[clug] Switching to Linux issues

Jacinta Richardson jarich at perltraining.com.au
Fri Nov 10 13:35:19 GMT 2006


Detailed response follows, this isn't a criticism; just a draft-review.
Remember that it's much easier to re-write something than to come up with the
original.

Chris Smart wrote:

> "Issues with moving
> 
> No operating system is perfect, and Linux is no exception. If it was
> perfect we wouldn't keep improving it!
> 
> There are some issues with Linux that we want you to know about so you
> can make an informed decision.
> 
> Windows Software
> Windows software does not run on Linux natively. Linux is a completely
> different operating system and as such needs software written for Linux.
> Thankfully there are hundreds of thousands of free software applications
> available for you to use.

For a lot of people "software" == "windows software" and while I agree that we
need to change that world view, I think there may be a better way to do that.
I've also brought up the final paragraph from this section, under the assumption
you'll use the sub-section suggestion below.

	It is likely that much of your existing software will not
	run on Linux natively.  Linux is a completely different operating
	system.  Fortunately there are hundreds of thousands of Linux
	software applications available for a whole host of purposes that
	may replace the need for your existing software.  A table of
	alternatives can be found <a href="somewhere...">here.</a>

	In some cases you may find that due to business or other reasons you
	have a particular software product that you absolutely must use and that
	there is no Linux equivalent.  Don't despair, it may still be possible
	to make the move.

> There are however some programs for Linux that let you run your Windows
> software under Linux via an "emulation" type method. One such program is
> called "wine". Wine is not actually an emulator but creates a pretend
> Windows installation on your Linux system (you do not need Windows
> installed on your computer). You can then install your Windows software
> through wine and run it under Linux. Not all software will work, but
> there is a good resource online which you check out, <a target=blank
> href="http://appdb.winehq.org/">here</a>.

It might be a good idea to have this section under a subheader of "Windows
emulators" or "Windows compatibility layers".

	There are some programs which provide a compatibility layer
	to Linux to allow you to run Windows software.  One such program
	is "wine".  Wine mimics many of the Windows system functions.  This
	allows you to install your Windows software through wine and then run it
	under Linux.  Not all Windows software works with this method, but many
	- such as the Australian Tax Office's "eTax" work with minimum effort.
	There is a good resource on wine <a target="blank"
	href="http://appdb.winehq.org/">here</a>.
	
> A company called "Codeweavers" has a product based on wine called <a
> href="http://codeweavers.com">"CrossOver"</a> which allows you to
> install many common types of Windows software such as: Microsoft Office
> (versions 2003, XP, 2000 and 97), Microsoft Project, Microsoft Visio,
> Adobe Photoshop, Lotus Notes, Quicken, Shockwave Director, Quicktime and
> many more all under Linux. It is available to purchase online, the
> proceeds of which help to continue the project and provides you with
> support to help get your software running.

This sounds apologetic that Codeweavers has the audacity to charge money.  I'm
sure you don't mean that.  I'm not sure what your purpose is, but I think it
would be a mistake to focus only on the "free as in beer" aspects of beer.  If
people have to pay a little money from time to time, then so be it.

	An alternative to wine is <a
	href="http://codeweavers.com">"CrossOver"</a> by Codeweavers.  This
	allows you to install many common Windows programs including: Microsoft
	Office (versions 2003, XP, 2000 and 97), Microsoft Project, Microsoft
	Visio, Adobe Photoshop, Lotus Notes, Quicken, Shockwave Director and
	Quicktime to run under Linux.  CrossOver can be purchased from the
	Codeweavers <a href="http://codeweavers.com">website</a>.

> Remember there are usually excellent open source alternatives to the
> Windows software you want to use, but if you absolutely have to run it,
> then something like this could be the answer.

Replaced as above.

> Games
> As with the issue above, most computer games will not run natively under
> Linux. There are a few however, like the Unreal Tournament and Quake
> series of games, which will run natively under Linux. The main reason
> for this is that they use the OpenGL 3D rendering engine, which is open
> source and runs under Linux natively. Many other games use Microsoft's
> closed source DirectX 3D engine which will only run on Windows. Once
> again wine comes to the rescue here as many games will run through it.


