Is Windows best?

[LaPluma]

Hello

I have a job interview quite soon and know that I will be asked about UNIX - something I know nothing about! I design Web sites and know that CGI Scripting/Perl is aimed at UNIX users (where I would tend to go for ASP to do the same job - forms, counters, etc), but would be grateful for a URL where I could read about more general issues in the Microsoft Vs UNIX debate.

Many thanks in anticipation.

 

[bi]

Your title is "Is Windows best?" Someone in one of the Tek-Tips forum has a signature that says "The software said to install Windows 98 or better so I installed Unix."

Does that answer your question?

With Windows, you are always having to boot whenever you make a change. There are security holes big enough to drive a train through. When you break something in the OS, sometimes the easiest or only way to fix it is to completely reinstall.

I'd say Windows is fine for small companies, but not for medium sized companies that want to grow. And, I would really worry about the security of Windows.

 

[cyoung]

Unix is the preferred platform for not only web/networking services, but also in the enterprise. It was around long before Windoze was even thought of. Perl/cgi runs on more web servers than ASP ever thought of. ASP is used mainly in corporate intranets, where their IT departments want to be able to give users quick access to data that was created mainly using Microsoft apps. For heavy duty loads, Unix will always out perform a Windows machine. (often with less hardware).

The security issues, as bi mentioned are a great concern. Windows (ALL VERSIONS) have openings that you could drive a truck through. In my opinion, you should never have a Windows machine exposed directly on the internet. This is not to say that Unix does not have its own security issues, but they are fewer, and often easier to fix.

My feelings on the matter can be summed up as, Windows on the desktop (users are not going to get excited about the latest and greatest, and they most likely have some Windows experience), and then a Unix platform (BSD, Linux, etc) for the servers and services.)

Good luck with the job interview!

 

[Themuppeteer]

You can also look here in tek-tips to the forum:
-Trends and Ethics
-Where is IT Going In The Next 5 Years

and there there is a thread called "the death of microsoft" with a lot of replies (more than 100 I think). Greetz,

The Muppeteer.

themuppeteer@hotmail.com

http://www.themuppeteer.tk

Don't eat yellow snow...