[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> 1- Would it be advisable to turn to Linux?
Always. I mean, yeah, you're computer will be slow, but there's not a
whole lot that can be done about that. All in all, Linux is more secure
and cheaper, if nothing else.
> 2- Reasons?
As I mentioned, the big ones are security and price. There's also a
wide variety of software out there. You're not going to find a lot of
games, but there's a variety of other software available. Another big
factor is choice. There are a lot of choices available to you that your
average Windows user wouldn't know about. This could be a good thing or
a bad thing, depending on how you look at it.
> 3- How should I do so?
Download a distro and try it out. Most install quite easily. Fedora,
Ubuntu and SuSE are quite good, though SuSE isn't free, as I understand
it. If you're willing to just blow away your Windows installation,
there really shouldn't be much in your way. Just be prepared to read
documentation.
> 4- Should I expect a steep learning curve?
There are things to unlearn from using Windows. Just keep an open mind
and be willing to read and ask specific questions. If you start with
installing a distro that runs GNOME or KDE, it should ease your transition.
> 5- If I just use my computer to type things, use home Excel sheets, send and
> receive e-mails with Outlook, browse the web with Firefox, and not much more:
> What should I expect to improve with Linux?
Improve? Certainly, you'll be able to continue to do these things, but
with different programs. OpenOffice is quite good with compatibility
with Office formats. Firefox is available for Linux. There are many
mail clients from Thunderbird to Evolution. It isn't possible to run
Windows programs natively in Linux, and the Windows emulators for Linux
aren't perfect, but there are often equivalent programs to use in Linux.
> 6- Which of the distros is best suited for old and very limited computers? I
> should also tell you that I am "old and limited" being almost forty YO.
It's hard to get a distro that's lean and user-friendly. I mean,
graphical interfaces come at a performance price. I would start with
one of the distros I mentioned above and just install a basic set of
programs. You can always add more later if you have space. You might
also want to poke around distrowatch.com for further ideas.
Chad Martin
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