Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Linux ....an important travel kit with your laptop

          
  Linux is very handy when it comes to travelling. The GPS based tracking system incorporated in it makes it so easy to track anything ,anywhere.While travelling in Europe ,I wanted to make sure that I would not come across any unforeseen issues while using  Linux as an OS in my PC.In this post I want to discuss on advantages of using Linux and also as a traveller , what do you have in it?
   Lets start with what is Linux ? Linux is nothing but an operating system. It is the software on a computer that enables applications and the computer operator to access the devices on the computer to perform desired functions. The operating system (OS) takes instructions from an application to the computer's processor. The processor performs the instructed task, and then sends the results back to the application through the operating system. Unlike Windows, Linux is an open source operating system which would help the user as well as the developer to go into the OS kernel and perform various tasks. Ubuntu, Redhat, Debian, Fedora are the operating systems which are built on Linux.




   Now, what do I already know about Linux? Most of the people are familiar with windowed operating system or what they say is desktop computing. Here we have menus, dialog boxes, status bars, task bars, notification bars, pop ups etc. Linux gives a new meaning for all of these. In Linux, there a lot of choices for which windowing system and desktop environment can be used, something that Linux allow users to decide. This cannot be done on Windows or even on a Mac system. It’s left to the user on how a pop up or dialog should appear, at what point it should appear and how it should be designed. In engineering 4th semester, we have been thought of how to design these stuffs in the subject Linux Environment.
         So why have I taken this topic for discussion? The answer is Linux can be used as an alternative to various other operating systems because of its ease of use. Linux is user friendly .Here are few examples that support my claim that it is user friendly: You don’t have to boot the OS on your desktop or laptop. Just boot from the CD and you can drag any file from the hard drive, even if the computer won't boot or you've forgotten your password. Linux can even help if you accidentally formatted your entire drive. So, the installation overhead is removed.
        The most widely used mobile OS Android is built on the Linux kernel. This is virus free. As the kernel or the core of the operating system is open to the users, anybody who hack the system OS can be caught, and removed with a simple command Shift-Alt-Delete. You can make your browsing experience simple and realistic using Linux operating system. These are a few examples, which I know, that can make users switch to Linux environment.
   For travel enthusiasts , there are appl like Earth3D which is an effective mapping and navigation tool.The map data is fetched from the server on the net and will display the satellite image ,in 3D, of any city you wish.So you can have a virtual travel environment.There is also an app called GPSDrive ,which gives you directions while you are riding the car.It is as accurate as Google's navigation app.

   Even if you're a Windows (or Mac) user, knowing how to use Linux is a valuable skill, and it can run a bunch of awesome things in your home even if it isn't your main desktop OS.I have already installed Fedora in my desktop and experimenting on it. Hope it doesn’t let me down and meets my expectations.

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