Poll: What is your primary operating system • Hacker News Board

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#151

Post by asjo » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:40 AM UTC

I have been using Linux as my only operating system since Yggdrasil Fall 1994. Before that I was a happy Amiga user.

After Yggdrasil I took a short turn to Slackware (downloaded a lot of floppies), and then switched to Debian which I had heard nice things about - and I have been running Debian ever since.

I always get surprised at how complicated other systems (Windows, Mac OS X) seem to me, when I briefly encounter them. I guess it is the power of habit.

Here is a bar chart of the votes:

· http://koldfront.dk/misc/hn/os/data.png

(Updated hourly currently.)

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#152

Post by ing33k » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:43 AM UTC

I am a Linux user and I feel more secure when using it.

Desktop : Linux Mint ( Was using Ubuntu until 10.4 )

Laptop : Linux Mint and Windows 7 Dual boot. The reason I have windows is that laptop battery lasts for 4 hrs on windows and only 1.5 hrs on Linux when not on charging mode. also I use windows when I need to use dual screens.

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#153

Post by sathishmanohar » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:43 AM UTC

Wow! OSX first, Linux Close second. There are not many places, that will draw this kind of result.

I use windows and Ubuntu, I use Ubuntu for almost everything nowadays, My only reason to boot into windows to get something done with photoshop.

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#154

Post by foxit » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:45 AM UTC

drblast wrote: post #116

For desktop use I'm migrating back to Windows after having used Ubuntu almost exclusively for the past five years. It's a shame, because Ubuntu was soooo close to surpassing Windows from a "I just want to get stuff done without mucking with the machine" standpoint. But then Windows got much better with version 7 and Ubuntu took a nosedive into crazy UI fantasy land. The final straw was when text started randomly disa…

I'm getting older, and after about 15 years playing around with config files, I just want something that's stable and consistent[.] .. Windows is leaps and bounds better than when I heavily used it last.

This is why we use Windows. When we buy a new computer, it's a former corporate business class laptop sold on eBay, it comes with some version of Windows preinstalled, and we don't mess with it. As with the recent Gmail discussion, the reason we use it is that it simply works and we need it to do work.

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#155

Post by chrisveto » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:48 AM UTC

I'm sitting on Windows 7 machine and quite frankly I don't get the hate about it. It's beautiful, it runs programs and with those programs you can do work and view media. Heck, it even plays games (WOO, who knew right?). While there are parts that aren't really thought-through when it comes to UI design, it's still the best thing I can afford. Some day when I win a lottery, I'll try out a mac, but till then it's all Windows. And to those lovely linux freaks, the day you can run Adobe Fireworks / Illustrator / Photoshop without the hassle of Wine emulator, do let me know.

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#156

Post by ing33k » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:48 AM UTC

bitcracker wrote: post #43

Happy Linux user since 1992. Sometimes I also use Windows in VM for customers.

OMG, I was just 3 when you began to use Linux. I would like to know if its some sort of addiction to use Linux ? the reason I am asking is, I am using Linux since 6 years and I think I am getting addicted to it .

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#157

Post by jamesflorentino » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:48 AM UTC

I've also been a Windows user for more than 10 years but just recently switched to OSX (May 2011) because I was migrating from Flash Development to HTML5/JavaScript. It seems that most of the tools for web development in general are more conveniently available in OSX.

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#158

Post by jurre » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:52 AM UTC

bliss wrote: post #148

jurre wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OSX also has both of those, although I'm not sure if you have VB support in osx, but I'm guessing that if you're using calc you don't need it anyway. If this set up works for you that's great of course!

VBA on OSX is fine, a little slower than on windows (yes, it can get slower!) - couple of funnies around file system access, but well written code will work with no changes

Thanks, yeah I just tried one of my old projects (a counter to display how much money one/multiple people are wasting) and it worked!

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#159

Post by rbarooah » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:55 AM UTC

slowpoke wrote: post #79

Osiris wrote: post #25

I've been using Windows pretty much since version 3.1 (though will some time on OS/2 as well) as my primary OS. I have, of course, used Linux, though mostly for servers and not a full-time primary OS. I also have a Chromebook running Chrome OS. Recently, I switched jobs and my team uses Macs so over the last few months my primary work OS is now Mac OS X, while I still use Windows at home. One thing I have discovered…

I would just like to add that there is a valid reason why Linux or the *BSDs are superior to Windows or OS X - they are Free. As in Speech. And I'm sad this doesn't even warrant a mention.

The kind of freedom you mention is not a reason why they are superior in some absolute way.

It's a factor which, in the real world today, makes them better for some purposes and worse for others.

There are reasonable but unproven conjectures that this kind of freedom could become the most important factor over time, but the existence of conjectures doesn't demonstrate any inherent superiority.

Re: Poll: What is your primary operating system

#160

Post by frou_dh » Mon, Apr 02, 2012, 9:57 AM UTC

OS X has software by third parties that take design and UI seriously. That does not seem to generally be the case on Windows or especially Linux.

If OS X disappeared, I'd probably spend a huge amount of time tweaking an Arch Linux install and would use less GUI software.