4 ms·

Windows is a more user friendly operating system than Linux. Obviously they should have stuck with Windows all along.

lutusp 12y ago
> Windows is a more user friendly operating system than Linux. As a Linux advocate, I hate admitting that this is correct. One reason is that the Linux desktop experience is too fragmented and has too many competing players. Windows avoids this by being one company with one goal. > Obviously they should have stuck with Windows all along. This may be true in hindsight, but it wasn't obvious at the planning stage. In principle, Linux is a less expensive way to run a large enterprise. But only in principle, it seems. Linux will succeed as a desktop environment only when (and if) its various factions agree on a single model and a single goal.
- chestnut-tree 12y ago
  "Linux will succeed as a desktop environment only when (and if) its various factions agree on a single model and a single goal." Many Linux users probably don't want to see a single model. They like the choice of being able to choose from different distributions and their own desktop model. Ubuntu is probably the closest to being a consistent desktop environment and look how much grief they get from some Linux users over their UX choices. The open source model works for software, but it can't work for UX or design (at least I'm not convinced it can) because you can't design by commitee - any yet everyone wants a say in the UX. Would it have been better for Munich to have specified open document or data formats rather than the choice of software? This is what the UK government has recently done [1]. The choice of software is up to the individual departments as long as the software can read or create the open formats etc. At least this gives you the choice of switching to dfferent software without being tied to a single vendor's closed-sorce document format. [1] http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/open-enterprise/2014/07/huge-win-for-odf-lets-not-mess-it-up/index.htm http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/open-enterprise/2014/07/hug...
  - lutusp 12y ago
    > Many Linux users probably don't want to see a single model. They like the choice of being able to choose from different distributions and their own desktop model. Yes, true, but it would be nice to see more consensus for a single default desktop for new users. I guess that's Gnome as things stand, but Gnome has some serious usability issues and would seem very strange to someone coming over from Windows. On that topic, Windows 8 seems strange from someone coming over from Windows too. :) > Ubuntu is probably the closest to being a consistent desktop environment ... Well, sort of, by their advocacy of Gnome, but I was thinking of KDE versus Gnome and a handful of other desktop environment choices. > Would it have been better for Munich to have specified open document or data formats rather than the choice of software? That might have been a smarter course to take. It leaves the implementation up to individual departments and makes the Linux versus Windows issue less important than the end result, which is portable documents. Naturally, once the open document format issue heated up, Microsoft tried to create their own "open" document, but one that was actually proprietary, in a time-tested Microsoft strategy.
- b0rsuk 12y ago
  This sounds suspiciously like "When people start making their own Linux distributions".
  - lutusp 12y ago
    Yep -- we might call it the paradox of innovation: http://xkcd.com/927/ http://xkcd.com/927/
- farresito 12y ago
  > Linux will succeed as a desktop environment only when (and if) its various factions agree on a single model and a single goal. It's going to be pretty hard. I think something great about Linux is the freedom you get to choose the software that fits your needs the best, and that might be one of its weaknesses at the same time. I'm more than happy with how Linux is right now (but I agree that for someone with little or no experience it can be hard to get up and running, or using it). Oh, well, nothing can't be perfect.
  - lutusp 12y ago
    > I think something great about Linux is the freedom you get to choose the software that fits your needs the best, and that might be one of its weaknesses at the same time. Good point. I know a number of Windows end users, and they don't want so many choices, they just want things to work and be stable and reliable. To these end users, the idea of choosing between email clients or word processors seems to be just asking for trouble, in particular when they realize the file formats are incompatible.
pera 12y ago
What version of Windows and what distribution of Linux are you comparing? and what part is more/less user friendly?
TheAlchemist 12y ago
I have to agree. Linux is great for some things, Windows for others. I'm currently using desktop versions of both (Windows 7 / Ubuntu) and Windows beats Ubuntu hands down for user friendliness. I'm using Ubuntu only when absolutely must to (mainly dev).
- tormeh 12y ago
  How? I get not having Outlook and Office, but Ubuntu's desktop environment is way ahead of Windows.
wyager 12y ago
Anyone with half a brain can figure out a modern Linux UI. In fact, I'd venture to say that if you put someone with zero computer experience in front of a Linux box and a windows box, they'd figure out the relatively straightforward and intuitive Linux UI before figuring out the dozens-of-inconsistent-layers-deep windows UI.
- moepstar 12y ago
  While that might be true for people who have absolutely no previous computer (i.e. Windows) experience (not even as much as seeing someone use it in, say, a TV show) this is simply not the case in reality, sadly.
jorgecastillo 12y ago
I think this depends on the personal criterion of each user. At less in my personal use I find that Linux is much more user friendly than Windows. On the long term I am sure they will be better of using Linux even if the transition didn't work out as well as they thought. I don't think the use of Linux in the public sector should be encouraged only to save money. Widespread use of Linux will also help encourage the development of a local tech scene.
eip 12y ago
Have you tried Windows 8? It's like the UX team had weekly gas huffing competitions.

