Computer Chat Best operating system

[hitmancode47]

Hey everyone

I just recently heard about the new "Google Chrome" OS, i currently use XP Pro and just wondering in your opinions the better operating system would be? ive not yet seen any screenshots of google chrome (Have looked, cant find any)

So whats ya opinions?

[Joe Gronlund]

You can expect about 10 answers on this one.. It is really personal preference..

If you're a Windows users, it will be Windows 7

If you have been using Apple OS's for the majority of time, it will be Mac OS X Leopard, or Snow Leopard..

If you like Linux, it would be Cent OS, or Red Hat Linux..

If your a BSD person, likely FreeBSD.

Unix... Not common for a desktop OS, with the exception of use by Mac OS X...

In general, the most popular OS will be Windows 7, as Microsoft usually has the upper hand in this area, however Mac OS X is a very popular OS also...

[Wayne Luke]

You won't find Screenshots of the Google Chrome Operating System for a while. The announcement was basically:

Android wasn't as popular as we originally thought and only sold 1 million units last year compared to 4.4 Million iPhones and 5 Million Windows Mobile devices sold in the last quarter of 2008. IN order to counteract this, we're starting development of a Netbook OS based on a Linux Kernel and the Chrome Browser.

You might see conceptual screenshots by the end of the year but really it is probably a year away from being usable. Then they need to get manufacturer support. Of course lack of manufacturer support was the failing of Android. Though Android phones should appear at the Tier 1 providers (AT&T, Sprint and Verizon) in the U.S. this later this year or early next year. That should open it up to business users but the Smart Phone industry is getting very crowded these days with Apple, Microsoft, RIM, and Palm all pushing mobile OSes. Of course of those, only Microsoft doesn't use proprietary hardware so is the only competitor to Android and the upcoming Chrome OS. Doubt Chrome OS will come close to Microsoft's desktop business but could affect them in mobile and embedded systems.

As for the best OS for my needs, currently it is Windows 7. I haven't found anything to compete with that yet at this time.

[Edwin Brown]

You can expect about 10 answers on this one.. It is really personal preference..

If you're a Windows users, it will be Windows 7

If you have been using Apple OS's for the majority of time, it will be Mac OS X Leopard, or Snow Leopard..

If you like Linux, it would be Cent OS, or Red Hat Linux..

If your a BSD person, likely FreeBSD.

Unix... Not common for a desktop OS, with the exception of use by Mac OS X...

In general, the most popular OS will be Windows 7, as Microsoft usually has the upper hand in this area, however Mac OS X is a very popular OS also...

It doesn't matter what the "best" operating system is. What matters is what applications run on it. I'm as big a Microsoft basher as anyone and I'm a big fan of Linux, but when it comes down to it I use Windows Vista. That's where the apps are. I use MS Office, because I don't have to worry about compatibility. Apple had enough programmers to put a friendly face on Linux (you knew that OSX is Linux, right?) and get enough developers to port their apps. If Google can do the same then they could give Microsoft some competition. Otherwise it will be a nice operating system for netbooks.

[Joe Gronlund]

(you knew that OSX is Linux, right?)

No it is actually Unix, as stated above.
But that don't matter!!!

If your a BSD person, likely FreeBSD.

Unix... Not common for a desktop OS, with the exception of use by Mac OS X...

http://www.apple.com/server/macosx/technology/unix.html

I agree, its personal preference..

And for me Windows 7 runs my applications better than any OS has done

[Razasharp]

I moved to OS X because I was fed up with windows. Every windows machine I have ever had always seems to slow down after 6 months. It just got to the point where I thought twice about installing programs in case they slowed the stupid thing down.

I reformatted it every 6 months, but that really does begin to do you head in even when you have good plans in going about it (os was on a separate partition to my documents so I only really needed to install the OS, programs, and point the mail to the mail folders and my documents to my documents - but even that is a chore every 6 months as you still have to go through each applications preferences).

I've been using OSX full time for about a month now and it is MUCH nicer. I even installed squillions of programs to see what would happen. It doesn't break a sweat - still runs as fast as a clean OS. And of course you have all the nice user-friendly things that come with OS X. I could go into all of the plus points but I'd be here for a while!

That doesn't mean to say it's perfect tho - there's a lot less open source apps on OS X, and while the costs are nominal, they're still not free and do add-up.

I've always liked Linux but never liked hunting for drivers and trying to get things to work! Look forward to seeing Googles take on it.

[Quillz]

My three favorite operating systems are Win7, Snow Leopard and Ubuntu 9.04. And yes, I like them all equally.

[MRGTB]

Windows XP is best

Vista, Phew, I neally fell of my chair laughing

[hitmancode47]

Sooo many operating systems lol, go the newly releasing (Or released?) Window's 7, Linux (Very unfamiliar with Linux, id definitely love to learn more about that, Edwin, you seem to be a fan, do you have any links that would be handy for me to use?)

[Wayne Luke]

Ubuntu is a popular distribution for people new to the Linux world.

[hitmancode47]

Yea, i got a copy of Ubuntu from my college, it looked unique yet hard in soo many ways, i went to install some type of weird named browser and just nothing happened

[unp]

win7, Its amazing how well it performs even on an atom powered netbook.

[beishe8]

I moved to OS X because I was fed up with windows. Every windows machine I have ever had always seems to slow down after 6 months. It just got to the point where I thought twice about installing programs in case they slowed the stupid thing down.

That was my experience as well, from 95 to XP.
20-30 minutes to boot up.
I don't have that problem with Vista for two years now.
Still running well.

[Reeve of Shinra]

I really like Vista, its a huge step up from XP Pro inho.
I am looking forward to Windows 7.

[Gray Matter]

I was in the same situation as Razasharp. Windows (Vista) just got to be too much for me. I'm one of those people with tons of stuff stored on their machine (8,000+ personal photos, lots of music/movies, etc., not to even mention programs) and even though I had ample hard drive space for everything I needed, the machine all but slowed to a crawl while I was running it. I just couldn't deal with it anymore.

I switched to Mac OS X in August of last year, so I've been using it for 11 months now. I have even more data on it than I did my Windows machine and it still runs as fast as it did the day I got it out of the box. So Razasharp rest assured that it will still run beautifully 10 months from now.

As far as what Edwin said about Windows being where the applications are, well, I suppose that's true. But honestly, I have yet to find a situation where I couldn't find something to suit my needs. It's a little extra work to shop around for a program that is compatible with or is made for OS X, but at the end of the day it usually turns out to be better than the comparable Windows program, anyway. And the best applications (Firefox, VLC, etc.) run on all the major operating systems. Edwin also mentioned MS Office, but there is also a Mac version of Office, which I use and I love it. Other commercial applications like PhotoShop also have Mac versions.

Let's also not forget that (IMO) OS X has the superior UI and you are a lot less susceptible to malware while using it as most of it is targeted at Windows users.