If you haven't heard about Linux, where have you been? :-)

Linux is an Operating System for your computer that doesn't continually crash, or get infected by viruses, spyware, adware, and registry problems. It doesn't come with a huge cost, or ridiculous licensing fees, or rules like "you can only install it on one machine". And it's fast. And there is load of free software available. And it's backed by huge players such as Google, IBM, Oracle, HP and Dell.

Avid NZ Ltd has been installing Linux servers for years now, and finally Linux has come to the point where it is ready for the Desktop computer market. We recommend and install Mint, Ubuntu, Archlinux and Debian. There are many other types of Linux also; these are just what we know and love.

Oftentimes Linux has been criticised as being "too hard" or "only for geeks". Well, my children and my elderly aunt would have to disagree, as they are all running Linux exclusively. And it means way less maintenance headaches for me!

Another client recently brought her Vista laptop in for repair, as it couldn't load the enormous service packs from Microsoft. I struggled with it for 2 days, as the installer kept complaining about missing files, yet Microsoft's tools to supposedly fix the problem did absolutely nothing. And of course the machine was running so slowly, as everything does with Vista.

So because this client doesn't do anything "fancy" with the machine, and was already disgusted with Windows, I backed her data up to my Linux server. Vista took 3.5 hours to back 340MB!!! I then wiped the machine, installed Mint Isadora 9 Linux (took an hour including updates and additional applications), and imported her data from the network server (5 minutes...Vista is shocking...) This is just one story of an easy migration. The path is made easier by using Firefox and Thunderbird on your existing Windows system first...if it still works ;)

Mint Linux showing off Gnome desktop environment

Chakra Linux showing off KDE desktop environment

Using Linux

Linux is different from Windows. But not that far removed that you would be lost. In fact, with the Gnome desktop environment you may think you were running a prettier version of Windows, and with the KDE desktop it puts Mac OSX and Windows 7 to shame for looks and features.

But those things are just the externals. What matters most is productivity. It just stays going, enabling you to get work done without getting in your way. That is why so many developers love it.

And, if you have a need of some software that is made for Windows only then there is a chance that it runs fine in a software layer called Wine. Failing that, if you have a valid windows licence (have to stay legal!) then you can load that Windows into a Virtual Machine inside Linux. This has the added benefit of giving you instant control of the machine if and when Windows crashes yet again - it doesn't affect the linux, and you can simply kill the virtual machine, then start it up again. It also makes Windows run faster!

For printer compatibility, I recommend the Brother or HP range, because of cost and reliability, as well as excellent Linux drivers.