How Much does WIndows realy cost and Linux alternatices

[Omnios]

K im starting this thread to discuss how Much Windows (all versions) actually cost to use by the end user including popular and must have software. Also windows freeware and Linux comparisons as in free but rated in usability.

First off about 4 or 5 years ago I purchased the WIndows XP Home upgrade for about $160. This was years before I thought of Linux as an alternave. " If I would have known more about linux back then I dought that I would have bought XP " but my win98 install required a reinstall or reformat every 4 or 6 months and I think a lot of it had to do with using win freeware causeing corruption which can be another topic in this thread.

Anyways to start off I paid
$160 for the XP upgrade. With win 98 I mostly used freeware other than games. A good note is I used Gimp open source in win but it crashed a lot lol. Anyways I signed up for a free year of Ezarmor antivirus and purchased another years service for about
$40 Canadian. Anyways as far as viruses go this was the best windows purchase as I did not have on currupt file over the years I used this service
Linux Anti Virus = Free and you do not need one.

My spyware was all free ware suing spybot search and destroy and A2 squared.
Linux do not need them
WIndows cost many hours or waisted time updating and running thse things.

Xp Theme ability Microsoft super pack for XP
$19.95

Partitioning,
Partition magic =$60
Linux Qtparted and Gparted =free!

And the list goes on and on

[BuffaloX]

Except for games, I use only freeware or opensource.
I'm not working with IT anymore, so I don't need the expensive closed source apps.

[aysiu]

I think if you use Windows XP preinstalled and know a lot of good spyware-free and cost-free programs (mainly open source ones), you probably won't end up spending much more money than you would using Linux.

Of course, most Windows users have no idea how to filter out the bad (i.e., harmful) free software from the good free software. When I was a Windows user, I didn't know about OpenOffice, GIMP, Scribus, or GAIM.

I stumbled upon FileZilla eventually because every good FTP program out there seemed to cost money. FileZilla was the only one that was free and of good quality. At the time I found it, I had no idea what open source was. Firefox was my real introduction to the concepts of open source software, and I think that's eventually how I stumbled upon Linux, too.

It's not so much that Windows forces you to spend money on expensive supplementary software (there are, after all, cost-free anti-virus and anti-spyware software solutions), but it does encourage a culture of ignorance to alternatives, and you do have to do a lot of filtering to find software that...

1. doesn't have complicated licensing agreements
2. is cost-free and doesn't nag you to buy the real thing after the trial is over
3. contains no spyware or adware

I know a lot of people here like to install obscure software that needs to be compiled, but the repositories are perfect for someone like me. I just want a reliable set of free applications that are installable with one or two mouse clicks. I don't want to scour the internet for applications. I don't want to have to re-download new setup.exe files to update each application I have--I'm content to wait six months and then have Ubuntu update everything for me. I hate stupid licensing agreements and having to reboot my computer to install software.

[hizaguchi]

First there is the Windows license. Then (unless you use Clam, which I've heard good and bad things about) you need an antivirus subscription. After that, it is entirely possible to do everything you can do with Linux in Windows, because if there isn't already a Windows port, you can just use coLinux.

So as far as monetary expenses, the license and maybe some antivirus software is all you're looking at. Assuming you have the time to go through the process of getting all the free software you plan to use. That's where the real expense is. It's taken me YEARS to find enough free software to cover all my needs. And even though I know where to get it all, it takes me about a week to take a Windows install from scratch to the full functionallity of my Linux system.

OS + updates + updates + updates + drivers + software for hardware + updates + antivirus + antispyware + firefox + evolution + inkscape + gimp + openoffice + neowin theme patch + putty + xming + coLinux + Arch Linux + a day of configuring Arch Linux + powertoys + foobar2000/plugins...

[Dragonbite]

Windows costs $$$$
Linux costs time (for learning curve)

Fortunately Open Source is growing not only for the Linux group but for Windows as well so there are alternatives if you look around.
For example, on Windows 2000 :

AVG (http://www.grisoft.com/) for Antivirus
ZoneAlarm (http://www.zonelabs.com/) for firewall
AdAware (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/)for spyware
Adobe Photoshop Album (http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshopalbum/starter.html) for picture managing (like Picasa, F-spot and Digikam)
Trillian (http://www.download.com/Trillian/3000-2150-10047473.html)for IM-ing (Gaim gave me some trouble recently)
Firefox (http://www.mozilla.org/)for browsing
Thunderbird (http://www.mozilla.org/projects/thunderbird/)for Email
OpenWorkbench (http://www.openworkbench.org/)for project management
Google Sketchup (http://sketchup.com/) for fun ;)
SharpDevelop (http://www.icsharpcode.net/OpenSource/SD/)for .NET programming (this is what Monodevelop is based off of)
WebMatrix (http://www.asp.net/webmatrix/)for ASP.NET programming

I already have Office 2000 that was won at the raffle they run at the end of our DACS (http://www.dacs.org)general meeting ($0). If I had to pay for it I would instead use OpenOffice 2+ and Scribus.
I have Photoshop and Illustrator from way back and I don't remember how much I paid for them. (I'll say $350 which is about what it would cost to updgrade right now). Otherwise I would switch fully to Gimp and Inkscape.
I have Paint-Shop-Pro I got at a discount for the DACS user group ($99)
Waiting to get together with a friend to get the Visual Studio Express he said he downloaded for me ($0). I think it is supposed to be more robust than SharpDevelop or WebMatrix.

Although I know people who it doesn't bother, though, I'd rather my system to be 100% legal which is one reason why I like Linux (and no.. I do not even have the codexs for playing MP3s on my system because it is technically illegal here (USA) :( )

Windows upgrade (not including Win2000 -> XP) and original costs are around $450.
Linux = $0

Windows time to upgrade = ~1-2 days
Linux time to upgrade = longer (dial-up internet connection)

Sleep lost afraid of Windows being hacked = too many days
Sleep lost afraid of Linux being hacked = ZZZzzzzzz.......

[AndyCooll]

Well it is possible to have a full WinXP system where the only cost is the XP licence itself, as Dragonbite indicates. I know, I had such a system.

After years of having pirated software I bought a WinXP licence and setup a system just like this. It was while searching for such software that I cam across Firefox, oOo, and then Linux.

As Aysiu points out though, ignorance plays a major part. For instance, most people buy a computer with XP installed, and it may very well come with free anti-virus software with a 12 month update licence. When that runs out most will either pay to renew the licence, buy completely new anti-virus software, or not update at all. Very few are aware of free alternatives.

One of the reasons I initially moved over to Linux was the freedom I had to install the OS on as many boxes as I liked without restrictions.
And at the same time I also realised that I didn't need the latest and greatest version of each well known piece of software. For my needs and uses lesser known names such oOo, GIMP, Gaim, Amarok, Totem etc were perfectly ok. Some folk may well need a certain obscure function hidden away in the depths of Photoshop (for instance), but I didn't. GIMP (in this example) meets all my needs.

Add in Liferea, F-spot, Scribus, Easytag, Tomboy and a few other apps and I have everything I need for a fully functional computer that does everything I want it to do. Indeed, all the apps I need are either installed by default or in the repositories. For my needs Linux has suitable alternatives for everything ...and it's all free.

:cool: