Recently i decided to make the jump from Windows to linux for all my kit rather than just a few select bits, this was strangely driven by Apple, i altered the volume setting on my apple so that i could make my ear drums bleed (I worship at the altar of happy hardcore), this went fine, until i plugged it back into itunes, and it stated quite flatly that i had altered my ipod and that it would wipe it, no cancel button no “are you sure” , nothing, nada, big brother knows best, right then Jobs you git!!! (sound of IPOD being punted across a room), im off to get a new media player (but that’s a subject for another blog),
This led to a complete hissy fit against all the big players. (damn them all to hell, if i wanted my computer to do that i would tell it to!!)
So new laptop in hand, i download the latest ubuntu and began, the following is the things i have learned from the experience, with the windows to linux software alternatives.
1) BUY VMware, yes i know its $200 per Host version, but if your doing it on a professional basis it is so worth it.
2) Download the VMware converter (its free), then using it take a vmware image of you existing installation, this means that you have all you old stuff with you and can be using all your old software, no licence keys lost, no discovery that there is no equivalent software on linux, its totally the soft option. and the more you use it the more you love it (yes i know virtual box is supposed to be faster, but quite frankly I’m looking for reliability here)
3) On you vmware box enable shared folders then basically have a drive mapped to your “home” folder, this means that you can use this as your common store (it should be known that you WILL get some file location problems when you do this for things like the lotus data directory, as linux is case sensitive on file names and there seems no consistency even in big programs like on whether they are looking for “data” , “DATA” or “Data”)
Software Alternatives:
Windows: My Eclipse
Linux: My Eclipse
Comment: Duh!!!, but i have noticed that if you’re sharing your workplace on a share folder between my old VMware windows version and the new linux version, there is some case issues on the directory names
Windows: Lotus notes
Linux: Lotus Notes
Comment: well not quite, it’s supposed to be here in 8.5, so not quite there, but have sacrificed a goat to the great yellow god
Windows: Mame32 (its an arcade emulator for the heathens out their)
Linux: Loemu on top of SDLMame
Comment: exactly the same even my logistic usb controllers work
Windows: Total Recorder (a stream ripper for radio)
Linux: streamripper (i kid you not its actually called that)
Comment: command line instead of gui, but so easy to use its embarrassing
Windows: FLashFXP (simply the best FTP client)
Linux: FileZilla
Comment: Q handling not quite as good but the best linux one that i have found so far
Windows: Outlook
Linux: Google Mail for domains
Comment: yes i know i should be using domino, but quite frankly i just want it to work, on my own mail i just want to be a user, so sue me,
Windows: Office
Linux: Open Office
Comment: yeah yeah symphony, again this is a core app and i just want to be a user
Windows: msn/sametime
Linux: pidgin
Comment: it works and its already on there, I’m happy
Windows: Better File Rename
Linux: Bulk Update
Comment: a fab improvement enabling me to use regular expressions to strip out stuff i don’t want
Windows: The Rest of the Stuff
Linux: VMWARE
Comment: i just works, even audio ripping tools like “sound taxi”
on the whole I’m very pleased, and have no wish to go back.