	As mentioned above, most Windows programs will not run natively under
	Linux.  This applies to many games as well.  Fortunately some software
	houses are beginning to improve these matters.  Unreal Tournament and
	the Quake series of games work perfectly under the Linux.  These use the
	OpenGL 3D rendering engine.  Games which use Microsoft's DirectX engine 	
	will only run under Windows, although some run well via wine.

> There is also a product called <a href="http://cedega.com">"Cedega"</a>
> which, like Crossover, is based on wine and specialises in supporting
> thousands of Windows games under Linux. Once again you must purchase a
> license for this software if you want support. More information
> including a database of supported games can be found <a target=blank
> href="http://transgaming.org/gamesdb/">here</a>.

	There is a commercial product, based on wine, which specialises in
	supporting hundreds of Windows games under Linux.  This is <a
	href="http://cedega.com">"Cedega"</a> by TransGaming Technologies.
	Games include Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Heroes of Might and Magic,
	EVE, EverQuest (I and II), World of Warcraft and many others.  To see a
	full list of games visit <a href="http://transgaming.org/gamesdb">the
	games database.</a>
	
> Microsoft Office Compatibility
> Please have a read of the <a href="data.php">"What about my data?"</a>
> section of this website where we discuss Microsoft Office formats.
> Essentially, even though Microsoft Office formats are closed source and
> proprietary, they are supported very well under the <a
> href="http://openoffice.org">OpenOffice.org</a> suite. While free open
> source software file formats exist for most things you are likely to
> want to do on your computer, you may experience problems when swapping
> complex Microsoft Office files, but it is always improving. As Microsoft
> owns the code to these formats they can (and do) change the format with
> new releases. Still, if you require Microsoft Office support under
> Linux, OpenOffice.org should do almost everything you require (and
> more). You can also try out OpenOffice.org for yourself under Windows!

	We discuss Microsoft Office's formats further in our <a
	href="data.php">"What about my data?"</a> section of this website.
	
	The file format for Microsoft Office documents is proprietary.
	Although Word and Excel files are the pseudo-standard in many
	business contexts, it it important to understand that the way in
	which the Microsoft Office suite of applications stores your data on
	disk is not a standard.  This means that Microsoft is free to change
	the file formats between versions as they desire.

	Fortunately, there are a number of excellent Linux applications which
	are great replacements for all of Microsoft Office's functionality.
	Even better, they can read and write Microsoft Office compatible files
	when you need to.  For example the <a
	href="http://openoffice.org">OpenOffice.org</a> suite.  OpenOffice.org's
	default file format does follow a recognised standard and thus will not
	change in incompatible ways in the future.  You can even try out
	OpenOffice.org for yourself right now under Windows!
	
	Unfortunately, due to the closed nature of Microsoft's Office's files,
	you may experience some problems when trying to read or edit complex
	files; for example ones with many macros.  Support for Microsoft's
	Office's file format is always improving so if you do experience
	problems the team at OpenOffice.org would be love to know.
	
> Hardware
> Linux supports more hardware devices out of the box than any other
> operating system, however there are a number of devices that do not work
> easily. Most of these are what is called "win-hardware", hardware that
> actually works because of software that is installed onto the Windows
> computer. Because Linux does not run Windows software these devices are
> often hard to configure. Some wireless cards, some printers, and some
> internal dialup modems are examples of devices that can cause trouble
> for a Linux user. The open source community often writes their own Linux
> drivers for these devices, however because they do not get an
> information from the manufacturer this is hard. Fortunately this is
> changing as more and more manufacturers start to support Linux.

	Linux supports more hardware devices out of the box than any other
	operating system, however there is a range of devices that do not
	work easily.  Most of these are called "win-hardware" (for example
	"win-modems").  These devices have a software component which is
	necessary for them to work.  As Linux does not run Windows software
	these devices are often hard to configure.  Example devices include
	some wireless cards, printers, and internal dialup modems.  In many
	cases the open source community has written their own Linux drivers
	for these devices; however in some cases the manufacturer may not
	release sufficient information to make this possible.  Fortunately
	more and more manufacturers are supporting Linux, so hopefully this
	issue will soon be in the past.

> Another example of this is video cards. Linux supports almost every
> video card in existence, but not always the 3D features of the card. For
> example, while Linux supports NVIDIA cards well in the 2D arena, there
> is no open source 3D driver available for them. NVIDIA however does
> provide excellent Linux drivers for their cards to provide probably the
> best 3D support under Linux. The drivers however are NOT open source and
> as a result Linux distributions do not distribute them. The end user is
> welcome to install these drivers if they wish. Installation difficulty
> varies with the different versions of Linux, but it is usually well
> supported and there are always people willing to help.

