I'm working on my degree in IT and am a little disappointed. Everything they are teaching me involves server2008. However I have always thought Unix/Linux was almost always a better solution. But if that's the case, why are they teaching windows?

I'm hoping to hear from someone experienced in using both servers, with an unbiased opinion, who can tell me strengths or weaknesses?

I know most people on this blog will have a bias opinion, the problem is that most Linux guru's know both windows and Linux while most windows guru's only know windows and everything else is stupid!

You're being taught about commercial products on an IT degree?? IT degree's should be able programming concepts, CPU design, logic, database principles, not about installation DVD's... As far as comparisons go, I'd really suggest you look towards some standard discussions around the subject. You'll probably get some pretty biased opinions here as well as some rounded ones.

That's an impossible question to quantify, from my point of view.

EVERYTHING in the real world will depend on what you're asking it to do, so "better" is relative. If the goal is to support a huge Outlook server, Windows is obviously the better choice. Want to support lots of websites or a huge database? Unix/Linux is the way to go. For each problem you're presented with, you have to leave your ego at the curb, and make the best decision for the company. Be objective...a computer is nothing more than a tool, and that tool can either make your life harder or easier. Look at the support options, and where the code runs best natively. Run tests in a lab environment, put things side-by-side, and get hard, real-world data. Make your decision from that.

If you ask me, Linux is best...for ME. I use it on a desktop, and have for years, and I can't even fathom being so limited by Windows as I was many years ago. My wife? Not so much...all she wants is the Windows she uses every day, and doesn't care about the same things I do. We're both right...and we're both wrong. At the end of the day, we both get our jobs done, so it doesn't matter.

As far as the "why" in your question...chances are your school got handed a nice discount on Windows software w/hardware, or it came WITH the hardware, and it hasn't been upgraded. Bring it up to your teachers, and ask them why.

On an unrelated note...if you're working on your degree, you may want to start spell-and-grammar checking things.

It really depends on what you want to do and the skills you have.

I use Windows for some tasks and Linux for others. As TB0ne has said, they are just tools. Evaluate the job to be done and choose the best tool for the job.

Windows is not about a program, it is a huge business, with trainings, training certificates, licensing, certificates for organizations which are certified to license, etc. Like a giant spider web which has penetrated into every corner of the community. People choose Windows because they trained for it, certified, don't know anything else, are experienced, etc. For the one or two diehards who promote something which is technically better, there is always one or two applications which make it impossible to change platform, or an IT manager who was never fired because he was deploying Windows. Better code or better performance means nothing. If you have to use bad code, you put in more virus scanners, if your performance decreases you buy better hardware. Virus scanner developers and hardware manufacturers will be grateful and recommend Windows.

jlinkels

I appreciate the feedback. It's given me a lot to think about, and a reminder the IE does not come equipped with a spell checker or that maybe I'm too dependent on automatic spell checking.

So as the old adage goes, the right tool for the right job. I will probably have to master Linux on my own but it will be worth it.

Thanks again for your replies. I made a similar post on a windows forum, but I won't get a reply until my check clears! jk

There was a discussion a few days ago on a local LUG regarding training and certification. One of the members pointed out something very enlightening and interesting. With Windows there is a certain way of thinking. Call it the Microsoft mindset and it is very consistent in its application across their products. Until you reach the point that you intuitively understand this mindset, the design and behavior of the products won't make a lot of sense to you. When you reach the point that you do understand it, working with their products becomes a lot more intuitive and easy.

I personally, have not reached that point. I work at a university which is very Linux friendly and runs most of its operations on huge Linux based servers. However, I work in a department that runs mostly Windows. One of the reasons that they (the current employees) went with Windows is that they felt they understood it better. As the guy who does most of the Windows server maintenance put it while shaking his, "Those Linux guys sure do love their command line."

As I am the person currently managing this aspect of our operations, I have chosen to use Linux for one of my personal projects of implementing a web server that will interface to our database Historian. I tried for several days to get things installed under Windows and was very frustrated at every turn. I found things to be very obfuscated, not discoverable or intuitive. I attribute this to the fact that I don't "think" in the mindset that the product was developed.