Linux is a "UNIX-like" operating system first developed by Linus Torvalds, a 21 year old Finnish software engineer, in 1991. It is one of the most well-known examples of open-source and free software. From the beginning, Linus made the source code for his operating available to the community of developers, and since then, the Linux operating system and kernel are often used as a prime example of the benefits of open-source community development.

Linux
MSRP$0.00
Release date August, 1991
Brand--
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Pros & Cons22
Reviews25
Details
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Competitors6
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Pros & Cons

ProSCORE
24 reviews
74
negative
mixed
positive
18 positive
1 mixed
5 negative

[i] How is the ProSCORE calculated?

show me!

Pros:
Do you agree?
•
Free and open-source
+18agreedisagree

•
Strong developer community
+16agreedisagree

•
Enterprise-class server operating system
+15agreedisagree

•
Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
+15agreedisagree

•
Stable platform with long uptimes
+15agreedisagree

•
Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
+14agreedisagree

•
Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)
+13agreedisagree

•
no one company is responsible for Linux
+5agreedisagree

•
Many distributions exist, giving a large amount of choice depending on its intended use
+4agreedisagree

•
Available with commercial support in addition to communities
+2agreedisagree

•
Development supported by strongest IT companies like Red Hat, Novell, IBM, etc, gives warranty in quality
+2agreedisagree

•
Fast growing applications, fast development
+2agreedisagree

•
Oriented to user experience and needs, not bound to commercial income only, finally users get what they order to develop
+1agreedisagree

•
Much easier to install than competitive products
0agreedisagree

Cons:
Do you agree?
•
Most Windows programs aren't available in Linux versions
+11agreedisagree

•
Not all hardware is readily supported.
+11agreedisagree

•
driver stability - many drivers are just ports of windows drivers
0agreedisagree

•
Considerably harder to install and configure than competing products
0agreedisagree

•
Poor support from hardware manufacturers, few machines come with full Linux support.
0agreedisagree

•
Delivers illusion of perfect security to non-power-users resulting in comparatively 'reckless' behavior of unaware users.
-1agreedisagree

•
Difficult to learn and install
-2agreedisagree

•
No one company is responsible for Linux
-10agreedisagree


26 people added to this review by submitting or voting on pros and cons. Add your say!
See individual votes »

Details

Uses

Linux is most popular used as a server operating system, and in embeddable systems. The stable, customizable, and free nature of Linux make it an ideal choice often in these cases. Many web servers run on Linux, with a LAMP (Linux-Apache-MySQL-PHP) setup being the most common.

Distributions

There are many distributions and variations of the Linux Kernel. Many of the distributions are customized to specific applications and are often made to have a more familiar UI. Debian, Ubuntu, Red Hat, Gentoo, and SUSE are five of the most common distributions of the Linux Kernel.

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This report was started November 19, 2007 at 1:46 pm by Jan
with the last edit occurring March 7, 2010 at 9:35 am by Yale
This page has been viewed 766 times, with 328 edits by 41 contributors.
See the full report history »

Buy It

Competitors

Linux is ranked 3rd among it's competitors.  See the top picks in Operating Systems »
Mac OS X Snow Leopard

Mac OS X Snow Leopard

MSRP  $29.00    Released  September, 2009
Pros
  • affordable to upgrade to compared to previous version of OSX
  • faster then X.5
  • Finally a release that tidies up the plumbing rather then just adding features and bloat
Cons
  • no longer supported on older PPC-based Apple hardware
  • only usable on proprietary Apple hardware
  • Making a fresh install over pre-X.5 systems from the 29.00 upgrade violates the ULA.
ProSCORE
11 reviews
70
Vote! (3 votes)
vote Linux 33% vs. vote Mac OS X Snow Leopard 67%
FreeBSD

FreeBSD

MSRP  $0.00    Released  January, 2010
ProSCORE
0 reviews
N/A
Vote! (2 votes)
vote Linux 50% vs. vote FreeBSD 50%
Apple Mac OS X

Apple Mac OS X

MSRP  $129.00    Released  March, 2001
Pros
  • Good looking
  • Easy to use
  • no oppressive product validation
Cons
  • Not as many applications/games available compared to Microsoft Windows
  • only works on Apple hardware
  • Cannot be virtualized
ProSCORE
17 reviews
76
Vote! (7 votes)
vote Linux 57% vs. vote Apple Mac OS X 43%
Microsoft Windows 7

Microsoft Windows 7

MSRP  --    Released  October, 2009
Pros
  • Improved memory management takes up less RAM than Vista
  • Revamped taskbar that can combine running programs and hide labels - 3 options how it is done
  • Better supported 64-bit architecture
Cons
  • This is what Vista should have been, and we will get to pay for an 'upgrade'
  • Seriously overpriced
  • still #1 targeted os for viruses/trojans/phishers
ProSCORE
66 reviews
74
Vote! (5 votes)
vote Linux 60% vs. vote Microsoft Windows 7 40%
Microsoft Windows

Microsoft Windows

MSRP  --    Released  January, 2009

Microsoft Windows is the name of several families of software operating systems by Microsoft. Microsoft first introduced an operating environment named Windows in November 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs). Microsoft Windows eventually came to dominate the world's personal computer market, overtaking Mac...

