How I Gave Microsoft The Boot

Written on December 7, 2007 by Tezza

Friday’s weekly guide to Life Balance from 4EvaYoung.com

My computer is finally free from the shackles of Microsoft, well almost. But before you think that this is some personal vendetta or crusade against Microsoft, it isn’t. In fact it’s far from it. I hold great respect for Bill Gates, especially what he is doing in his post Microsoft era and I think as a corporation they have certainly done their bit to advance technology worldwide.

But deep down especially since my youthful naive days of working with Unix systems back in University, I’ve always wondered what life would be like to not have to own or buy another piece of Microsoft product again. I mean anyone who has ever worked with Unix or Linux will know what I’m talking about. But since everytime you buy a new computer it already comes pre-installed with a Microsoft OS and related software I’ve kind of left it at that and never really thought much else about it. Why fix something that’s not broke and Microsoft has pretty much established itself as an industry standard so why be different.

This was all fine until recently when my anti-virus software did something crazy and in a blink of an eye I lost Microsoft Office. It just went kaput. To cut a long story short Microsoft Office ceased to exist on my laptop and a reinstall failed to rectify the situation. Instead off running to the store and buying the current version of Microsoft Office I decided it was high time that I looked at alternative options. It’s been something that’s been in the back of my mind and this was a good a time as any. Here is how I went from replacing Microsoft Office to practically eliminating Microsoft from my life.

1. Open Office and Google Docs

Google docs isn’t as slick or functional as Microsoft Office, but where it makes up for it is in it’s mobility and convenience. You can work on your documents, spreadsheet or presentations by logging into your account and opening any browser on any computer in the world. It means you no longer have to carry a USB stick with you and you don’t have to worry about losing your documents since it’s saved on Google’s servers. Well unless a catastrophic event occurs at Google, but since they have many more layers of redundancy then you’ll ever have on your home or office PC, it is safe to say your information is probably safer in the hands of Google then it is in yours.

I use Google docs now for most of my non-sensitive work which for the most part is the majority of my work these days. If you are a little wary about loading up sensitive company or personal data onto Google servers then the second option is right up your alley.

I loaded up Open Office onto my PC for that very purpose, plus Google isn’t really good at handling large files and sometimes documents sent from other people via email aren’t compatible with Google Docs. So for those instances I use Open Office. It is a free Office suite and is compatible with all Microsoft generated documents. It has a look and feel that is very similar to the Microsoft working environment so for all of you who are afraid of too much change then you can be rest assured that you will need only a very minor learning curve before you will be happily running with Open Office.

What is great about both these tools is that they are provided free and without license. Open Office is provided under the Open Source Project which is made up of a community of programmers who contribute their time voluntarily to produce applications for the benefit of the wider community. It can’t get any better than that.

2. Firefox

The browser I use is Firefox which is a much better replacement to Internet Explorer in my opinion. Firefox is another open source project from the makers of Mozilla and by far offers a more superior user experience. It is more stable, a lot more secure considering all the debacle of IE’s security flaws and was the first to introduce the tab and pop-up blocker to their browsers. Firefox started off it’s days with a loyal following from mainly the geeky crowd but has really started to pick up momentum with frustrated users of Internet Explorer looking for a better option.

What I like most about Firefox is that it remembers my user name and passwords so that I don’t have to type it into my sites all the time. I’m the only user on my laptop so while this might pose a bit of a security risk it’s something I’m willing to sacrifice. I’m also a huge fan of the Firefox restore feature that enables you to restore your pages and tabs after a shutdown of your computer.

3. Ubuntu Linux Has Replaced My Windows XP

Here is something that the average Joe probably has no inclination to do and that is to install an operating system other than Windows. Using Linux as an operating system might be a whole lot easier than you might think and if you are like me who wanted to poke my toes in the water you can now easily install Ubuntu Linux while still having Windows XP on your computer. Each time you start your computer it gives you a choice to either boot up in Linux or Windows.

For me installing Linux was a breeze. You can go to http://www.ubuntu.com/ and download a copy of Ubuntu Linux or request a free install CD from their site. But if you are looking for an even easier solution then download the Wubi Linux Installer. If for any reason you aren’t happy with your new Linux installation, Wubi enables you to uninstall it from your control panel within Windows like any other program on your computer.

The main advantages of going to Linux is I get an open source operating system which is continually being upgraded and worked on by a community of programmers. It also means that I will not need to spend money and upgrade my computer to Windows Vista anymore. If you look at most reviews online with Ubuntu Linux vs Windows Vista, Ubuntu surprisingly or not surprisingly fairs very well or better than Microsoft Vista.

There is a growing shift off users moving towards Linux as their preferred operating system and it’s not just the tech savvy crowd that it once was. Linux has come along way from its old days and is a much more user friendly experience. All of these Open Source projects need our continued support to keep them alive so if you have ever considered becoming a rogue Microsoft user then this is a great time with many options available to you.

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Posted in Life Balance