> Windows is a more user friendly operating system than Linux. As a Linux advocate, I hate admitting that this is correct. One reason is that the Linux desktop experience is too fragmented and has too many competing players. Windows avoids this by being one company with one goal. > Obviously they should have stuck with Windows all along. This may be true in hindsight, but it wasn't obvious at the planning stage. In principle, Linux is a less expensive way to run a large enterprise. But only in principle, it seems. Linux will succeed as a desktop environment only when (and if) its various factions agree on a single model and a single goal.

chestnut-tree 12y ago
"Linux will succeed as a desktop environment only when (and if) its various factions agree on a single model and a single goal." Many Linux users probably don't want to see a single model. They like the choice of being able to choose from different distributions and their own desktop model. Ubuntu is probably the closest to being a consistent desktop environment and look how much grief they get from some Linux users over their UX choices. The open source model works for software, but it can't work for UX or design (at least I'm not convinced it can) because you can't design by commitee - any yet everyone wants a say in the UX. Would it have been better for Munich to have specified open document or data formats rather than the choice of software? This is what the UK government has recently done [1]. The choice of software is up to the individual departments as long as the software can read or create the open formats etc. At least this gives you the choice of switching to dfferent software without being tied to a single vendor's closed-sorce document format. [1] http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/open-enterprise/2014/07/huge-win-for-odf-lets-not-mess-it-up/index.htm http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/open-enterprise/2014/07/hug...
- lutusp 12y ago
  > Many Linux users probably don't want to see a single model. They like the choice of being able to choose from different distributions and their own desktop model. Yes, true, but it would be nice to see more consensus for a single default desktop for new users. I guess that's Gnome as things stand, but Gnome has some serious usability issues and would seem very strange to someone coming over from Windows. On that topic, Windows 8 seems strange from someone coming over from Windows too. :) > Ubuntu is probably the closest to being a consistent desktop environment ... Well, sort of, by their advocacy of Gnome, but I was thinking of KDE versus Gnome and a handful of other desktop environment choices. > Would it have been better for Munich to have specified open document or data formats rather than the choice of software? That might have been a smarter course to take. It leaves the implementation up to individual departments and makes the Linux versus Windows issue less important than the end result, which is portable documents. Naturally, once the open document format issue heated up, Microsoft tried to create their own "open" document, but one that was actually proprietary, in a time-tested Microsoft strategy.
b0rsuk 12y ago
This sounds suspiciously like "When people start making their own Linux distributions".
- lutusp 12y ago
  Yep -- we might call it the paradox of innovation: http://xkcd.com/927/ http://xkcd.com/927/
farresito 12y ago
> Linux will succeed as a desktop environment only when (and if) its various factions agree on a single model and a single goal. It's going to be pretty hard. I think something great about Linux is the freedom you get to choose the software that fits your needs the best, and that might be one of its weaknesses at the same time. I'm more than happy with how Linux is right now (but I agree that for someone with little or no experience it can be hard to get up and running, or using it). Oh, well, nothing can't be perfect.
- lutusp 12y ago
  > I think something great about Linux is the freedom you get to choose the software that fits your needs the best, and that might be one of its weaknesses at the same time. Good point. I know a number of Windows end users, and they don't want so many choices, they just want things to work and be stable and reliable. To these end users, the idea of choosing between email clients or word processors seems to be just asking for trouble, in particular when they realize the file formats are incompatible.

pera 12y ago

What version of Windows and what distribution of Linux are you comparing? and what part is more/less user friendly?

TheAlchemist 12y ago

I have to agree. Linux is great for some things, Windows for others. I'm currently using desktop versions of both (Windows 7 / Ubuntu) and Windows beats Ubuntu hands down for user friendliness. I'm using Ubuntu only when absolutely must to (mainly dev).

tormeh 12y ago
How? I get not having Outlook and Office, but Ubuntu's desktop environment is way ahead of Windows.

wyager 12y ago

Anyone with half a brain can figure out a modern Linux UI. In fact, I'd venture to say that if you put someone with zero computer experience in front of a Linux box and a windows box, they'd figure out the relatively straightforward and intuitive Linux UI before figuring out the dozens-of-inconsistent-layers-deep windows UI.

moepstar 12y ago
While that might be true for people who have absolutely no previous computer (i.e. Windows) experience (not even as much as seeing someone use it in, say, a TV show) this is simply not the case in reality, sadly.

jorgecastillo 12y ago

I think this depends on the personal criterion of each user. At less in my personal use I find that Linux is much more user friendly than Windows. On the long term I am sure they will be better of using Linux even if the transition didn't work out as well as they thought. I don't think the use of Linux in the public sector should be encouraged only to save money. Widespread use of Linux will also help encourage the development of a local tech scene.

eip 12y ago

Have you tried Windows 8? It's like the UX team had weekly gas huffing competitions.