Why Do I Use Linux?

Screenshot-1Since the weekend I have loaded and reloaded some form of Linux around a half dozen times on this clunky old HP laptop. It’s my patio machine. It sits here 24/7.

I had to start fresh when something went flooey in the video driver’s neighborhood.

As my allergist once asked me, “Do you want to know what it is or do you want to be cured?”

Reloading cures every problem.

ScreenshotI was surprised. The data stored on this laptop is close to zero! When it needs something it reaches into the cloud. Plus, my studio network is well interconnected with storage devices and special purpose machines.

I burned the operating system ISO onto a USB drive. Installation itself took nearly a half hour, mainly pain free. My sound and WiFi cards were both found–always the weakest link with Linux. The video is stable.

But why Linux? This machine was made for Vista. It’s tried most everything. Only this is usable in 2015. The web demands too much. I demand too much.

There are Linux distributions specifically made for slower, older machines. This one is Mint Linux. It is free.

Screenshot-2Having Linux means you have to be a tree shade mechanic. Everything under-the-hood is accessible. You’re playing a little closer to the edge than with Windows or Apple’s OSX. You can break it without trying hard.

The operating system is becoming less-and-less important. We’re running fewer-and-fewer local apps and more-and-more web apps. Linux isn’t the handicap it once was.

It makes me feel like a rebel.

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