Today we have many operating systems, but we only knew about Windows. Every time we go for a desktop or laptop purchase, we ask for Windows. Windows operating system is owned by Microsoft. Most desktops and laptops come with the installed operating system as Windows. We think that it is free, but it is not. The desktop and the laptop cost include the Windows cost as well. Few desktops and laptops come with DOS installed which is cheaper. Then the seller installed the Windows in it as we request him, and this Windows is the pirated one.
We have another good operating system which is called Mac OS. This operating system is owned by Apple and is costlier than Windows. Apple also manufacture its own laptop and sold them with Mac OS installed. Mac OS is widely used and has a huge user base just like Windows.
There is another operating system which is called Unix. This is costlier than the Windows and Mac OS, even the big companies cannot afford the cost of this operating system.
In 1991, Linus Torvalds created a UNIX-like operating system called Linux. Today Linux operating system is used widely and has captured the Server market. 90% of all the servers run Linux operating system. But we Indians do not use it as its heart lies on command.
Today everybody uses mobile smartphones with Android OS installed on it. What we don’t know is that Android is Linux. It is the modified version of Linux with open-source software.
As Windows and Mac OS use Graphical User Interface(GUI) to interact with users on philosophy WYSIWYG(What you see is what you get), how many people are willing to use Linux which runs on Command Line Interface(CLI). Well, Linux also has GUI(Graphical User Interface) which most of us don’t know. As we are well used to Windows, I am going to explain the KDE plasma desktop interface of Linux.
I use Kubuntu Linux, as you can see in the screenshot below. This is the latest version of Linux. I am using this to educate you as all of us are familiar with Windows and its interface is like Windows.
Kubuntu is one of the variants of Ubuntu. Ubuntu is developed by the British company Canonical. On 8 July 2005, Mark Shuttleworth and Canonical announced the creation of the Ubuntu Foundation and provided initial funding of US$10 million. The purpose of the foundation is to ensure the support and development of all future versions of Ubuntu. Mark Shuttleworth describes the foundation goal as to ensure the continuity of the Ubuntu project.
Below is the screenshot of the Start menu which is like the Windows Start menu with the only difference being that programs are clubbed separately. You can see the search option on the top.
We use office tools like MS Word, MS Excel, etc. To use these applications, we must purchase the MS Office package, which will cost us extra. The other option through which we can use these is by installing pirated versions. Linux provides these office applications free of cost. It uses another open-source software LibreOffice. You can refer to the screenshot below.
I am using LibreOffice Writer to write this article. See the screenshot.
Similarly, we can use Linux in our day-to-day activities. Linux is free of cost as it is open-source operating software. It is fast and can be run on old laptops and desktops as its hardware requirement is less compared to Mac OS and Windows. It is a very good alternative to Windows.
There are many distributors of Linux. You can visit distrowatch.com for more information on Linux.
One thing which we should remember is that like Microsoft owns the Windows, Apples owns the Mac OS, nobody owns the Linux as it is open-source.