
 |
|
June 17, 2013
June 12, 2013
Stephanie Hanes: Little girls or little women? The Disney princess effect
Fred Weir: In tweak to US, Russia would 'consider' asylum for Snowden
June 10, 2013
The Kosher Gourmet by Anjali Prasertong: A tart filling so good it might not make it to the crust
June 5, 2013
John Rosemond: Mom, Dad: Talk More and listen less
Kristen Chick: Egypt court sentences 43 pro-democracy workers to prison
June 3, 2013
Molly Hennessy-Fiske: Military judge to consider letting Fort Hood shooting defendant represent himself
May 29, 2013
Andrew Connelly and Helene Bienvenu: The Little Synagogue that Refused to Die
May 24, 2013
Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb: When I didn't so 'humbly disagree'
May 22, 2013
John Thorne:
They launched the 'Arab Spring' but now yearn for the good old days of a strongman
May 20, 2013
Richard A. Serrano: Is Meir Kahane's assassin now a changed man?
Melissa Healy: Genetic copies of living people from embryos no longer science fiction
Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Jews Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame; Anton Yelchin co-stars in New "Trek" film; Kutcher (but not Kunis) visits Israel; Jewish TV Star Praises Jewish Rap Star
The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: WARNING: This WALNUT CAKE WITH PRALINE FROSTING, perfect for afternoon coffee, is addicting
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Oct. 23, 2009
/ 5 Mar-Cheshvan 5770
The world has changed?
By
Mark Kellner
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Just how important are computer operating systems, anyway?
We're going to get an indication. Yesterday, Microsoft Corp. launched Windows 7, the successor to the much-maligned
Windows Vista, and what many critics believe is the replacement for Windows XP that
Vista should have been. Oh, and XP is exactly eight years "old," as of next
Sunday, that is, and that's kind of old.
In late August, Apple Inc. launched Snow Leopard, which has had a good reception
among users and critics. I've reviewed Snow Leopard and shall review Windows 7 in
due course. My early impressions of Win7 are positive, however.
That said, I again ask the question: Just how important is the operating system?
For many of us, it's not that important: as long as one's computer boots up and
functions, and work can be done, we're happy. Adding new applications, or new
versions of older applications, can require an OS upgrade, but then again, many of
us find ourselves quite happy with one level of software and can stay there. (I
can't imagine that the late William F. Buckley, Jr., however much he enjoyed
computing, was hanging around Costco store waiting for the next release of either an
OS or a productivity suite.)
But just as Moore's Law notes that "the number of transistors that can be placed
inexpensively on an integrated circuit has doubled approximately every two years,"
as Wikipedia records it, operating systems and applications grow more capable every
year or so. And if you can do more with a computer, why wouldn't you want to?
All this bumps up against practical matters of cost, however. Windows 7 upgrades are
being advertised for as much as $199 a pop, depending on the version you buy. Snow
Leopard was a comparative bargain at $29.99 a copy, but it also runs only on Macs
that have Intel processors: if you have a somewhat older Mac, you were either out of
luck or off to buy a new machine.
Is there an alternative to all this? Quite possibly, and its name is Linux.
Specifically, Ubuntu Linux, of which a new release, version 9.10, is expected on
Oct. 29. The nice thing about Ubuntu is that it's really free: just download a
disc image at www.ubuntu.com, burn a CD or DVD, and you're ready to install it on
a computer near you. (Ubuntu will work on Intel-based computers; PowerPC-based
machines can find some new life with a Linux distribution called Debian, available
at debian.org.)
I've not played with 9.10 yet, but I have used the most recent "stable"
release, Ubuntu 9.04. It's a very nice operating system: graphical, easy to learn,
and equipped, out of the gate, with a Web browser, e-mail client, productivity
suite, and similar items. It loaded - in a virtualization mode - on my system
without crashing the main OS, and it ran well. I could connect to the Internet
without hassle, and thus had a world of options open to me.
The "rub" here is whether and how something such as Ubuntu and its related
applications will coexist in a Windows world. My sense is they would work quite
well: the productivity suite is OpenOffice.org's "clone" of Microsoft Office,
and OpenOffice lets you "write" files in Microsoft formats. On the net, you
might not have every bell and whistle, but Linux advocate Shannon VanWagner of
ubuntuguide.com and similar Web sites, notes that a Ubuntu player for Hulu's video
streaming service is now available, which is a nice plus.
Those who are devoted to Apple's iTunes, however, will face a more daunting
challenge: to use iTunes under Linux, you need to install a "virtual" Windows XP
system on your computer, or operate in a dual-boot mode where you have both Windows
and Ubuntu running separately. For many, that could be a drawback.
But for straight business applications, Ubuntu as an operating environment is more
than adequate. You can't beat the price, especially in these cost-conscious days!
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Mark Kellner has reported on technology for industry newspapers and magazines since 1983, and has been the computer columnist for The Washington Times since 1991.Comment by clicking here.
Archives
© 2009, News World Communications, Inc. Reprinted with permission of The Washington Times. Visit the paper at http://www.washingtontimes.com
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Christine Flowers
Peter Funt
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
A. Barton Hinkle
Jeff Jacoby
Paul Johnson
John Kass
Jack Kelly
Ch. Krauthammer
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Clarence Page
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Michael Reagan
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Greg Schwem
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Lenore Skenazy
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
Cathy Young
Mort Zuckerman

Eric Allie
Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Nate Beeler
Lisa Benson
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
John Branch
Daryl Cagle
Patrick Chappatte
John Cole
Paul Combs
J. D. Crowe
John Darkow
Bill Day
John Deering
Sean Delonas
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Randall Enos
Mallard Fillmore
David Fitzsimmons
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Walt Handelsman
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
David Horsey
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Mike Keefe
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Chan Lowe
Jimmy Margulies
Gary McCoy
Rick McKee
Jack Ohman
Jeff Parker
Milt Priggee
Michael Ramirez
Rob Rogers
Steve Sack
Bill Schorr
Drew Sheneman
Kevin Siers
David Ray Skinner
Jeff Stahler
Scott Stantis
Danna Summers
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters
Christopher Weyant
Larry Wright
Dan Wasserman
Adam Zyglis

Tech Q&A
Mr. Know-It-All
Ask Doctor K
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|