Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Let's Talk about Piracy III - Open Source Software

Let's Talk about Piracy III - Open Source SoftwareContinuing with our series on anti-piracy and how to overcome it, we'll today look at the core of piracy in PCs -- the Operating System. Microsoft Windows still resides on 90 percent of computers even today. This dominance was possible due to its widespread nature for more than two decades. That's why a majority of software made today is made for Windows. But in this Web 2.0-centric 21st century of ours, are we really dependent on Windows to do what we do? 



With applications going to the web, it wouldn't matter which OS one would use. Applications would look the same across the board. I feel the following three products are enough proof (to me, at least) that web-apps are the future: Gmail (instead of Outlook/Thunerbird), Google Docs/Zoho (instead of MS Office/OpenOffice) or Youtube (instead of a Windows Media Player or VLC), 

However, there's no denying that you're going to need to roll with Microsoft Windows if you are doing either of these:

- Playing PC Games: Most of the gaming titles are made for Windows. Developers make games using a multi-media component of Windows called DirectX. Naturally, DirectX is available only for Windows.

- Use of an application that is made only for Windows: Sure, there are Photoshop and MS Office alternatives, but if your work requires you to use a certain software that runs only on Windows, you pretty much have no choice but to stick to Microsoft.

- You are absolutely adamant on not using any other operating system.

But what about everything else? Do you need to spend Rs. 4,500 (USD 100) to purchase your copy of Windows? Let's take the basic three requirements of PC users world-wide -- surfing the internet, use of office productivity software and multimedia playback. You don't NEED Windows to do many of the tasks today. Yes, that document you're typing doesn't NEED Microsoft Word (it could do just fine with a Google Doc or Open Office). Speaking of Operating Systems, there's one that is free in the truest sense of the term -- Linux

For the uninitiated, Linux is an open source operating system. Actually, Linux is a kernel (i.e. the heart of an OS). Open source means you freely release the code of software you make for the rest of the world. Then anybody can take it and modify it to their liking. To cite recent examples, Google's Android phones work on Linux's kernel and their Chrome OS is also going to be based on the same.

I know some people might feel uncomfortable when they hear Linux. It is often perceived as an OS for the geeks or programming enthusiasts, and I agree that the perception did hold true till a few years back. Trying out Linux say 10 years ago required you to go through fairly complicated installations with lines of code running across the screen. You had to hunt the internet to find and compile drivers for computer peripherals and other devices. Websites didn't render properly on Linux browsers of that time, and alternative software weren't as effective as paid ones that we were used to. If that wasn't enough, there were countless number of distributions to choose from, which made it even harder. I still remember trying out new distributions like the flavor of the month back then.

But if you're still thinking Linux hasn't evolved much from those days, you've obviously been living in a cave. Installing Linux today is as easy as installing Windows, if not easier. Only a few questions are asked, partitions are automatically re-sized, existing Windows installations are automatically preserved. You don't need to install any drivers separately for recent computer hardware, most of it is built into the OS. Many of the software (except for PC games) have an alternative version for Linux. Don't believe me? Check this website.
Next question: Which distribution to go for? I'm not going to get into detailed comparisons of OSes because there are simply too many out there. But of the lot, I'd prefer Ubuntu (www.ubuntu.com) simply because they have good acceptance from software makers and update the OS on a regular basis. Plus its fairly easy to use and has an 'App store' to easily find and install software. If you didn't like Ubuntu's look and feel, then I highly recommend Linux Mint. It is based on Ubuntu and looks quite elegant and "familiar" too. For Netbooks, I'm very intrigued to try out Jolicloud (www.jolicloud.com) that is due for a final launch by the end of the month.





Now, there will be many who will argue that the quality of open-source apps isn't as good as proprietary counterparts. I will not completely deny their accusation. OpenOffice probably still has time to reach the levels of an MS Office, and GIMP is probably not as functional as Photoshop. But it really depends on how well do you use those extra features of paid apps in reality. We have a habit of stacking up something that we'd might use some day, but don't on a day-to-day basis.

I once experimented on my parents by installing Linux on the home computer. Dodging their initial rant to get their "Windows" back, I pleaded them to give this OS a try. After a few days of trying to figure out where everything is, they were able to do their basic tasks on it without complaining. And that's pretty much what they will do on the computer, at least for some time. This is the case with the aam-junta; what they do is achievable using Linux. Heck, I sometimes feel I fall in that category. I don't play PC games (anymore) and my work is mainly on the internet. What one needs is a just a little patience.

And what does one get by using Linux instead of pirating a copy of Windows? For one, you won't have to live under the scanner, disabling all the Windows update screens just so that your copy doesn't get detected. Or try to download new tools or worse yet, format and re-install in case your Windows starts throwing up counterfeit-copy messages. Second, you'll be virtually immune from most viruses and all other malware simply because they were designed to attack Windows. So, Linux won't be able to process those files. It's like if the virus was written in English, Linux understands only German.



Bottom line: It is possible to accomplish daily tasks with the use of open source software. You'll just have to be a little patient and try it out. As a personal effort, we at TechTree will try to deliver information about the latest open-source software on a regular basis from now on.

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