[KLUG Advocacy] Linux Outpacing Macintosh On Desktops

[Rusty Yonkers]

> 
> Sounds nice, but for the price of hardware. I can put together a
> really cheap PC. I haven't priced Macs recently but I'm pretty sure
> they run a little more.

Well they are really quite inexpensive for what you get.  The basic
iMac where everything is built into the monitor starts at $799.00 and
comes with some great software including iMovie for creating great
movies (wonderful software and easy to use for home users).  The
fancy iMac with the 17" flat panel monitor and a superdrive (dvd
burner, cdrw drive) and software for creating dvds (oh and iMovie
etc.) runs $1,799.00 ($200 cheaper than the gateway that is in the
commercial against the iMac and does not even have a cdrw).  If you
are doing multimedia (which our family loves to do) a properly
configured pc will cost significantly more than a pc when you get
everything put together.

I know that there is some software for creating movies on Linux but I
have tried to use broadcast2000 (now cinelerra) and could not figure
it out.  Being unable to figure out software is something that rarely
happens for me!  I have not been able to find anything else that
comes close to iMovie for Linux yet.  I was able to put together a
really cool video with my kids for a school project (we home school)
and we had iMovie figured out in less than an hour and the whole
project (a 5 minute news program with persons on the street subtitles
outtakes and all) took about another hour to edit.  The only thing we
had not figured out yet was green screen (chromakey).  

> 
> Just out of curiosity, what frustrations do you run into that
> require Windows?

Mainly multimedia stuff.  Video editing is a no go so far.  The sound
on the systems works sometimes and then not others.  Quicktime movies
only work with the crossover plugin and the quicktime for windows
product.  I have yet to get avi movies to play.  I created an
animation on Linux using Blender but had to play it in Windows.  Xine
has yet to run a movie for me.  Just get a black screen and no
response and this on multiple machines.  Midi playback on anything
other than an old isa Awe 64 card is terrible.  I know that
dreamworks uses Linux but they are custom writting all their own
software and I have yet to find anything that is really useable on
the web.  Real audio support is bad.  Streaming mp3 only works as
good as the sound drivers (I have not tried the drivers that you have
to buy but have heard that they are pretty good) which has been
sporadic as I said before.  

I love ipchains and dns and apache and how it works as a server.  I
love openoffice.  So far Galeon is the best web browser but I still
have not been able to get it to open up faster than about 4 minutes
under KDE.  I have used Gnome but miss the themes thing from KDE (I
know that this is more of a whine thing about the themes but hey I
like pretty and easy to make pretty too and Gnome has nothing like
the themes thing in KDE that I have found yet!!!!).  

I even teach Linux and am Linux+ certified and am the condesending
Linux user here at school but sometimes I just want pretty and easy
and with multimedia and am not finding it with the Linux desktop like
I see it in Mac.

Ok .... rant done... I am feeling a little better now....


=====
Rusty Yonkers
CNE, MCP, A+, CCNA, Linux+, Server+ certified
-----------------------------------------
Department of Redundancy Department
-----------------------------------------
Devoted RedHat fan... looking for penguin domination

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