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By choice. I was a diehard Linux nazi until I got my first internship where everyone used Windows. Initially I was appalled; I had brainwashed myself with the

By choice. I was a diehard Linux nazi until I got my first internship where everyone used Windows. Initially I was appalled; I had brainwashed myself with the spirit that `configurability is power' to the point that no one, not even I could get any work done on any system I touched. This philosophy carried over when I started using the work computer, which I plastered with ``productivity software'' on it in an attempt to morph the system into something more like my personal laptop. I became part of the ``Cult Of AutoHotkey.'' In retrospect it is absolutely absurd that there exists a subculture which revolves around changing the settings of computer software. The first week of the job my boss had to do something on my computer, and within thirty seconds told me "What have you done to this poor computer." He was a Smart Guy; he is highly educated, has been working with for longer than I have been alive and adapted to modern standards, (sucessfully) administered company server farms, directed software projects (embedded, web and everything in between) and most importantly had a life outside of science and technology. It was at this point that I woke up. Obviously there was a problem with me. Now I leave every conceivable default untouched unless I absolutely cannot avoid it. I use Windows 8, IE (Firefox with no addons when that breaks), Visual Studio, Windows Photo Gallery, etc. Most of the less common software I must use is run out of a folder in my home directory. Now I and everyone can be productive on my system. The only thing I have lost since switching is the smug self-righteousness of Linux veganism and Lifehacker articles. There is no default on Linux, so there can be no expected behavior. That is why I use Windows.

JoeAltmaier 12y ago
Thank you! I also refuse to hobble myself with custom desktop toys. If my machine fails I want to be productive again as soon as I get another machine on my desktop. Forget all the imaginary gains of diddling with exotic editors etc. Truth is, you can get used to anything. So get used to the defaults, and leave the whole discussion behind.
- kelnos 12y ago
  I find it weird that you don't believe you can have both at the same time. I have my (important) dot-files and etc-files checked into a git repository, critical subdirectories of ~ (Photos and Documents, to name a couple) synced to an online backup service, and I have a cron job that takes a daily snapshot of the list of packages installed on my laptop with "dpkg -l" (which gets dumped in ~/Documents, which is synced to my online backup). If (and when: this has happened) I lose my main machine, I can be up and running, virtually exactly where I left off, in a matter of a few hours. The only stuff that's really missing that I need to get work done is ~/src/, but all of that is on various git servers, and can be re-cloned as needed (it's very rare that I finish some coding and fail to check it in and push it somewhere safer). I just could not live with a stock Mac or Windows setup (or Linux, though, to be fair, there's really no such thing as a "stock" Linux setup) and still feel productive. Then again, regarding Windows specifically, I just cannot feel productive on Windows anymore, period. In the 90s I would have considered myself a Windows power user, but switching to UNIX-y systems blew away anything I could ever do on Windows. Perhaps things have gotten better, but I have zero motivation to go back when I already have the real thing right in front of me. In the end, though, everyone is used to what they're used to, and switching costs can be pretty damn high.
  - JoeAltmaier 12y ago
    What you feel is interesting, but not the point. What you spend in engineering time setting up this machine is cost to your employer. Not doing it is savings. Balanced against a feeling of productivity?
renaudg 12y ago
Well, much of Apple's philosophy is that they pick great defaults for you. How come you haven't tried OS X ?
- enthdegree 12y ago
  * Most people don't use OS X * I find their paradigm very bizzare. The nail(s) in the coffin for me were the inconsistent and incomplete patchwork of shortcuts and modifier keys. Even with universal keyboard access enabled, there is no way to do some very basic things via keyboard out of the box (e.g. move, maximize, minimize windows). Every time I use OS X I feel like I'm fighting the system. The only way I can get anything done on it is via CLI, which defeats the purpose of switching (at that point why not just ssh into it from windows) If I had started out on OS X it would probably be great but as it is, the learning curve and opportunity cost is too steep for me.
enthdegree 12y ago
you odnt realize how miserably composed your writing is until its uneditable

JoeAltmaier 12y ago

Thank you! I also refuse to hobble myself with custom desktop toys. If my machine fails I want to be productive again as soon as I get another machine on my desktop. Forget all the imaginary gains of diddling with exotic editors etc. Truth is, you can get used to anything. So get used to the defaults, and leave the whole discussion behind.

kelnos 12y ago
I find it weird that you don't believe you can have both at the same time. I have my (important) dot-files and etc-files checked into a git repository, critical subdirectories of ~ (Photos and Documents, to name a couple) synced to an online backup service, and I have a cron job that takes a daily snapshot of the list of packages installed on my laptop with "dpkg -l" (which gets dumped in ~/Documents, which is synced to my online backup). If (and when: this has happened) I lose my main machine, I can be up and running, virtually exactly where I left off, in a matter of a few hours. The only stuff that's really missing that I need to get work done is ~/src/, but all of that is on various git servers, and can be re-cloned as needed (it's very rare that I finish some coding and fail to check it in and push it somewhere safer). I just could not live with a stock Mac or Windows setup (or Linux, though, to be fair, there's really no such thing as a "stock" Linux setup) and still feel productive. Then again, regarding Windows specifically, I just cannot feel productive on Windows anymore, period. In the 90s I would have considered myself a Windows power user, but switching to UNIX-y systems blew away anything I could ever do on Windows. Perhaps things have gotten better, but I have zero motivation to go back when I already have the real thing right in front of me. In the end, though, everyone is used to what they're used to, and switching costs can be pretty damn high.
- JoeAltmaier 12y ago
  What you feel is interesting, but not the point. What you spend in engineering time setting up this machine is cost to your employer. Not doing it is savings. Balanced against a feeling of productivity?

renaudg 12y ago

Well, much of Apple's philosophy is that they pick great defaults for you. How come you haven't tried OS X ?

enthdegree 12y ago
* Most people don't use OS X * I find their paradigm very bizzare. The nail(s) in the coffin for me were the inconsistent and incomplete patchwork of shortcuts and modifier keys. Even with universal keyboard access enabled, there is no way to do some very basic things via keyboard out of the box (e.g. move, maximize, minimize windows). Every time I use OS X I feel like I'm fighting the system. The only way I can get anything done on it is via CLI, which defeats the purpose of switching (at that point why not just ssh into it from windows) If I had started out on OS X it would probably be great but as it is, the learning curve and opportunity cost is too steep for me.

enthdegree 12y ago

you odnt realize how miserably composed your writing is until its uneditable