Jamie's Random Musings
Various thoughts and adventures, including but not limited to Linux, Windows XP and Widows Vista, and assorted bits of hardware new and old.
Thursday 4 September 2008, 11:05 AM
Windows to Linux
Is it worthwhile to switch them to Firefox, Thunderbird and/or OpenOffice.org, while they are still on Windows, in order to smooth the transition, both for them and for their data? I have the full spectrum on this front, as my partner has been using Firefox and Thunderbird for quite some time now, and has used OpenOffice occasionally, whereas my brother has never used any of them, although he recently tried Firefox and wasn't pleased with the way it took over his bookmarks from IE (not a good omen, I know). The friends and neighbors fall between those two extremes.
Should I convert them by setting up their computers to dual-boot Windows and Linux, so they have an "emergency retreat" avenue, if we find something they absolutely have to still use Windows for? Or given that disk prices are cheap these days, should I just buy each of them a new disk, and load it with only Linux, keeping the Windows disk in reserve "just in case"? Or perhaps I should just make them go "cold turkey", and convert their existing disks entirely to Linux? Or has anyone had really worthwhile experience by first running one of the Live CD (or Live USB) distributions first, and then taking the plunge to conversion? I suppose this might at least reassure the user about the viability of Linux, but it seems like an unnecessary extra step to me.
Any other recommendations, tips, pitfalls, experiences or war stories would be appreciated.
After gathering some opinions and recommendations, I'll start with a few of the closest systems, and see how it goes.
jw 4/9/2008
PreviousComments on this post
"something they absolutely have to still use Windows for"
This is a major factor in decision to switch OS.
For example I use Firefox/ Thunderbird & Open Office yet my desktop machine is never likely to see linux installed int he near future. I like to play alot of games (yes there are ways/methods/tricks to allows games to run on Linux OSs, but i don't have the time/urge to fiddle trying to get things to work).
For users that have never seen Linux before you need to make a clear and easy transition. Identify all the current uses of the machine and the level of use that a person is likely to need.
Once you have listed these then perhaps a Livecd/usb to demo a product maybe a good exercise to undertake. Point out the functions/features that user is likely to want.
Provide a "this equals this" overview of the new OS, users aren't going to struggle to find their music collection or create a spreadsheet at first.
And Good luck.
Three (fast diminishing) reasons to keep XP:
1) Visio, or the ability to read .vsd files (I use Dia on my Linux machine but still need Visio for shraing Visio files at work.
2) Until the launch of Chrome this week, IE was the only browser I could get to properly view intranets created with Microsoft Sharepoint.
3) And - here's a newsflash - MySQL Workbench, of which a Linux alpha version is finally due in the next three weeks or so, and which I find an incredibly useful aid for working with data.
By the end of the month only one of these three reasons will still be standing. Oh how the bastions are crumbling.
Meanwhile I've been trying hard to make my standard issue Windows XP machine work and look, oh, say half as well as my Ubuntu desktop at home. Even third-party add-ons like VirtuaWin don't come close to Ubuntu with CompizFusion.
Step 1. Give them a live CD. Be there when they boot it if you can.
Step 2. Set them up for dual boot. Advise them to boot to Linux now and then, just to get some experience.
Stop here if there is no interest. Disliking change is part of the human condition that's hard to overcome. Don't spin your wheels.
Step 3. Don't be the supreme guru. Introduce them to the Linux community and show them that help is easily available. That's a huge deal maker.
Step 4. If you got this far, the fuze is burning. You can relax.
Shameless plug: I'm co-host of the going Linux podcast. Set your friend up with a podcatcher and subscribe it to http://goinglinux.com.
Best,
Tom
To all three of you so far, thanks very much for reading and commenting, these are exactly the kinds of suggestions and opinions I was hoping to get.
@welshtroll - Fortunately, neither my partner nor my brother play games on their PCs, so that is one thing I won't have to worry about at least in the beginning. Excellent suggestion about making a list of the current uses of the Windows system, and I think I will extend that to keep a separate list specifically of the things that are overlooked, and we only discover were being used after the move. I also really like the "this equals this", or what I would call "do this to get this" list, I hadn't thought of that, and it will certainly save some searching and some questions directed back to me.
@mattloney - Thanks for the list, and yes I agree, the bastions are crumbling. Interesting that you mention your own system and XP/Ubuntu experience, because it is identical to mine. I started out loading Ubuntu just to see how it would work, and how far it had come since the last time I tried Red Hat; in a few short months, I've gotten to the point where I run Ubuntu much more than I do Windows on both of my laptops.
@Tom - Thanks very, very much for reading and commenting. As both you and welshtroll mention starting with a Live CD, I will go ahead and do that, to see what the reaction is and whether it seems to be of real benefit. Your point about stopping if there is no interest before you have gone too far is well taken - a "forced" or "coerced" conversion is seldom successful, and in my situation could be damaging to personal relationships! I certainly will not try to be, or pretend to be, the supreme guru, I think the availability of so much excellent help and advice is an important advantage that new Linux users need to be made aware of. I gratefully accept your "shameless plug".
Thanks again.
jw 4/9/2008
