LETTER: Linux a valuable contributor
To the editor:
Linux has the reputation of being only for super-nerds, but Linux is not just for nerds. Linux software can be used by anyone, including USU students.
Linux is so flexible that it is used in everything from phones and portable music players to the largest supercomputers in the world. Yet, Linux also allows you to use the Internet so you can keep up with your Facebook profile, e-mail your friends, play games, listen to music or write papers.
Students use Linux software each day, often without realizing it. Many cell phones run Linux. YouTube and Facebook are served using open source software. Whenever you use a kiosk on campus you are using Linux software. Whenever you use the Internet you indirectly use Linux software.
Major corporations such as IBM, Google, Novell and Sun Microsystems use Linux and other open source software.
You can buy it preinstalled on a new computer. Several big companies, such as Dell and Walmart, are selling Linux preinstalled on some of their computers. Asus sells a small laptop called the eee that runs Linux. A humanitarian effort called the “one laptop per child” project provides laptops tailored to the educational needs of children. These laptops run Linux.
The USU Help Desk has free CDs that allow you to run Linux from the CD. You can use these live CDs to try out Linux without having to install anything on your computer.
There is a lot of Linux software that will run on Windows, it would allow you to try it out and there is no cost.
One example of this software is the Firefox Web browser. It is on most the computers on campus. So most students have already used it.
There is a massive community of people that support Linux. Here on campus, there is a club called the FSLC, with the purpose of promoting and helping support Linux users. Check out our Web site for resources and getting help with Linux. http://fslc.usu.edu
At the end of the day, students can do homework using Linux software.
Bowen Masco