Will you buy Vista ?

[HawkeyeGS]

I already bought it. $10. now just need to wait for all my drivers to become vista ready.

 

[kryszcztov]

I am one who really does want to switch to an opensource OS. I am tired of the spammongering monopoly of MS. I want out! But unfortunatly for me I am ignorant enough of PC'ing that this switch requires a significant chunk of my time to correct. I want out, but I don't want to islolate myself from the net community while I figure it all out. Dangblasted MS and their doggone power over the software market

White Elk, first you have to answer a few questions :

- Do you play a wide variety of games or not ? Do you want to continue to play them or not ?
-> I think you've already answered this one : you basically only care about Civ4.

- Do you have any recent hardware which you think drivers couldn't work yet on Linux ?
-> Think : gfx card, Wifi connection, etc... Many of them do work (without any command from yourself), but some will be tricky, and some won't work. This should be a case by case study.

- Do you have any specific reason to keep a Windows system ?
-> This could be a professional application you NEED to keep, or sensible files that you think couldn't properly be handled on Linux, etc... Do not forget that basic office files will be decently handled by OpenOffice.org for example. Maybe a slight editing will do the perfect trick.

If you're lucky with your hardware, Civ4 may be your only problem. Cedega provides a way to run Civ4 on Linux, but it comes with a small cost (it's not a free software (nor as in speech, nor as in beer)). Cedega isn't guaranteed to work well, as I have experienced, but I still don't know if it can work on every standard PC (with small tricks). I intend to test that soon.

The conclusion is that you can either start testing a GNU/Linux distribution, either use one and forget Windows altogether. Testing a distro means you can use a Live-CD (no installation on the HD at all) for distros that have one, or you can have a dual-boot system (keeping Windows for Civ4).

The computer section is waiting for you for more questions and answers. And don't forget the different communities on the Internet.

 

[Desmond Hawkins]

Well, unless they release Civ 5 or SMAC 2, none of the games I play will not need DirectX 10, so there is no reason for me to get Vista.

All other games will be played on the 360 (damnit, that is Microsoft too. I can't even "stick it to them". Sticking it to them would just involved buying a different array of their products)

 

[Smellincoffee]

I doubt I'll buy a new computer in 2007, and I have no plans to upgrade my current computer to Vista.

 

[GenMarshall]

Your comment about games was the only valid one here. You do not like difference ? You sound like a very old man who refuses to move on. You won't have your START button ? Nor your DESKTOP icon ? That's horrible, it's too hard, really, those Linux devs should have done it better...

Quit trying to convert me to Linux, it aint going to happen. I am a diehard Windows user as much as CurtSibling is a diehard atheist.

You are wrong.

Yeah Yeah Yeah, Whatever Linux Boi . This is what I hate about these Linux Fan Bois is that they go right up to the Windows Fanbois and scream "YOU ARE WRONG!". Such arrogance and I have no time for arrogance from Linux Fanbois (ZOMG, I am starting to sound like CurtSibling! )

The only thing which doesn't work on my distro right now is the Wifi connection, and I plan to work on that this weekend.

Proves my point that I am right that not all hardware are Linux capable. It only adds more headaches to try to "go under the hood" with Linux to get a piece of hardware working. I dont have such time nor the technical know how to get the hardware on my laptop to work.

 

[kryszcztov]

Quit trying to convert me to Linux, it aint going to happen. I am a diehard Windows user as much as CurtSibling is a diehard atheist.

In Windows I can't see the Japanese glyphs in your signature (only lots of "?"). In Linux I can. Of course I didn't do anything to make it work or not, I don't care. Just so that you knew.

Yeah Yeah Yeah, Whatever Linux Boi . This is what I hate about these Linux Fan Bois is that they go right up to the Windows Fanbois and scream "YOU ARE WRONG!". Such arrogance and I have no time for arrogance from Linux Fanbois (ZOMG, I am starting to sound like CurtSibling! )

You're off-topic about that. Look at my avatar please. You're talking to a Socrates zealot. You are wrong when you say :

2. No Games nor Hardware are Linux compatible

since there are some games and much hardware compatible.

