There is an unending volume of articles that constantly push for Linux to be more competitive with Windows. They advocate to"beat" MS, Linux needs to be bigger, better, faster, prettier, etc, etc...
I question the argument of "beating" MS. I certainly switched to Linux from MS because of
1) Cost, in dollars
2) Freedom, as in, I can install Linux on as many machines a I choose to without violating some ridiculous EULA
3) I a one of those people who believes that people are more important than money.
Number 3 is a big topic. There are lots of people who say they value people over money, there are lots of people who say they don't see the connection, how is an OS about people?
Propriety. That is a word that means one thing. Money. Folks will tell you it means lot's of other things, like "safety" in having a company to to call on or sue if something is wrong with your proprietary product,
It boils down to money. Proprietary meas they use it as an incentive to developers who want to make money off their product for a certain amount of time. They use it as a weapon to fight off other ideas that are similar and maybe better to prevent true competition. They want competition in a way that almost guarantees failure for the new guy unless he has more money to spend in court.
Open source is about people first, money comes in later. People, like to share. People like to get things done. People want to be creative and find new ways to do something without having to have a lawyer nearby to make sure it doesn't step on someone else's "investment".
Money is involved in open source. If I said otherwise, I'd be lying and naive. The difference is, in open source, money is not first. It is not the be-all, end-all of what is done.
In the current market, OS's are about money, sales, so, Linux is seen as competition. whether users pay for it or not, it is being used instead of a paid for proprietary product.
An article I read just recently, complained that Linux cannot legally use proprietary codecs to play media. That's because "almost" everyone in the media market is about money.They don't want you to play their content until they get a dime for each and every time it's used.
There are newer, codecs, opensource codecs for the multimedia formats. Some are just as good, if not better than the proprietary codecs or formats that are available. Until the artists and makers of the media like music, movies, etc, decide they would rather have their art seen by all instead of just paid for by some, They will not change the format they release their material on.
Is it Linux's "fault" that most Linux distributions are not companies with the money to pay the royalties, licensing, etc to allow their users access to those codecs and formats legally? No. It's not what Linux is about. Linux is about options, alternatives, choices. There are some distros that do pay that licensing cost for it's users, Linspire is one that comes to mind and one must pay for their distribution of Linux to have those in there. Nothing wrong with it, if you don't mind paying to use Linux.
All in all, Linux really isn't about competition, it's about computing. Just getting things done. The people who want to market Linux and sell it for money, they can worry about Windows and Apple and whether this one "beats" that one. For those of us just wanting to use a solid system that doesn't cost more than our time and willingness to learn something new, something different, Linus is just fine.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Friday, July 6, 2007
At your service
So many times, especially in Linux forums and "chats" someone will inevitably ask "what's the difference between a server and a desktop?"
Is it the hardware? or the programs on it? what makes a server, a server and a desktop or client not.
First off, a server is a computer that provides specific functions or "services" to other computers on a network. It either stores and distributes information needed by desktops or clients, or acts kind of as a "beacon" in some cases, sending out a signal or stream of info that the others, when set up to receive said stream, can use.
You have many types of services that can be provided. DNS, DHCP, LDAP, NIS, these are specific types of servers for providing networks with access to domain names, IP addresses, a "directory" structure, etc, basic network services.
There are file servers, print servers, authentication services, application servers, and so on. To make a long story short, just about any info or tasks that can be automated and distributed can be a server.
Because a server's role on a network is to provide service and support to the other computers on a network, a server needs to be stable, secure and reliable. It is because of that, servers are treated entirely different from a "regular" desktop or client computer.
Security is one of the primary concerns next to stability. It does no one any good if the server is constantly being disrupted or stopped because someone decided to play a game on the server and crash the machine.
Servers need to be kept isolated from "regular" usage so as to minimize accidental and intentional disruptions. You will see many, many servers have no monitors of their own, maybe not even keyboards. They are also kept in a confined area and locked up, all just to keep them from being used incorrectly.
Stability is the number one point of interest in a server. It is the reason the actual machines are made to be different for a server. They need to focus on storage and RAM more than anything else.
Of course, faster processing is a key point, as a server performs many more tasks than a desktop. So a computer made for the purpose of being a server is going to very often be more expensive due to it's extra resources and hardware provided.
You can however, use a "regular" computer as a server. You may have to "customize" it a bit. add some memory, extra hard drive space ( depending on what the server will be doing ), maybe even a faster processor.