This should probably be a subsection as well.  Under "Video cards".

	Linux supports almost every video card used today; however it
	may not always be able to take advantage of the 3D features of the card
	in a default installation.  For example, while Linux supports NVIDIA
	cards well in the 2D arena, there is no open source 3D driver available
	for them.  However NVIDIA provides excellent Linux drivers for their
	cards which take full advantage of the 3D features.  You may need to
	obtain these drivers separately from the manufacturer (they are usually
	available on the manufacturer's website) and install them on your
	computer.  This is due to licensing restrictions which prevent Linux
	distributions including them by default.

> Codecs
> Once again Linux struggles in this area because many codecs for your
> favourite videos were not written for Linux. Fortunately there are
> packages such as "win32codecs" which allows Linux to use the Windows
> codecs to play all your videos! Because the codecs are not open source,
> many distributions to not come with this installed out of the box. These
> codecs are usually quite easy to install, but does vary between versions
> of Linux.

	"Codec" stands for "compressor/decompressor" and relates to the
	software component which translates video or audio between its
	compressed (stored) form and it's uncompressed form (for display).
	For example QuickTime is a video codec.

	Unfortunately many codecs for common video (and audio) formats
	have not been written for Linux.  However there are packages,
	such as "win32codecs" which allows Linux to use the Windows codecs
	to access these formats.  Again, due to licensing reasons, many
	Linux distributions do not include these by default.  However there
	is usually lots of information on what you need to do to install them.

> Encrypted DVDs
> Linux has excellent support for DVDs. There is a package called
> "libdvdcss" which can play your DVD movies (which are encrypted),
> however due to patent restrictions in the United States this package is
> often not included in Linux. Depending on your chosen Linux version it
> can be quite easy or a challenge, but again there are always people
> willing to help you get sorted.

This seems more like a sub section to me.  DVDs are sort of a special case of
the codecs.

	When the DVD format was created it included a form of encryption that
	was designed to avoid unauthorised copying.  DVD software players were
	then each given a decryption key to work with all DVDs.  For various
	reasons, official Linux DVD software players were not available.  As
	it turned out, the encryption design had some issues and it was
	discovered that a key was not necessary to access the DVD information.

	There is a package called "libdvdcss" which can enable most
	Linux media players to decrypt and display your DVDs.  The use of
	this package may not be legal in all countries even when used with
	your own, purchased DVDs.  This is due to patent restrictions and
	digital copyright laws.  As such, it is not included with most
	Linux distributions.  However, if it is legal to use it in your
	location, then installing it is usually pretty easy.

> In Summary
> As you can see, most of these issues arise from the use of Windows based
> hardware and software. Linux does a very good job in helping these
> products work, but it is not always perfect and can be tricky to get
> working. Some cheaper "win-hardware" may not work well under Linux and
> you might have to wait a while for the latest game or Windows software
> to be supported through software like wine. As Linux gains in
> popularity, more and more devices today are created to be compatible.
> Chances are all of your devices will work out of the box after a Linux
> install, but some things like 3D video drivers and some programs may
> not. If this is the case, help is always available!

	Linux has a great range of software applications to meet the software
	needs you may have. Furthermore there is wine, CrossOver and Cedega to
	provide Windows compatibilty for many other software products you may
	wish to use.

	There is a good chance that all of your hardware devices will work
	by default after a Linux install.  However to take full advantage of
	your system you may need to install extra packages such as 3D video
	drivers, and CODECs for your commonly used media.

	Help to get your system up and running is always available.  <link to
	something about community help>...

> Hopefully this information will equip you to make a balanced decision on
> whether Linux is for you. We feel the pros of Linux far out weight the
> cons, and remembering that there is usually a program for Linux that can
> do everything you can do under Windows so many do not consider the above
> issue to be a hindrance."

	Hopefully this information will equip you to make a balanced decision on
	whether Linux is for you. We feel the pros of Linux far out weigh the
	cons.  With the wide range of Linux software applications available,
	many of which you can test already on Windows, you may find that you
	don't encounter most of the above issues.


-- 
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