Ready To Make The Jump To Linux? Let’s Go!

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Linux I’ve been seriously considering checking out Linux for a couple of years now. The only thing that’s been stopping me is the fact that I can’t use my favorite apps like Photoshop and Dreamweaver.

There are great open source alternatives available, but I’m mostly just too lazy to want to
relearn. Not to mention, Photoshop is the industry standard for professional graphics designers and web developers. I’ve invested a lot of time into Photoshop.

For those of you that are unaware of what Open Source is, it basically refers to a program in which the source code is available to the general public for use and/or modification from its original design free of charge. For a complete understanding, you can read more at the official website of the Open Source Initiative.

So to put it all in a nutshell, Linux is a powerful Operating system that is comparable to
Windows XP, and Apple’s Operating systems. And the best part is that it’s completely free! And even better, there are some great applications that are comparable to the most commonly used programs in the fields of:

Office
Graphics
Internet
Accessories
Games
Sound & Video

For a short list of the leading alternative (Open Source) programs available, see my article
titled “Short On Money? Get Free Alternatives To The Expensive Software!”

So, I have now decided to make the jump to Linux by taking a baby step, and first installing it on a secondary computer.

Being in the business of repairing and building custom computers on the side, I sometimes am fortunate enough to be given an older computer.

I was recently lucky enough to be given a very nice laptop. It has a 1.6 GHz processor. A
little slow, but I maxed out the memory, so that should be plenty fast to load Linux and a few necessary applications to start experimenting with.

There are a number of distributors that put together a bundled package of the Linux operating system along with other apps like Firefox, OpenOffice, etc. I’ve decided to go with Ubuntu. The latest version is Ubuntu 8.04.

I will be installing this in a couple of days and will write another post on my first experience with it. I will also write in more detail about Ubuntu.

I’m really looking forward to exploring Linux, along with some other open source applications. If any readers have any comments, suggestions, or helpful input, please feel free to have your say!