tax).  Even then I use 
VMware to use my existing Win98 partition.  True, most linux apps aren't 
quite as feature complete or fancy as their m$ counterparts, but they are 
catching up at a VERY fast rate.  Some have even surpassed them.  If you are 
looking for a good linux distro for home use, I'd suggest Mandrake.  Its a no 
brainer to install and use.  Mandrake has done a good job in making a 
distribution for those new to Linux.  The only area where Linux is lagging is 
in the gaming dept.   Not a whole lot of REALLY good games like you get under 
the Win platform.  Other than that, I'm happy and will probably never go back 
to M$.  YMMV.