[brorim]

The continuous flip flopping from Microsoft in platform support and unwanted changes in user experience is too much ..

I have had it with this .. Windows 8 was supposed to unify app development then it was 8.1 and now it's 10 ?? what should I believe ?

Despite being the exact same development tools MS is moving their prime app core os support up the food chain leaving needed apps
for win 8.1 smouldering in the dust left behind.

I do not WANT windows 10 installed on ANY of my devices but then I have to accept the lack of groove music, candy crush and loads of other
apps not because they cant be made to run on RT or Win 8.1 but because MS simply decides to push for 10 ..

Microsoft is not in a position to dictate OS choice any longer ..

When trying out Linux Mint 17.3 I discovered how many Steam games that ACTUALLY run on linux and that got me on the spot.

I'm tired of the paid bloggers going all in on praising Win 10. As a long time tech myself I find it hard to support a forced os with
open security issues and consumer data mining build into it. The fact that no one seems to care about their personal data is even scarier.

I do ..

[Nogitsune Micah]

Alrighty then. Good luck with that.

[Pete]

Well, Linux is a valid choice for the technologist to use. I don't believe that the claims regarding security issues or data mining are valid, but it's ok to have that opinion. I'm not sure how more secure it would be given the open-source nature of the system. I guess you're happy with that risk given the relative small user base and lack of incentive for hackers to attach non-corporate installations.

The company I work for owns and sells SUSE products, but I've not played with it myself.

[Mad Cabbie]

I love Linux, but.... there are certain things that I end up using windows for. Ok, I can run a fair few windows programs in Wine, but find it lacking in some instances. I like the open source of Linux, and like the plethora of distros. Ubuntu is good, it's just a shame that the mobile version was / is developing slower than win 10. Suze is good as long as you have the knowledge to use it to it's full potential. My fave is Redhat, but I use Zorin as my kids use the PC. I didn't like the way MSFT imposed non dual boot on new / recent devices, without having to jump through hoops. Since I stopped cooking android ROMs using Archikitchen, my Linux useage has dropped to almost non existent.

I can see why MSFT are pushing / concentrating on Win 10. Nothing in life is free. If you give something away, you have to recoup your costs in other ways. It makes business sense. Those on these fine boards who say 'I'm leaving' and the like, I can't see Microsoft worrying too much. If enterprise started mumblings, they would sit up and listen. As for data collection, try Google, in all formats. They want to know everything. They will want to know your inside leg measurements before long. As for security issues, I would say android is one of the worst, being open source. Linux isn't the most secure either, again being open source.

Mint 17 is pretty darn good and is looking polished. It's also one of easiest to get along with, although the Linux software centre is seriously lacking.

[milkyway]

Linux Mint 17.3 is an awesome distribution. I for myself run Ubuntu with Cinnamon to get the same UI experience and to be more up to date than with Mint.
Sadly I can't get around without using Windows so I have W10 and Ubuntu as a dual boot.
Maybe you could think about a dual boot system?

[Mad Cabbie]

Linux Mint 17.3 is an awesome distribution. I for myself run Ubuntu with Cinnamon to get the same UI experience and to be more up to date than with Mint.
Sadly I can't get around without using Windows so I have W10 and Ubuntu as a dual boot.
Maybe you could think about a dual boot system?

I gave my son an elderly aspire one, with the somewhat dated Intel atom, and it's blazingly fast on Chromixium. :-)

As for dual boot, I think MSFT and UEFI put a lot of people off. On 8.1 it involved a 'backdoor' method. Not sure about Win 10 and dual boot though. Any issues? I know that a couple of distro's got signed methods to allow installation, but is it a safer bet now? Is win 10 'still' a disc hog?

[milkyway]

I gave my son an elderly aspire one, with the somewhat dated Intel atom, and it's blazingly fast on Chromixium. :-)

As for dual boot, I think MSFT and UEFI put a lot of people off. On 8.1 it involved a 'backdoor' method. Not sure about Win 10 and dual boot though. Any issues? I know that a couple of distro's got signed methods to allow installation, but is it a safer bet now? Is win 10 'still' a disc hog?

Yes, indeed, there are some problems with dual boot. It's very important to first install Windows and THEN Linux. Iniitally I had the problem that it would boot directly into Windows without showing the boot loader. I then ran "boot-repair" from a Ubuntu Live USB stick. That fixed it

[TheCudder]

The continuous flip flopping from Microsoft in platform support and unwanted changes in user experience is too much ..

I have had it with this .. Windows 8 was supposed to unify app development then it was 8.1 and now it's 10 ?? what should I believe ? .

Windows 8.1 mostly unified it between phones & PC's. Windows 10 pushed it to phones, PC, XBOX One & IoT devices.

I'm tired of the paid bloggers going all in on praising Win 10. As a long time tech myself I find it hard to support a forced os with
open security issues and consumer data mining build into it. The fact that no one seems to care about their personal data is even scarier.

I do ..

Bloggers are doing anything BUT praising Windows 10. I actually think new related to Windows 10 has been more negative than 8.

Linux is an alternative, but not a good one when it comes to how much functionality is lost. Of course, your mileage may vary.

[ntice_521]

Linux (technically, "Linux distributions") is very similar to Windows 10. They are both in perpetual beta. :-)

[Laura Knotek]

Linux (technically, "Linux distributions") is very similar to Windows 10. They are both in perpetual beta. :-)

That is not the case. A Linux distro with "LTS" in its version is stable and "LTS" stands for long term support. For instance, Ubuntu LTS versions are supported for 5 years.

[Daniel Gilbert M]

Without Direct X and proper hardware support you are going to be compromising a lot on that free OS.
Steam games work on Windows better than it does on Linux. Why ? , drivers, full utilization of the hardware and Direct X.

There is a steam OS based on Linux if you want to check it out.
SteamOS

But I can promise you, if you benchmark the same games on Linux and Windows, Windows will have better performance. I am saying 10-15fps difference.

[jmshub]

I always have at least one machine running Linux in the house...currently, I think I have two or three boxes with various distros. Linux has it's strengths and weaknesses, but for my primary productivity PC, it is running Windows, and I really don't see a reason to change anytime soon.

However, your claim that a blogger would need paid to like Windows 10 is specious and claims that Microsoft is "mining consumer data" is a little tin-foil hat.

[Keith Wallace]

Go for it, if that's what you want. However, if you're complaining about leaving Windows for Linux because of software support, I don't get it.

[Kimmo Toivanen]

One must not be afraid of the command line to have and use Linux ;)

I have had it for home and work, but I find Windows always easier and better to use. W10 is a free upgrade from certain versions of Windows, why not try it before switching to Linux? Nothing to lose, really.

Windows development has become more and more unified across platforms, you can check video courses in MVA on how to update apps from 8.1 to 10. Without time machine it was impossible to make W10 universal development system in W8 era.
One can run Linux software on PC and RasPi and other embedded devices (python or cross compile if supported) but where else? I fail to see how the grass is greener on the other side in this sense :) If you want universal programming, you could use Java or HTML+JavaScript.