The Linux Revolution: What Happened

Let's check out what's happenning in yonder room. There are two people there, each sitting in front of a computer.

One's running Linux, and the other is running Windows.

Which is which? They both have screens filled with very similar eye-candy and they both have a mouse in their right hands.

They are both watching movies, listening to music (or downloading either), or playing video games or shopping or babbling inanities on "chat rooms" or with IM.

You can't tell which is which by just watching them, without knowing one or the other OS very well indeed. And the differences that can be perceived from "over their shoulders" are superficial.

Let's look deeper:

One difference is that the Linux box is somewhat more secure and stable than the Windows box, although the Windows box is still up and running well most of the time.

The Windows OS cost more than the Linux box, but most people still pay for Linux, some more than others.

But the Windows box does do a better job, by-and-large, at these mindless entertainment programs, with their Linux clones usually lagging behind in time and perforance.

This is what the Linux Revolution has come to for most people: Trying like hell to become just like Windows.

It's a crying shame. An utter travesty.

What do the rest of the Linux people do? Use the Computer-Internet as the most incredible information sharing tool has ever existed, rather than as a virtual shopping mall.

They learn about the world and its staggering challenges, and discuss solutions. This is very entertaining. And it is also hard work. You have to study and think.

When they want to watch a movie, they turn on their televisions, rent a video, or go to a theatre. When they want to play games, they call some friends, grab a frisbee, and go to the park, or find someone to play board or card games with. Real people.

When they want to listen to music, they turn on the FM radio, where they can find every style of music that exists, in hi-fidelity, and record whatever they want to record for later. Or they play musical instruments with their friends or go to concerts and other live performances.

When they want to talk to someone, just for company, they find a real person to talk to. Or use their telephone, which is a lot more intimate and rewarding than a "chat room" or IM.

If the Linux runner in that room had been of the non-Windows-Wannabee sort, you'd be able to tell the difference in the two with no problem at all.

The Linux runner would be typing, not clicking a mouse, and most of the time the screen would be filled with plain text on a simple background.

Oh, there'd be a lot of images too, but they wouldn't be eye-candy, and you wouldn't see any videos or hear any music coming from their computer.

All three of these consume incredible amounts of bandwidth and system resources which in turn demand greater amounts of hardware (mining-refining-manufacturing-distributing-storing-construction) and energy, which in turn do un-necessary harm to an environment already under serious stress.

The idea that the Computer-Internet is somehow non-physical and doesn't impact the environment, is simply ludicrous. But a lot of people cling to that delusion with great tenacity.

Then there's the fact that the bandwidth of the Internet, which is tied to a very phsycal infrstructure, is finite, and when a minority of the world's population hog most of it for their mindless entertainment and crbutt commercialism, others around the world are left out. They do without a connection at all so that a bunch of mindless consumers can have a high-speed connection.

Once again: a crying shame. A travesty. Linux should have nothing to do with it.

It should be DIFFERENT than Windows, not struggling to be just like it.

Otherwise, what is the f***ing POINT!?

AC

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