Breaking Windows Linux Isn’T Quite Ready To Supplant Microsoft’S Operating System

If you have paid attention to the Microsoft trial or stayed in tune with the lesser corners of the computing industry, the Linux operating system may have stirred your curiosity.

Developed in 1991 by Linus Torvalds, a Finland native who currently works at a secretive company called Transmeta in the Silicon Valley, Linux has since been nurtured by a stable of programmers from around the world. And the program is increasingly characterized as a threat to Microsoft’s grip on the computer operating system business.

Maybe those claims eventually will prove to have merit, but Linux has several barriers to overcome if it hopes to move beyond the corridors of highly skilled programmers and assorted hackers, to the consumer and business desktop computer markets.

Linux can be challenging to install and tough to use, unless you have an above-average computing background. Knowing the Unix operating system helps.

Eager to try Linux firsthand, Red Hat Software, a Durham, N.C., company that distributes Linux, provided me with a complementary version.

Linux, which is one of the rallying points of the “open-source code” push, is available to download free off the Internet.

But companies like Red Hat, which sell the software for profit, offer technical support for Linux installation. And as it turned out, I needed plenty of help.

My first Linux installation effort began on a Compaq laptop. After several false starts, I found the hard drive was pressed for space, with only 600 megabytes of memory available.

A Red Hat technician said a minimum of one free gigabyte is preferred for Linux use.

I borrowed a new IBM computer for the installation, which made the process much easier. The IBM had ample hard drive room and there was also no need to “partition” the hard drive — a maneuver required if your computer has more than one operating system, such as both Linux and Windows.

The setup phase on the IBM was quick and easy: I slipped a CD into the CD-ROM drive and the on-screen instructions guided me. Linux was installed in less than a half hour.

After restarting, I was introduced to Gnome, the Linux user interface. At that point I knew I had wandered too far from my Windows comfort zone.

Gnome has the feel of a Web browser and behaves like a file management tool. It bears slight resemblance to Windows.

After becoming vaguely familiar with Gnome, I was able to locate some of the programs that I use most often: a word processor, spread sheet, calculator and day planner.

I was pleased and surprised to see these programs come with the installation.

For many other users, the bare-bones tools I rely on are not sufficient.

Not to worry. Red Hat ships an additional CD-ROM disk that contains Applixware a program akin to Microsoft Office the Apache Web Server and several others. But be prepared to enter Unix commands to load them onto the hard drive. It’s not as simple as putting in the CD-ROM and clicking a button.

My biggest disappointment with Linux was not being able to roam the Internet. While equipped with a Netscape browser, Linux was not compatible with the office network I was plugged into a detail discovered the hard way.

After receiving a bad networking command, Linux never recovered. I had to take the time to reinstall the entire operating system. Correcting the problem would have involved rooting around the innards of the computer. Or so I was told by another Red Hat technician.

Brian Coburn, a consultant and organizer of the Spokane Linux Users Group, said Linux has grown to the point of being commercially acceptable. He said most efforts are now focused on making the operating system more user friendly for the general desktop something that he believes is soon to come. But if you are eager to try Linux now, Coburn recommends Caldera’s Open Linux 2.2, for ease of use.

In the past four months, Coburn said, his Linux users group has doubled to about 120 members.

While I am not willing to sacrifice convenience and familiarity of Windows to join the so-called Linux revolution, I look forward to seeing the operating system mature and become more user friendly.