ProSCORE
1 review
0
Vote! (6 votes)
vote Linux 67% vs. vote Microsoft Windows 33%
Microsoft Windows XP

Microsoft Windows XP

MSRP  --    Released  --
Pros
  • Good driver support - lots of drivers even for oblique and legacy hardware
  • backwards compatible; very good gaming platform
  • Stable
Cons
  • Programs aren't isolated from one another, so one can take down the whole OS
  • File system Fragments
  • Poor security out of the box
ProSCORE
37 reviews
52
Vote! (2 votes)
vote Linux 100% vs. vote Microsoft Windows XP 0%

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Reviews

Sort by: Most helpful  •  Newest  •  Most positive

fractalhorizon

avatar
March 7, 2010
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
71
negative
mixed
positive
12 pros
5 cons

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)
  • no one company is responsible for Linux
  • Many distributions exist, giving a large amount of choice depending on its intended use
  • Available with commercial support in addition to communities
  • Development supported by strongest IT companies like Red Hat, Novell, IBM, etc, gives warranty in quality
  • Fast growing applications, fast development

Cons

  • Not all hardware is readily supported.
  • driver stability - many drivers are just ports of windows drivers
  • Considerably harder to install and configure than competing products
  • Poor support from hardware manufacturers, few machines come with full Linux support.
  • Difficult to learn and install

Competitors

fractalhorizon prefers Apple Mac OS X, Mac OS X Snow Leopard, FreeBSD over Linux
fractalhorizon prefers Linux over Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows XP
Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

George Machitidze

avatar
February 7, 2010
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
100
negative
mixed
positive
14 pros
0 cons
love itlove it
have ithave it

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)
  • no one company is responsible for Linux
  • Many distributions exist, giving a large amount of choice depending on its intended use
  • Available with commercial support in addition to communities
  • Development supported by strongest IT companies like Red Hat, Novell, IBM, etc, gives warranty in quality
  • Fast growing applications, fast development
  • Oriented to user experience and needs, not bound to commercial income only, finally users get what they order to develop
  • Much easier to install than competitive products

Cons

Did not agree with any cons

Competitors

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

lonehunter

avatar
January 4, 2009
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
58
negative
mixed
positive
7 pros
5 cons

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)

Cons

  • Most Windows programs aren't available in Linux versions
  • Not all hardware is readily supported.
  • driver stability - many drivers are just ports of windows drivers
  • Difficult to learn and install
  • No one company is responsible for Linux

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

onepuff

avatar
February 7, 2010
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
91
negative
mixed
positive
10 pros
1 con

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)
  • no one company is responsible for Linux
  • Many distributions exist, giving a large amount of choice depending on its intended use
  • Oriented to user experience and needs, not bound to commercial income only, finally users get what they order to develop

Cons

  • Delivers illusion of perfect security to non-power-users resulting in comparatively 'reckless' behavior of unaware users.

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

Darkstriker

avatar
March 9, 2009
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
64
negative
mixed
positive
7 pros
4 cons

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)

Cons

  • Most Windows programs aren't available in Linux versions
  • Not all hardware is readily supported.
  • Delivers illusion of perfect security to non-power-users resulting in comparatively 'reckless' behavior of unaware users.
  • Difficult to learn and install

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

dialupinternetuser

avatar
March 9, 2009
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
70
negative
mixed
positive
7 pros
3 cons
have ithave it
love itlove it

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)

Cons

  • Most Windows programs aren't available in Linux versions
  • Not all hardware is readily supported.
  • Delivers illusion of perfect security to non-power-users resulting in comparatively 'reckless' behavior of unaware users.

Competitors

dialupinternetuser prefers Linux over Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X
Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

jenniiiiiifer

avatar
July 16, 2008
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
70
negative
mixed
positive
7 pros
3 cons
love itlove it
want itwant it

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)

Cons

  • Most Windows programs aren't available in Linux versions
  • Not all hardware is readily supported.
  • driver stability - many drivers are just ports of windows drivers

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

lazychris2000

avatar
November 2, 2009
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
100
negative
mixed
positive
9 pros
0 cons
have ithave it
love itlove it

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)
  • no one company is responsible for Linux
  • Many distributions exist, giving a large amount of choice depending on its intended use

Cons

Did not agree with any cons

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

Yale

avatar
March 10, 2009
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
89
negative
mixed
positive
8 pros
1 con
love itlove it
have ithave it

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)
  • no one company is responsible for Linux

Cons

  • Most Windows programs aren't available in Linux versions

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

mattthegreat

avatar
December 27, 2008
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
78
negative
mixed
positive
7 pros
2 cons
love itlove it

Pros

  • Free and open-source
  • Strong developer community
  • Enterprise-class server operating system
  • Easily modified to be used in embedded systems
  • Stable platform with long uptimes
  • Designed for multiple users because of UNIX roots
  • Spawned many variations and distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.)

Cons

  • Most Windows programs aren't available in Linux versions
  • Not all hardware is readily supported.

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No
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