the reasons i'm still using windows :(

[psorincatalin]

Hey all,

I want to publicly express my gratitude to the Kubuntu developers which did a fantastic job in 9.04, except for the kde-network-manager that was a complete fiasco (let's just face it, it sucks....i had to search more than 100 websites to solve my "static ip on a wired network" problem so you can imagine the pain i went through). Also, i am looking forward to the 9.10 release...i heard it'll have alot of bugfixes so i keep my fingers crossed.

I have both windows and kubuntu installed on my system and i want to make the final and irreversible transition to kubuntu but there are a few things that make me think twice, so i thought maybe with your help i can become a happy kubuntu user

The first thing is...um...Winamp. I totally love that player and i don't want to use something instead. i'm aware of the alternatives like audacious or xmms which are basically clones. i heard that there's an alpha version of winamp for linux (it's called winamp 3) but it's a .rpm package which is not native kubuntu installation package. i also know that i can convert it to .deb with alien but something gets lost in the process and cannot be installed (i haven't tried it but i did my share of research). so my question is...has anyone tried it, does it work ? is it the same as winamp for windows ? any info regarding to this subject would be greatly appreciated.

The other thing that is keeping me using windows is....Yahoo messenger. i know i can use kopete or pidgin but it's not the same thing. like for example, for msn messenger there are amsn and kmsn so i'm interested if there are such alternatives to the yahoo messenger (i also want file sharing, webcam and voice to work)

thanks !

[Pillage Idiot]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

Pleased to hear that you are getting on well with the penguin.
I know exactly what you mean about winamp; it was my all time favourite media player as well, and is still in heavy use on my lounge pc.
However, I now find it clunky and at times frustrating since switching to KDE about three years ago and discovering amarok.
Now I can't wait for the KDE on windows project to mature so that I can run it on the windows machines that I have to use.

As far as winamp goes, I have heard a lot of reports that it runs very well in wine, but cannot personally verify that.
Yahoo messenger may well also run in wine.
Skype for linux also has good webcam support and full IM functionality. Obviously being built for voice that is the primary focus.

[GreyGeek]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

Many Linux users are FORCED to keep Windows around either under a VM or in dual boot mode. I switched totally to Linux on Jan 1, 2000 and it was my only OS until March of 2004, when a long time friend gave me an offer I couldn't refuse in exchange for writing a fly-by-wire system for a new kind of tractor he was inventing. I needed Windows because the IQAN dev tool was available only for Windows. Four years later it was complete, after literally dozens of redesigns and and experimentation. (Blazing new trails is not easy.)

For a year afterwards I kept Windows on in case he needed more changes, but he didn't. So, this Feb, I scrubbed VISA off of this notebook and replaced it with Kubuntu.


Someone else mentioned Skype. I have EXCELLENT results using Skype .... video, sound, chat, file transfer, and I have added every phone number in my cell phone to Skype's directory. I have also purchased minutes on Skype and can talk to any phone in the world for 2 cents per minute (for those folks who do not have a computer with Skype, which is always a free connect).


One word of caution about Skype. The Skype corp does NOT have its own servers. What it does is install a "Skype Supernode" on Skype users who have big bandwidths. The Supernode can be a hog and take up to 1/3 of your bandwidth. So, DO NOT leave Skype setting in your system tray. When you are done using it close it completely. On Windows Skype has a setting which disables the supernode, but the setting is missing in the Linux version (probably because Linux can take a MUCH heavier load than Windows). Since Skype is free to download and free for Skype to Skype connections it would make an excellent replacement for Yahoo and such.

[dastasha]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

I must admit I was a little disappointed with 9.04 and what happened with knetwork manager.
Enough so to go back to 8.10 which works perfectly for me.

I must say though when I discovered VLC player I didn't use winamp any more after that. It was one of the first things I went looking for when I moved over to Linux. It plays just about anything. And its simple - there's no bloat.

I've just started toying with Vbox - I don't really need windows - I just wanted to see if I could set up a virtual machine. Windows works so much better this way - no hardware - and I really don't want to connect to the outside world with it

[olembe]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

GreyGeek makes a really interesting point about people being forced to keep Windows around. It's interesting because as with the software GreyGeek mentions, it tends often to be the specialist applications, rather than the everyday apps, that force us to use Windows.

As the excellent Linux Alternatives website shows, there are great Linux programs available for most common uses. But I have to keep a copy of Windows going for (a) a specialist map program, which is Windows-only and (b) a specialist sound-processing program, again Windows only. The more specialised the program, the less likely it seems there will be a Linux alternative because small companies who need to develop a software package understandably do it for the dominant platform.

What we perhaps need is for companies producing their own specialized programs to start using something like Adobe Air, which would make Windows/Mac/Linux versions quite easy for a single program.

[andybleaden]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

Well I have no windows at all at home and have not missed it in the slightest mainly because it was because some of the programmes were so bleedin awful that I changed.

However I still have to use a windows pc for work except for when I can run pen drive live kubuntu ( bit tight about usbs here because of virus scares- telling them this will not run windows virus fall on deaf ears)

As for winamp I am afraid I never warmed to it or any player in windows for many reasons but switched immediately to Amarok.

As for IM I never used any other provider whilst on windows except ICQ. After I switched I needed other accounts which i did via kopete. At work I had to use a one size fits all windows im programme Trillian) Now I just use Kopete but do not use IM that much

As for network manager...mine works fine as far as I know

[Detonate]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

i had to search more than 100 websites to solve my "static ip on a wired network" problem

And the solution was right here all the time.

http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3100052.0

[psorincatalin]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

i've tried that and for some strange reason it didn't work

[sxeptomaniac]

Re: the reasons i'm still using windows

Yes, the kde-network-manager is useless in most cases. I installed Wicd instead and it works great. It's not like I have to use KDE apps for everything.