Apple has convinced millions that they can make the switch from Windows to OS X, but those curious about Linux have to see for themselves if they can work or play on a free desktop. The short answer is that, for most halfway tech-savvy people who aren’t hardcore gamers, yes, you can. There are positively addictive productivity apps available for Linux, along with tools to make switching between Linux and other systems easy, or just running Windows programs themselves if you need to. Today we’re detailing a Linux desktop that helps you move quickly, work with Windows, and just get things done; read on for a few suggestions on setting it up.
Setting up your system
If you’re dual-booting with Windows, there’s no reason to build a wall between the two systems. Most modern Linux distributions can read and write to hard drive spaces created for Windows, free Windows apps can grab files from Linux, and many free programs can even share configuration settings. See our guide to using a single data store when dual-booting.
Even if you’re devoting your whole hard drive to Linux, you don’t have to leave Windows behind. Free virtualization software VirtualBox is a fairly user-friendly solution to running Windows inside Linux. I’ve found that it works great with most flavors of XP, but, as you might imagine, has a few problems with the “home” versions of Vista, and requires a swift system to not occasionally lag a bit. One nice compromise to needing just that one must-have Windows app for work is running it seamlessly in Linux. On my own system, VirtualBox is the solution for Office 2007 apps and, when I need it, iTunes (without USB/iPod functionality, unfortunately).
Some apps, however, can run without building whole virtualization machines. The WINE project works to create a framework that can run many useful Windows apps, including a good number of games, Adobe Photoshop, and the “viewer” apps that let you read and print Office documents. These days, they’ve even got a working version of Google’s Chrome browser. Check out our guide to installing and using WINE for help getting started.
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