On Operating System

As an avid Linux user, I have seen a lot of debate about the pros and cons of various operating systems (henceforth referred to as OSs). And my current opinion is that there is no best OS for everyone. For me Linux is the best operating system, specifically, Arch Linux, with its extreme customizability, is the best OS for me. But not everyone loves taking things apart and putting them back together the way I do. And probably the majority of computer users don't want to spend multiple hours at a command prompt just so that they can have a system that is customized to their specific needs and wants. And so I will not religiously recommend GNU/Linux to anyone and everyone I meet. And although I personally hate using Mac OS X, I can understand why so many people love it. To put it simply: Macs make easy things easier and hard things harder, while Linux makes easy things harder and hard things easier.

Now, technology is pushed by competition, and so, much as I love Linux, I do not want it to dominate the operating system market. I want there to be competition and I don't care whether it is proprietary or open-source. But for this same reason I have a very big problem with Microsoft Windows. The problem is that they hold way too much of the market, and thereby stifle a good deal of competition. Furthermore, Windows isn't that great of an OS. I have used Windows for many years (including Windows 7), and I have used Linux for a couple of years, and I have used Macs from time to time. Of the three I like Windows the least. Here is a list of the advantages that Windows has, if anyone has something to add to it please post a comment:

1. It comes preinstalled on cheap hardware (admit it Apple hardware is more expensive).
2. It's what most people are used to. If you use it at work or at school, why not use it at home as well?
3. There are a lot of good programs that are only available on Windows. Especially games, and professional software.
4. Hardware drivers are sometimes only available for Windows
5. Compatibility with the rest of the Windows using world

The thing about this list, is that everything on it is a result of Microsoft's near monopoly, not the quality of the product itself. I'm not saying that Windows is a terrible operating system, because it isn't. But it isn't great either. In my opinion it is mediocre, and it relies far too heavily on market power. If computer distributors distributed desktops and laptops preloaded with Ubuntu, and schools and businesses used Ubuntu on all of their computers, then the above list would apply to Ubuntu.

For the betterment of technology through greater competition, I want a more even playing field. The OEM deals that put Windows on just about every consumer computer should be outlawed as monopolistic behavior. Consumers should have the opportunity to choose the Operating System of their choice when purchasing a computer, without having to uninstall an unwanted operating system and installing a new one. The government, and ideally businesses and organizations as well, should support open standards such as ODF, which are OS independent. And perhaps most importantly, schools should have computers running every major OS available to students, so that they can try each one, and find which one works best for them. I understand that some schools may not be able to afford this luxury, but then why are they paying for Windows licenses when Linux is free?

I would like to end this post by saying that although I support Open Source Software, I am not strictly opposed to proprietary software. I am, however, opposed to monopoly. I am perfectly okay with other people using Windows, and OS X. What bothers me is that I have to pay for an operating system I do not want in order to get the hardware I do want, and that when I go to a library or any public (or even private) computer lab, I have to use an operating system I don't really care to use.