[Wormsie]

I'm just interested in what operating systems people use here.

I've started using Linux almost exclusively as of this summer. Ubuntu Linux, to be precise. I dislike the sound of the name, but it's very popular, and no wonder why: the basic install takes only one CD, but it has pretty good stability and usability when compared to other Linux distributions. I tried SUSE and it was just way too BIG, five CDs, contained all those features Windows had that I wanted to get rid of (and had made up a few of its own), and was very, very slow.

The main reason I wanted to eave WIndows was that everything had suddenly become so slow, and I wanted to simplify things. For everyday tasks I find Linux surprisingly easier, better-looking and faster than Windows ever was. (Of course getting to know the peculiarities of Unix in the form of a light two-week university course was an important factor in me being able to switch without too much pain.)

I just wish all my favorite adventure games were somehow playable in Linux as well. ScummVM supports many oldies, and AGS games can be played in Linux as well. DOSbox might take care of The Last Express and other DOS games. But for Gabriel Kight 3 and Grim Fandango I still need Windows (or I could also try a Windows emulator in Linux, but that would ). And when it comes to Grim, there's always the possibility of Residual being released...

But as I rarely play adventure games these days, that's not much of an issue. :p

[Tobbe]

I mostly use Windows XP, but like you, I have also tried Ubuntu, I use Wmware, an operating emulator, and on that I got Ubuntu installed, and I must say I like it. For those of you who want to try Ubuntu, go to their website: www.ubuntu.com, there you can get the cd, they send it worldwibe without any cost.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Windows XP. Because I really don't give a h00t, my life's complicated enough as it is to worry about it.

[Mattsius]

100% WinXP for me these days. That's mainly because I have no need whatsoever for another OS. WinXP is the first Windows version ever that is actually stable AND on which you can play your games. Linux can't play all the games I like and moving over to Linux would involve learning a lot of new stuff which takes time. And I don't have free time to put down on stuff like that anymore. At least for the moment speed is not an issue either since my computer is quite new.

I will possibly move over to Win Vista next year though, depends on how it turns out. Oh, and I also have used WMware somewhat. My plan is to run dos on it and play old adventure games that way.

[Huz]

I should have voted for Linux as well as Windows XP. Whoopsie-do. However, I only use Linux as a networked command-line unix environment on an ancient computer, mostly for PHP and Apache and MySQL.

Linux is such a dreadful mish-mash of interfaces, ideals and aims that using it as a desktop OS causes terrible amounts of pain for virtually no reward. I'd much rather take Windows' ease-of-use and massive software portfolio on the desktop, and leave the more hardcore offerings of Linux as a separate and lesser-used entity. Linux has its place, but it's not in front of me on a daily basis.

[RLacey]

Windows XP only, though I keep meaning to install Windows 98 one day for the odd game that doesn't like XP or DOSBox.

Oh, I also have one of the Windows Mobile versions on my PocketPC. I don't know whether that counts or not.

[Squinky]

I'm exclusively XP right now (since I mainly use computers for making and playing games), though I used to use Linux as my primary desktop OS circa 2003 or so. I rather like Ubuntu even though it uses Gnome instead of KDE, but haven't touched it in a while, mainly because I can run all my favourite open-source programs on Windows anyway.

[Aj_]

WinXP/Ubuntu.

I'm anoyed at Linux because after numerous attempts I can't get XGL to work on my PC, fustratingly I believe this to be a driver issue, the computer hard boots. I like Ubuntu because it has a nice clean interface without modifying it like I had to with Windows, Debian packages rock, Automatix rocks, and you don't have to load the GUI if you don't want to. Given a choice I used KDE for a few years, but when I switched to Ubuntu, I tried Kubuntu, and it wasn't good.


Windows XP boots faster, runs faster, and is as stable as Ubuntu/Linux. Although to be fair I have printed out almost 50 pages of tweaks and 10 different applications to get Windows like that, my Ubuntu install has no tweaks.

[tabacco]

XP on my main desktops at work and at home, OS X on my laptop and my Mac Mini, and linux on my SGI box and on this web server. Woo.

[pinkgothic]

I cheated a bit and voted (amongst other things) for Windows Vista because I'm unbudgably going to get it.

Other than that, I use Windows 2000 on my laptop and Windows 98 SE on my PC.

Sadly, my PC is very broken by now, and has aged considerably - Win 98 just doesn't deal with repeated Installation and Uninstallation of, um... junk... very well. 98 is still in fond memory because it's served me so well for several years, but (truthfully) these days I don't really use my PC anymore, because it's too broken, and I can't objectively say anything good about 98. Call my fondness nostalgia. Anyway, I'm keeping my PC around until BoyToy and I get ourselves some NAS, then I'll migrate all my files and say goodbye.

