[CONFESSION MODE] The more I work with computers and software, the more appreciation I get for Microsoft and it's Windows OS.[/CONFESSION MODE]. There: I said it. And you know what: I really mean it...
So what triggered this confession? Well, I have some new (old) hardware since this weekend (Friday night) that I try to turn into a dual boot server running XP and Ubuntu (yeah again: Ubuntu). The hardware is an old Pentium III that runs at 866Mhz with 640mb ram (133mHz ECC), has a Elsa Gladiac Nvidia MX200 videocard with 64mb and a DVD rom and CD-rom player. Nothing fancy there, nothing weird. Except it has a 250gb harddisk. Well, knowing that I want to run Linux and Windows dual boot, you start with installing Windows first, then install Linux and just let Grub do it's work dual booting the stuff.
So I installed Windows Professional within 50 minutes (it takes that long because the hardware isn't exactly that spanking new) and it recognized all the hardware except the wireless PCI network card (some old SMC card). It runs like a breeze. Now, I partioned the 250gb into two partitions at first: one 45gb for XP and the rest for Linux. After I did some updating and installed the usual stuff you need on Windows (a real firewall and a decent virusscanner), I proceeded to install Ubuntu 6.06. After the usuall yada yada it started to take about another 50 minutes installing all the packages etc. and finally I could reboot the server yeah! Then I'm staring at a black screen with green letters:
GRUB Loading stage1.5.
GRUB loading, please wait...
Error 18
Big sigh...
So what is this 'Error 18'? Why not just say what really is the problem? Like: "Hello no, I don't want to boot from this shabby harddisk" or even: "Sorry I could not boot because you made a mistake while installing me, you dumbass". No, instead I get a nice, geeky, non-helpfull 'error 18'. Thank God for Google: one second later I learn that this error is caused because I put a 250gb harddisk in an old computer and it's BIOS is reporting it with a wrong size and Linux can't handle that.
Rrrright. Linux can't handle it? WTF? XP can handle it so why not the latest Ubuntu! XP never complained about "error 18" and basically told me to shove my harddisk where the sun doesn't shines. No, XP just installed an booted like I expected. So why would the latest "spanking new, shiny" Ubuntu complain about it?
I don't get it. Linux, trying to pretend it's ready for the desktop, won't even run proper on 5 year old hardware!
So that's what I meant when i said: I admire Microsoft. In all the 10 years that I have used Windows, it did mostly what I wanted. Just work. Linux on the other hand, is just picky when it comes to running. It might or it might not run. I have been messing with Linux since SuSE 6. I figured myself to be more or less an expert because installing Linux used to be one heck of an adventure. With each new distribution it became better (there are even live Linux versions that run of a CD, like Knoppix, something that Windows still can't) and now it should be a breeze to install.
Uh, well, more or less. Somehow I always run into the same set of trouble: either they do not recognize my videocard (if I just upgraded it, it usually is too new), my Soundblaster 16 soundcard cause problems with Alsa, my ISDN usb-apdator and last but not least my TV-card.
Windows never complains. It just runs and installs. And if it doesn't recognize hardware, it still boots and runs and you can download a driver somewhere and just install that in minutes. Ever since XP came on the market I have hardly had any problems whatsoever; no blue screens of death, instability etc.. Actually my webserver is damn stable too (it's Apache that crashes mostly). In short: my XP has a better trackrecord so far than Linux.
And here is something else: Mac people always brag about their OS X and how stable it is etc.. Heck: I use OS X and have a PowerBook G4. But here is the difference: OS X only runs on Mac hardware.
Windows can be run on so many different combinations of hard- and software it's almost a wonder it works at all. Just think about all the different videocards, motherboards, chipsets, soundcards, webcams, etc. etc. out there. And XP just works in 99% of all the case.
What about Apple? Well, you can't even buy an Apple clone. And believe me: controlling your OS on hardware that you pick yourself as a manufacturer is a lot easier.
So all in all a PC and Windows is just more impressive. No matter what people say or complain about it.
And me? Well I'm giving Linux one more chance cause I love the geek factor and, more important: I want a Linux webserver.
