07/07/2014
20 Things that you can do with Linux but not with
Mac or Windows
1. Upgrade to the newest version legally and
without paying money
2. Have the latest version of the operating system
run faster than the previous version on the same
hardware
3. Easily install and run different graphical
interfaces if I don’t like the default setup
4. Install twenty programs with one command
5. Have the system automatically update all my
installed programs for me.
6. Install the same copy of my OS (Ubuntu) on
multiple computers without worrying about
license restrictions or activation keys
7. Give away copies of the operating system and
other programs that run on it without breaking
any laws, governmental or ethical or moral,
because it was all intended to be used this way
8. Have full control over my computer hardware
and know that there are no secret back doors in
my software, put there by malicious software
companies or governments
9. Run without using a virus scanner, adware/
spyware protection, and not reboot my computer
for months, even when I do keep up with all of
the latest security updates
10. Run my computer without needing to
defragment my hard drive, ever
11. Try out software, decide I don’t like it,
uninstall it, and know that it didn’t leave little bits
of stuff in a registry that can build up and slow
down my machine
12. Make a major mistake that requires a
complete reinstallation and be able to do it in
less than an hour, because I put all of my data
on a separate partition from the operating system
and program files
13. Boot into a desktop with flash and effects as
cool as Windows Vista on a three year old
computer…in less than 40 seconds, including the
time it takes me to type my username and
password to login
14. Customize anything I want, legally, including
my favorite programs. I can even track down the
software developers to ask them questions,
contribute ideas, and get involved in the actual
design/software writing process if I want to
15. Have 4+ word processor windows open
working on papers, listen to music, play with
flashy desktop effects, have contact with a
largely happy community and have firefox, instant
messaging, and email clients all open at the
same time, without ever having had to beg
someone for a code to make my os work, and
without the system running so slow it is useless
16. Use the command “dpkg –get-selections >
pkg.list” to make a full, detailed list of all
software I have installed, backup my /etc and /
home directories on a separate partition, and you
are able to recover your system any time, easily
17. Run multiple desktops simultaneously, or
even allow multiple users to log in and use the
computer simultaneously
18. Resize a hard disk partition without having to
delete it and without losing the data on it
19. Use the same hardware for more than 5
years before it really needs to be replaced…I
have some hardware that is nearly 10 years old,
running Linux, and still useful
20. Browse the web while the OS is being
installed!
21. Use almost any hardware and have a driver
for it included with the operating system…eliminat
ing the need to scour the internet to find the
hardware manufacturer’s website to locate one
22. Get the source code for almost anything,
including the OS kernel and most of my
applications
