There's a big debate about Windows vs. Linux, but I think most people versed in the issue acknowledge that Linux has obvious advantages over Windows — most notably security and stability (My Linux server at home had been up for about 180 days until the UPS failed during a power outage last week. We've got Linux machines at work with uptimes of 885 days). I don't think that most people who choose Windows do so because they actually believe Windows is superior to Linux in aspects like those — it's just that Linux's downsides (difficult to configure, more geeky knowledge needed, incompatibility with a lot of hardware due to no manufacturer support, etc.) are enough to outweigh its benefits.

I'm no stranger to Linux and would never use Windows by choice on a server, but until now I've stuck with Windows XP on my desktop and laptop at home because I haven't found a version of Linux that was polished enough to make me happy as a fulltime desktop OS. I read some glowing recommendations of Ubuntu Linux a few days ago, praising it because it "just works". It sounded hopeful, so I gave it a try, and I'm very impressed. It's the first Linux distro I've tried that I think non-nerds could actually use happily.

It really does "just work". As a test I installed it on my laptop, and it automatically detected and configured everything — even the things that have always required hours of fiddling in other versions of Linux, like the wireless ethernet, hibernation/standby, and the screen resolution. It seems to be just as GUI-configurable as Windows — you dont have to touch a terminal if you dont want to, though of course you always have the full power of command-line Linux at your disposal if you want it.

And it's pretty! Maybe not quite Apple-pretty, but it has the same feeling of aesthetics being just as important as functionality.

It is Linux and not Windows, so it would take some getting used to for anyone making the switch from Windows, but that's the case with any operating system. Learning Windows or OSX is no different. No computer is truly intuitive — ask your grandfather as he tries to check his email. The test of usability for me is how much things make sense once you've learned the 'lay of the land' on that OS.

I decided to try installing it on my main desktop PC to see what difficulties I encounter with normal, everyday use, and whether I can find ways to accomplish those tasks in Linux. One of the things that most concerned me was doing all my scanning and photo editing, but it turns out that Epson offers full Linux support for its scanners and printers, so that should be no problem. Aside from games (which I play so rarely that I don't mind rebooting into Windows to play), I think the only real problem will be Photoshop. There is no Linux version of Photoshop, and I've tried to get comfortable with the open-source alternative, The GIMP, but just don't like it.

There is a Windows emulator for Linux called Wine, so I'll try running Photoshop in Linux with that. At first I didn't put too much hope in that solution, but then I came across an article talking about Disney's move to Linux. Its artists didn't like The GIMP, so the company contributed $15,000 to the open-source community to improve Wine to adequately run Photoshop: "Brooks said it took some time to convince Disney attorneys that he wanted to pay for the development of the porting solution but did not want to own it." If Wine is now good enough to run Photoshop to the satisfaction of Disney's art department, then that solution might be quite workable. We'll see.

If it doesn't work out, it may be a significant impediment. I use Photoshop often enough that rebooting into Windows for it isn't feasible. Photoshop does run in OS X, so I may just have to stick with Windows until I can afford to buy a Mac. Wow. "Buy a Mac." I never thought I'd utter those words — at least, not without a prefix of "I'll scoff at your corpse forever if you..."