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You have options in the world of Operating Systems!

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Micro$oft would like you to think there are no options in the computing world. Thankfully Macintosh and Linux are rising stars due to the failures and poor products from Microsoft... especially with the horrible Windows Vista OS.

I use Mac as my primary OS, but there is a huge array of other, fully functional and great OS's out there. My second computer has several of them which I use regularly. There are many great OS's that are completely free and that are being tested and improved continuously by 1000's of volunteers.

Win-doze Humor:

  • Macs are for those who don't want to know why their computer works.
  • Linux is for those who want to know why their computer works.
  • DOS is for those who want to know why their computer doesn't work.
  • Windows is for those who don't want to know why their computer doesn't work.
  • Computers are like air conditioners, they stop working properly if you open Windows.

Windows!Windows!Many people are afraid of installing a non-windows OS on their machine because they often think they will have to use a command line. This is no longer the case. Various Linux and BSD's have been made very user friendly in recent years. In fact many versions are simpler to install than Windows XP.

Another concern is whether or not one has all the software necessary to do needed tasks. Most open source OS's these days have everything an average user could want already built in, which is not the case for Windows. You often have to go out and buy numerous software bundles at highly inflated prices. One example of great open source and free software is Open Office, which is an a product just like the MS Office suite, but can actually open more different file formats and is useful on occasion when MS Office products completely fail. It can save into all the common M$ formats you are used to, like .doc, .xls, etc. For Mac it's called Neo Office.

  • Mac OS X - Based on BSD, must purchase hardware with it, but durable enviro friendly hardware. It is probably the most refined OS out there.
  • PC-BSD - An easy to use version of FreeBSD. More secure and stable than Linux and Windows, full functionality and a wide array of software. FreeBSD is one of the most common OS's for running the all important and always on server. # Linux - Ubuntu, Debian, SimplyMepis, Damn Small
  • Linux - Ubuntu, Debian, DSL (Damn Small Linux), Knoppix, and Puppy Linux. DSL and Puppy Linux are great for old or slow machines. Puppy Linux has amazing functionality for such a small OS. Ubuntu is a THE latest in easy to use, average Joe, Linux distributions. I think Debian is one of the best... tried and true.
  • OpenBSD - A command line BSD (can have a windows-like interface), it is the most secure of the common OS's, great for making servers.