Proves my point that I am right that not all hardware are Linux capable. It only adds more headaches to try to "go under the hood" with Linux to get a piece of hardware working. I dont have such time nor the technical know how to get the hardware on my laptop to work.

Haha, you're changing the wording now ! From "no hardware" to "not all hardware". I got you !! You're right about not wanting to have headaches about that. Tonight I failed to make my Wifi connection work on Linux ; there is no driver for the card I have, thank you Texas Instrument. No biggie, I'll still use my wired connection (I didn't want the Wifi anyway ). Maybe your laptop and external hardware will work at once with Linux ? Maybe not. You just have to check. And if you're lucky, you can't have headaches.

 

[GenMarshall]

Haha, you're changing the wording now ! From "no hardware" to "not all hardware". I got you !!

Alright fine Linux Boi, I am wrong, but I still stand that Windows is superior to Linux in terms of Gaming.

Maybe your laptop and external hardware will work at once with Linux ? Maybe not. You just have to check. And if you're lucky, you can't have headaches.

Your Linux Evangelicalism is not going to work with me .

 

[bhsup]

In Windows I can't see the Japanese glyphs in your signature (only lots of "?"). In Linux I can. Of course I didn't do anything to make it work or not, I don't care. Just so that you knew.

What version of Windows are you running? I see it just fine with XP Media Center 2005(?) Edition.

 

[kryszcztov]

Alright fine Linux Boi, I am wrong, but I still stand that Windows is superior to Linux in terms of Gaming.

You're not taking much risk by saying that. I think.

Your Linux Evangelicalism is not going to work with me .

Linux isn't for anyone, and probably not for you (especially if you're a hardcore gamer). Plus, it may be good for "us" not to have you use Linux, otherwise you would just scare everyone on the Internet, depicting your horrible experience of installing or using a Linux distro or something. In the end, you should just stick to Windows and its nice buttons.

What version of Windows are you running? I see it just fine with XP Media Center 2005(?) Edition.

I'm running an XP SP2 version, and I can't tell you how I got it, since it is not allowed to talk about it on this forum (3-point punishment, you got to think twice ). But that was just a joke for CivGeneral.

 

[mdwh]

I see the Japanese fine in Windows 2000 too, so I don't think this is something that was only added recently...

 

[GenMarshall]

Linux isn't for anyone, and probably not for you (especially if you're a hardcore gamer).

Then who uses Linux?

Plus, it may be good for "us" not to have you use Linux, otherwise you would just scare everyone on the Internet, depicting your horrible experience of installing or using a Linux distro or something.

Now when did I say I had a horrible experiance, I am only drawing from other people's experiance on when they tried to install it. Seems kind of elitist to say that Linux is not for me and that it's good for you for me not to use Linux. Expecialy if I am looking into Freespire/Linspire to try and use as a second OS when I do set my laptop in a dual boot.

In the end, you should just stick to Windows and its nice buttons.

Again, I looked at Freespire/Linspire and they look similar to Windows XP to me. I came to the conclusion that I did not like the GNOME GUI but perfered a KDE based GUI.

 

[Murky]

I am one who really does want to switch to an opensource OS. I am tired of the spammongering monopoly of MS. I want out! But unfortunatly for me I am ignorant enough of PC'ing that this switch requires a significant chunk of my time to correct. I want out, but I don't want to islolate myself from the net community while I figure it all out. Dangblasted MS and their doggone power over the software market

With rare exception comprising just hours out of any given year, the game Civilization is the only game I play. Even I can understand how people who are much more motivated by gaming will not want to switch to Linux distros if they can't enjoy their games!

It doesn't have to be a choice between the two operating systems. You can run Windows XP and Linux on the same system using a dual boot setup. You set up one logical drive for Windows and one for Linux. When you want to play Civ4, just load Windows. If you want to mess around in linux load linux.