You will be advised to put in as good of a cooling system as possible with fans, etc. Servers run constantly and get VERY hot. Again, depending on what you plan to use your small server for and how many other computers will be accessing it, will impact what you need in regard to resources.
Network administrators are a paranoid bunch. Always checking data and stats. making sure all is kept running smooth as possible.
Many servers will be run only from a command line interface, no GUI at all. This does a few things. it discourages "regular" users, it is often easier to administrate with commands if the admin knows how to use them ( and he/she had better ), It allows during bootup and shutdown to easily see what services are starting and stopping correctly.
Partitioning on a server is also different. both for efficiency and security. where in many Linux distros, you might see only a swap and / (root) partitions, or maybe even add a separate /home partition, a server will likely have upwards of six to ten partitions, taking the items you see in your /root dir, like /usr, /var, boot, etc and giving them their own partitions.
This is as much for being organized as it is security. by "isolating" these areas, a server can be monitored and made changes to more easily. If you've ever heard of a DOS attack, ( Denial of Service ) on a server of website maybe, that directly affects the /var dir. It causes the logs to fill up at a phenomenal rate, consuming all the drive space, shutting down the server eventually. by keeping /var in it's own partition, you can minimize how much space the logs can consume and address the problem easier, hopefully before any more problems can arise.
Servers, if you are trying to set one up, are nothing to be afraid of. they are just a different way of thinking about computers. If you take a little time, get some good notes or books about what you want to do, you can set up a server easily enough.
Is it the hardware? or the programs on it? what makes a server, a server and a desktop or client not.
First off, a server is a computer that provides specific functions or "services" to other computers on a network. It either stores and distributes information needed by desktops or clients, or acts kind of as a "beacon" in some cases, sending out a signal or stream of info that the others, when set up to receive said stream, can use.
You have many types of services that can be provided. DNS, DHCP, LDAP, NIS, these are specific types of servers for providing networks with access to domain names, IP addresses, a "directory" structure, etc, basic network services.
There are file servers, print servers, authentication services, application servers, and so on. To make a long story short, just about any info or tasks that can be automated and distributed can be a server.
Because a server's role on a network is to provide service and support to the other computers on a network, a server needs to be stable, secure and reliable. It is because of that, servers are treated entirely different from a "regular" desktop or client computer.
Security is one of the primary concerns next to stability. It does no one any good if the server is constantly being disrupted or stopped because someone decided to play a game on the server and crash the machine.
Servers need to be kept isolated from "regular" usage so as to minimize accidental and intentional disruptions. You will see many, many servers have no monitors of their own, maybe not even keyboards. They are also kept in a confined area and locked up, all just to keep them from being used incorrectly.
Stability is the number one point of interest in a server. It is the reason the actual machines are made to be different for a server. They need to focus on storage and RAM more than anything else.
Of course, faster processing is a key point, as a server performs many more tasks than a desktop. So a computer made for the purpose of being a server is going to very often be more expensive due to it's extra resources and hardware provided.
You can however, use a "regular" computer as a server. You may have to "customize" it a bit. add some memory, extra hard drive space ( depending on what the server will be doing ), maybe even a faster processor.
You will be advised to put in as good of a cooling system as possible with fans, etc. Servers run constantly and get VERY hot. Again, depending on what you plan to use your small server for and how many other computers will be accessing it, will impact what you need in regard to resources.
Network administrators are a paranoid bunch. Always checking data and stats. making sure all is kept running smooth as possible.
Many servers will be run only from a command line interface, no GUI at all. This does a few things. it discourages "regular" users, it is often easier to administrate with commands if the admin knows how to use them ( and he/she had better ), It allows during bootup and shutdown to easily see what services are starting and stopping correctly.
Partitioning on a server is also different. both for efficiency and security. where in many Linux distros, you might see only a swap and / (root) partitions, or maybe even add a separate /home partition, a server will likely have upwards of six to ten partitions, taking the items you see in your /root dir, like /usr, /var, boot, etc and giving them their own partitions.
This is as much for being organized as it is security. by "isolating" these areas, a server can be monitored and made changes to more easily. If you've ever heard of a DOS attack, ( Denial of Service ) on a server of website maybe, that directly affects the /var dir. It causes the logs to fill up at a phenomenal rate, consuming all the drive space, shutting down the server eventually. by keeping /var in it's own partition, you can minimize how much space the logs can consume and address the problem easier, hopefully before any more problems can arise.
Servers, if you are trying to set one up, are nothing to be afraid of. they are just a different way of thinking about computers. If you take a little time, get some good notes or books about what you want to do, you can set up a server easily enough.
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