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What is the Best Computer System?

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• What is the Best Computer System?

• RE: What is the Best Computer System?

  Vincent Massi > 07-07-2016, 02:02 PM

  Part 5 CROSS-PLATFORM COMPATIBILITY
  
  Don’t laugh. As hard drives get bigger and computers get more powerful, virtual machines and partitioning are becoming steadily more common. A growing minority of users have more than one operating system.
  
  And Linux is the undisputed champ! Most Linux users are using a Windows computer, and Linux works fine on them. And although I haven’t tried it, Linux works well on Chromebooks. Installing Linux on a Windows or Chrome machine rarely causes problems.
  
  But install Windows on a Linux machine, and you’ll have to go through a complicated process to re-enable Linux. Putting Windows on a Chromebook is a complicated process, and for a little more money you could have bought a budget Windows laptop.
  
  However, sometimes an older version of Windows can be safely and legally installed on a Windows machine. I have a 32-bit version of Windows XP legally installed on my 64-bit computer, and it runs well.
  
  Chrome cannot be installed on another computer. There is a freeware version of Chrome called chromium that I’m not evaluating here.
  
  Linux gets 1 point, Windows gets a 0, and Chrome gets a -1.
  
  Total Score:
  Chrome 0
  Linux 0
  Windows 0

• RE: What is the Best Computer System?

  Vincent Massi > 07-08-2016, 01:58 PM

  Part 6 PRICE
  
  Pesos don’t grow on cacti, and cost has to be considered.
  
  Linux has a very attractive price:free. It is sometimes better to pay a small price to have someone install Linux for you, but it is still cheaper than Windows.
  
  But someone cries “Foul!” You still have to pay for a computer before you can install Linux. But if you pay for a Linux computer, you must purchase EVERY version of Windows that you add to it. If you pay for a Windows computer, though, you can install several different versions of Linux for free. And while most newer versions of Windows can only be installed on one computer, a thumb drive with Linux can be used on as many different computers as you want.
  
  My desktop has legal copies of XP, 8, and 10 ( in addition to Linux). Only XP can be legally transferred to my next computer, and I am legally required to delete it from my current computer first.
  
  Chrome is free, but you have to buy a Chromebook. It cannot be transferred to another computer. On the other hand, Chromebooks are cheaper than Windows machines.
  
  Linux gets a 1; Chrome gets a 0; and Windows gets a -1.
  
  Total scores:
  Linux 1
  Chrome 0
  Windows -1

• RE: What is the Best Computer System?

  The Rogue Tomato > 07-08-2016, 11:05 PM

  There's one problem with your tally. If you want to play games on your PC, then you pretty much have no choice but to install Windows, even if it's on a multi-boot system so you can have Linux, too. Linux simply isn't game-friendly (yet).
  
  If you want to have only one OS on your PC and you don't want Windows, but you still want to play games, I suppose you could buy one or two consoles (PS4, Xbox) in addition to your PC.

• RE: What is the Best Computer System?

  Vincent Massi > 07-09-2016, 01:25 PM

  Part 7 DOING SERIOUS WORK
  
  The newest version of Linux comes with Libre Office installed. It opens quickly and runs well. And once I figured out how to use Linux’s “Workspace Switcher,” I could easily switch between four desktops, leaving internet on one, and Libre Office on another, making it easier to type up my research.
  
  The same Libre Office opens slowly on Windows 10. (Both operating systems are on the same machine). It does work well. And although I have never done it, Windows is the leader in high-priced and unnecessary word processors.
  
  Chrome opens Googledocs quickly and it works well. It automatically stores my documents in the cloud. But its smaller screen, while still adequate, is not as good as Linux on a large screen.
  
  Linux gets a 1, Chrome gets a 0, and Windows gets a -1.
  
  And so my contest ends with this final score:
  Linux 2
  Chrome 0
  Windows -2

• RE: What is the Best Computer System?

  Vincent Massi > 07-10-2016, 01:17 AM

  "If you want to play games on your PC, then you pretty much have no choice but to install Windows,..."
  
  Rogue is correct. If you want to do any gaming beyond Solitaire level, you need Windows. A built-in flaw in my ranking (and everybody else's) is that everything is equal. In real life, some things are more important to different people.
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