Embrace the Penguin

The most popular operating system in the world is unfortunately not the best in the world. Not the best in usability, compatability, security or reliability. You have choices. You have the ability to make a change for the better. There are sites all over the web that sell you software to fix your Windows operating system. Why? Because it's inherently broken. There is better available and this page will explore that. Like most things here, this is not a discussion aimed at geeks, but at the average user, you.

The funniest thing I ever read about Windows was in a column comparing Windows to Apples' OSX, currently code named "Tiger". "...if you think about sex in terms of Tiger vs. Windows you want the system that says "grrr" and not the one that, having just crashed, kneels at the foot of the bed and promises: "Baby, next time it'll be good. I promise. We don't need to use virus protection -- I got that all fixed, baby. Really, it won't be like last time. ..." " This underscores the sad truth that Microsoft is more interested in selling you the next product they have, irrespective of whether or not it is good.

There are three operating systems being discussed here that are better than XP. They are Windows 2000 Pro, Linux and Apples' OSX which is based on PC-BSD. With the release of Windows Vista and the huge cost of the software, hardware and lack of things that will run with it, people are starting to take a hard look at Microsoft and what they are doing to the computer world. People used to accept the change and expense of upgrading their operating system to a newer one. Not anymore. It has gone way too far over the top.

Some Background

Since Apple invented the GUI in 1983 (Graphical User Interface, or the Windows look we are familiar with today), there has been steady improvement in the look and feel of the desktop. The change from previous versions of Windows to Windows 95 was quite a leap. Unfortunately for the users, Windows 95 wasn't very good. Windows progressed to Windows 98, then Windows 98SE, then Windows ME which MS brought out at the millenium to make some extra cash. Out of these four, Windows 98SE is the only halfway decent one. Microsoft freely admits that Windows ME was an embarrassment.

The Present

Many people say Vista stands for "Virtually Infinite Security Threats Abound". This is sad considering (as of this writing) Vista isn't even out yet. These are IT professionals saying this, not disgruntled users. Most people come to this site to learn about security and fix their computer after viruses and spyware have turned it into a smoldering wreck. Since Windows 2000, the trend has been to become less secure, not more. Security on XP is a joke and Vista looks worse. People blame bad guys for their computer woes, but the real problem is lack of security. If the system was secure, the bad guys wouldn't be able to take advantage.

The present generation of Windows OS software (2000, XP and Vista) is miles ahead of the last bunch, as that bunch was better than the bunch before. Unfortunately again, there is not a linear progression toward better quality, security and usability. The only thing that resembles a linear progression is how pretty the desktop looks and how bloated it is. All things considered, that makes Windows 2000 the best overall Operating System that Microsoft can offer you. It's not the best one around, just the best one Microsoft has. They are also feeling the heat over customer complaints with heavy handedness concerning licensing and the "Big Brother" factor. That is helping to take some momentum out of the MS machine., while making Linux and OSX look more favorable to people who never would have considered switching before.