Windows 2000 has a few quirks (especially with knowing what folders you've close and what folders you haven't closed over several Hibernation sessions), but all in all, I've learnt to love it.

Windows just continues to be what I want - even if the ultimate irony is that I navigate it 95%ly with my keyboard, rather than mouse. What I like most about Windows is that you can move just about everything around like you want it to. At the moment I have my taskbar at the bottom of my screen like any sane person, and two extra row bars at the top filled with program icons for quick access. I only just set that up three days ago, mind, I may end up hating it, but I find it fawesome I can do that.

I'm very easily pleased.

I can't stand Linux for several reasons, but - it's a solely personal dislike. It doesn't like me, quite clearly; and I don't like it. It's mutual, so yay.

One thing I've found about Linux is that it may be a lot of things, but it's hella ugly (visually) in any version I've seen so far (I'm basing my opinion particularly on KDE and gnome). But I acknowledge beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Additionally, when working with kde/XP on university computers... XP was usually faster. Don't ask me why, or if it makes sense; it probably doesn't; but those are details that've contributed to me simply not liking Linux.

Yadda, yadda, I talk too much! It's my personal decision. Not to mention I like rooting for the underdog (spare yourself the outcry about this statement; it is the underdog OS amongst intellectuals, and thus what I perceive). I'm actually still waiting with baited breath for the obligatory anti-Windows rant to spawn in this thread.

[undeaf]

Just suse 10.1. Cause I'm too lazy to put a lot of effort into setting stuff up or maintaining stuff.

[rlpw]

200/XP/Linux

I use Windows XP on 1 Pc, Win2000 on my kids PC, and I use Knoppix Live CD 5.0.1 on both of them from time to time, just to keep in practice. I love the KDE desktop cause for some reason the Gnome leaves me cold. And I love the use of a live CD so I do not have to partition the hard drive. Trust me I got the HD packed full of enough crap!

[kuze]

Windows 2000 is fast and stable, it has been my PC OS of choice for years. In search for the perfect desktop environment I tried enhancing 2000 with desktop shells like Litestep, but kept switching back to default -- the majority of Litestep modules are just too unstable.

I only used Ubuntu as a server I ssh'd into - Gnome as well as KDE is slow, ugly and I don't find them userfriendly at all -- I agree with pinkgothic here. Linux is just not made for PCs sitting under one's desk. My favorite desktop for VNCing into Ubuntu was Xfce - same attributes as the above but faster.

Mac OS X is running on my iBook, in terms of starting up applications it is pretty slow, but has the best desktop environment of all.

[Melanie68]

Use daily and they made it in the poll:

• Computer in grad student office - Windows 2000
• Laptop at home - Windows XP

Other OS's I have but don't use often:

• Windows ME (on my old laptop and it works great for older games)
• Windows 3.1/DOS (on an old PC that I believe still has a 5.25" floppy drive that I need to dig out for old, old games even though DOS Box works for those, it'd be kind of fun).

[Lee in Limbo]

XP Pro for now. Hoping that, in the next few years, I'll be able to safely dodge the bullet of having to buy Vista because Adobe finally figures out that Open Source really is the future, and the rest of the graphics industry follows suit.

[rlpw]

Originally Posted by Lee in Limbo

XP Pro for now. Hoping that, in the next few years, I'll be able to safely dodge the bullet of having to buy Vista because Adobe finally figures out that Open Source really is the future, and the rest of the graphics industry follows suit.

Dream
The impossible dream!!
And everything is open source, from a certain point of view. After all, they had to write it in some source code didn't they.

[pinkgothic]

Originally Posted by rlpw

And everything is open source, from a certain point of view.

If you know Assembly, sure.
Like me. Muhahaha.

pinkgothic

[Jelena]

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

Windows XP. Because I really don't give a h00t, my life's complicated enough as it is to worry about it.

I second Treps words here.

[Jazhara7]

Windows XP. Because I love to hate Windows, and because Windows is evil, but I have never used anything else. Also, I feel that using it gives me the right to publicly complain about it, and people actually having to listen to my complaining. If I wasn't using Windows, my complaining would be quite pointless, I think.


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[Panthera]

Originally Posted by Jazhara7

Windows XP. Because I love to hate Windows, and because Windows is evil, but I have never used anything else. Also, I feel that using it gives me the right to publicly complain about it, and people actually having to listen to my complaining. If I wasn't using Windows, my complaining would be quite pointless, I think.


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Count me in under this argument..