Lately I have been having a myriad of computer issues. Some are ISP related while others may be because I haven't cleaned up my PC in a while. So this weekend I am formatting my hard drive and re-installing my operating system.

For those of you that know me know I am a Microsoft user and have been exclusively for quite some time. My experience with Microsoft operating systems is what pays my bills so it isn't a big surprise. What may come as a surprise is that Linux is going to be part of my OS re-installation. XP SP2 will still be installed as my wife will not welcome a completely new operating system as easily as I will. I am also toying with the idea of installing Vista on a partition just to see what it is all about. Eventually I will have to face Vista whether it be in the workplace or if I decide to update my MS certifications. So I figure I need to get some time behind the wheel of Vista.

What version of Linux am I going to try? I'm glad you asked. When I heard about Ubuntu Feisty Faun and read a little bit about it I decided to download it and load it up in a VMWare session. I instantly liked it. It installed supremely easy and navigating it wasn't all that difficult. It found all of my hardware and connected to my LAN without one single issue. Soon I was installing updates and software packages and having a good ole time. So I am going to officially install it on my desktop. I've already done some research into drivers for my video card, sound card and alternatives to my Windows based applications. Surprisingly I didn't find any issues. It is amazing the amount of software out there that is free and does the exact same thing as extremely expensive software designed for the MS OS. Granted, some of the software will be lacking some features the high priced versions have but that is okay. I can live with that.

So you may be asking what software am I talking about and what is going to replace it in the Linux environment. Let me lay it out for you:

1. Dreamweaver replaced by NVU
2. Photoshop replaced by Gimp
3. MS Office replaced by Open Office
4. MS Outlook replaced by Thunderbird
5. Internet Explorer replaced my FireFox
6. IIS replaced by Apache

Those are the only ones that come to mind at the moment. NVU, Gimp, OpenOffice, Thunderbird, FireFox, and Apache can all be run on Windows as well but that isn't the point. The point of the matter is Windows costs money unless you are a pirate, arrrrh! Activating Windows becomes a nuisance after a few re-installs, all of the anti-piracy bullshit MS implements becomes frustrating, "Patch Tuesday" is ridiculous (how often do you need to patch your system anyway?), upgrading to the next Windows release is costly due to the increased hardware specs, and did I mention it costs money? Free is good. Having the support of a community that actually gives a shit is wonderful. The need of not having to run anti-virus software is refreshing. Not having to reboot after installing software is a nice touch as well.

Am I jumping off the MS bandwagon? Not yet. Do I see myself exclusively using Linux as my personal desktop? It is possible. But like I said, MS in an indirect way pays my bills. I still enjoy administrating the Windows environment. But that is my professional life. I don't necessarily want to have the same headaches at home as I have at work. My home computing experience should be pain free. I don't ask for much.

I will keep you all up to date on how it goes. If it goes well I will install Ubuntu on my kids PC as well. Games can be run on Linux by using something called Cedega. Cedega allows you to play Windows games in a Linux environment. I haven't played with it yet but it looks promising and supports a ton of games. So I don't have to worry about my kids video games not working. The only issue with Cedega is it isn't free. It costs $55 a year. There is also Wine which does the same thing and is free and also lets you run MS Office. There are alternatives out there.

Wish me luck as I attempt this.