Which OS is Right for You? Why Not More Than One?
June 19th, 2008 (4:00pm) Samuel Dean 8 Comments
I enjoyed the format of PC World’s recent OS Smackdown. Rather than doing a smattering of tests that many of us have seen before, the publication asked four experts on four operating systems, respectively–Linux, Mac OS X, Windows Vista, and Windows XP–to expound on why their operating systems beat the others. Not surprisingly, superlatives such as “all you need in one dynamite package” rose to the top of the arguments. But there was surprisingly little consideration given to running many operating systems concurrently.
In this post, I’ll defend this idea. For several reasons, it seems like the time is more right than ever, and the issue is relevant to web workers.
The tools for running multiple operating systems concurrently are widely available, of course. There are people on this blog who run Windows on a Mac using Boot Camp. Likewise, virtualization tools can make it a snap to run Linux on Mac or Windows systems.
If you go the virtualization route, of course, the emulation you’re depending on calls for adequate system resources so you don’t end up with compromised performance. However, I suspect most readers of this blog aren’t working with stripped-down hardware. If you’re not, you can expand the number and types of applications you use tremendously through virtualization and multiple operating systems.
Beyond these solutions, though, I’ve come to use multiple operating systems on multiple machines over the years. At home, I have a MacBook, several PCs running various versions of Windows, and an Asus Eee PC running Linux–all hanging off a Wi-Fi network.
The Asus system is a good, lightweight machine for browsing, e-mail and writing all around the house. I tend to use the Mac for graphics- and video-focused tasks, and I keep PCs around because I have more background with applications for Windows than I do for any other platform.
The bottom line is all these platforms are useful. How many do you use?
8 Comments Post your own comment
Rick says: June 19th, 2008 4:59pm
I use Mac OSX on my Macbook with Windows XP running in Parallels. I have windows mainly for Office 2007 which I instruct on and need (particularly screenshots). I also have a couple of “favourites” from my windows days and some really useful freeware that is windows only. Using Coherence in Parallels I don’t even see the distinction between the systems and can use what I want when I want. I did play with Ubuntu as well for a while but find that I didn’t have the time to learn about it enough. Also only have 2gig ram so need more to run 3 systems.
Trae Regan says: June 19th, 2008 5:25pm
I am getting into iPhone Application Development and recently got a Mac Mini for that specific reason.
I am running a dual monitor PC/Mac Hybrid setup using Synergy to share a mouse and keyboard with each system. So on my left monitor I have a Mac, and on my right monitor I have a PC.
Once you’ve got Synergy in startup on both machines it “just works”. It’s rad.
The only catch is if you need to restart the machine (PC in my case) that acts as the Synergy server you have to shut both systems down, boot the server, and then boot the client (Mac in my case). It’s really no big deal though.
Roberto says: June 19th, 2008 6:20pm
Exactly! I’ve never understood why everyone is so fixated on “what’s the best OS? what’s the best computer? what’s the best … ?”
Depends on your needs, the way you work and also your taste. There is not one single thing that’s perfect. Currently I work with four OS’s (Vista, XP and two flavors of Linux) installed in three computers and that seems to fit my needs fairly well; but some people will need more, others will need less. I am thinking of getting a Mac Mini before too long because that need is starting to appear.
And, besides, everyone knows that the best OS ever created is Amiga OS 3.9 :)
Trae Regan says: June 19th, 2008 6:36pm
I forgot to mention I am dual booting Windows and UBuntu on my laptop as well. Roberto’s comment regarding 4 OS’s made me think outside of my desktop.
MB says: June 19th, 2008 8:38pm
I refuse to defile my Mac with any other OS. The BSD derivative Darwin core supplants Linux, and when I really need Windows for some IE debugging I just bust out an old laptop running XP.
emalyse says: June 20th, 2008 4:45am
I use OS X for most things but also Linux (mint) for secondary and portable use as I find it very quick & flexible as I use so many web applications now & is my main point of entry platform for remote desktop access.
Michael M. says: June 20th, 2008 11:01am
I just run Debian, though I did recently experiment with FreeBSD and will probably go back to it for more. But that’s more out of curiosity that out of Debian not doing everything I need.
I have an old iMac, but I don’t use it anymore. It’s pretty much a toy — never ran particularly well due to Apple underpowering its systems and charging top dollar anyway. My cousin wants it to store recipes on, which is about all it’s good for. Needless to say, I’ll never get another Mac!
terrygriffin says: June 20th, 2008 2:25pm
I just installed Windows XP on my MacBook Pro, after several weeks of deliberation—and even though it was a less-than-seemless process which took about a full day to accomplish, I’m glad that I now have a the convenience of being able to accurately review/tweak my made-for-PC graphics (web pages and PPT files) on the same machine used to produce them.
And that’s pretty much the most “cross-platforming” I have a need for. Two days into the new setup, everything still seems to be stable, so far. (Except, of course, for the normal weirdness I’ve come to expect from each platform on its own!)