 

[GenMarshall]

It doesn't have to be a choice between the two operating systems. You can run Windows XP and Linux on the same system using a dual boot setup. You set up one logical drive for Windows and one for Linux. When you want to play Civ4, just load Windows. If you want to mess around in linux load linux.

What about using Virtual PC 2004 (An General OS Emulator)? Would that work?

 

[Murky]

What about using Virtual PC 2004 (An General OS Emulator)? Would that work?

Maybe. I never tried it because dual boot works great for me.

 

[GenMarshall]

Maybe. I never tried it because dual boot works great for me.

I am guessing I am the only one treading into this fronter .

I would probably make a thread about it when I get it to work. Eventhough I would go with a dual boot, I persoanly would rather do it with a second older computer to avoid unintentionaly messing up my primary computer.

 

[Chairman Meow]

What about using Virtual PC 2004 (An General OS Emulator)? Would that work?

I don't know about Virtual PC, but Civ3 doesn't run in Qemu, which is a similar emulator. It thinks it's being run in a debugger, and refuses to start. I'd guess that you'd get similar results in Virtual PC.

edit - Also, if you were going to go that route, the correct way to do it would be to run Linux, and then run Windows (for games) inside the emulator. Because the reverse is just silly. Virtual PC, though, only runs on Windows as far as I know. So in Linux you would have to use either Qemu or VMWare.

 

[kryszcztov]

Then who uses Linux?

Many people... who aren't into (recent) games for the most part. A dude in my "classroom" doesn't use Windows anymore, and he says I'm a gamer (even though I'm currently only playing 2 Civ4 PBEMs ).

Now when did I say I had a horrible experiance, I am only drawing from other people's experiance on when they tried to install it. Seems kind of elitist to say that Linux is not for me and that it's good for you for me not to use Linux.

I was speculating about you trying to set up Linux someday, getting mad over it, and spamming the Internet with posts urging not to use Linux, etc... Do what ever you want, but please don't come back saying that setting up Linux is difficult, because it is not. Of course there are a few hardware things and many games that won't work, but the rest should be OK.

As for virtualisation, IIRC it's fine if you have a powerful PC. Also, I think you can't use apps or games that are in 3D and stuff that way. Forget Civ4, I think.

 

[GenMarshall]

I was speculating about you trying to set up Linux someday, getting mad over it, and spamming the Internet with posts urging not to use Linux, etc... Do what ever you want, but please don't come back saying that setting up Linux is difficult, because it is not.

Well, you proved me wrong. I downloaded Freespire (A free variant of Linspire) and installed it into a virtual machine through virtualization. Except for a instalation time out at the end (when it got to 2%), Freespire worked with no problems (I would assume that the lag was due to being installed in a virtual enviornment). Right now I am having fun playing with Linux (Freespire) in a virtual enviornment. I found that the Freespire/Linspire line is a better match for me because it almost looks like a Windows XP clone.

I do like to apologize for my rants against Linux, mainly on the part that I have not bothered to try it and find the right distribution to try and look into. I just feel sooo bad bashing the Linux fans .

 

[Panda]

Not for a while. Ultimately, yes, but that could well be 1-2 years from now.

 

[kryszcztov]

Well, you proved me wrong. I downloaded Freespire (A free variant of Linspire) and installed it into a virtual machine through virtualization. Except for a instalation time out at the end (when it got to 2&#37, Freespire worked with no problems (I would assume that the lag was due to being installed in a virtual enviornment). Right now I am having fun playing with Linux (Freespire) in a virtual enviornment. I found that the Freespire/Linspire line is a better match for me because it almost looks like a Windows XP clone.

I do like to apologize for my rants against Linux, mainly on the part that I have not bothered to try it and find the right distribution to try and look into. I just feel sooo bad bashing the Linux fans .

There, there. And since I'm not rancorous (Babelfish translation...), I will tell you that you were brave enough to go through this experience, which will give you more confidence as a man in the future. OK, it's just testing a Linux distro, but you have the habit of changing your mind so quickly and so often... Have fun with your new toy, young Linux padawan.