Defensive Computing

A few days ago, Walter Mossberg, writing in the Wall Street Journal, offered a verbal peek at the Mac user interface (see Some General Tips for Switch to Mac From Windows) intended as heads-up for Windows XP users thinking of switching.

I'm not a Mac user, but from reading the article, it seems that the initial learning curve for switching from Windows XP to Linux, is less than that for switching to Macs. Both Macs and Linux are immune to the vast majority of malicious software, so from a Defensive Computing standpoint, each is good choice.

One advantage Mac users have is that there is, at any given time, a single latest and greatest edition of OS X. Someone switching from Windows XP to Vista has about six editions of Vista to deal with, but on the Mac side it's Leopard, just Leopard; nothing but Leopard.

The choices available to someone interested in Linux can be mind boggling. Different editions are referred to as "distributions" or "distros" for short. There are dozens of popular Linux distributions to chose from and I can't even guess at the total available, hundreds for sure. For this article, I chose the desktop version of Ubuntu 8.04. Not the server edition or the MID edition. Not Kubuntu or Xubuntu or Edubuntu or Gobuntu. Just plain vanilla Ubuntu.

Below I offer the Linux side of the various user interface aspects that Mossberg raised and contrast it with Mac OS X Leopard.

Menu Bars

Macs are drastically different than XP on the fundamental issue of menu bars. In both Windows and Linux each running program/application has its own menu bar across the top of its window. Below is a screen shot of Klondike solitaire and the Calculator running in Ubuntu. Solitaire has the colored menu bar because it's the active application.

According to Mossberg, Macs have " ... a single menu bar at the top of the screen that changes, depending on which program you are actively using." That must take some getting used to.

Task Bar

Both Windows XP and Linux have a task bar along the bottom of the screen that provides an inventory of currently running applications. In the screen shot below you can see that Calculator and Klondike solitaire are both running, and that Klondike is minimized.

Just as with Windows, left clicking in Ubuntu on the task bar button for a minimized application makes it visible. Right clicking on items in the task bar brings up the same five options as in Windows (Minimize, Maximize, Close, Restore, Move and Size). In addition, Ubuntu offers an "Always On Top" option and a handful relating to workspaces, a concept you can grow into or easily ignore.

As Mossberg describes it, there is no Mac equivalent to the task bar. The Dock comes the closest but it sounds more like the Windows Quick Launch toolbar in that it holds icons for the programs you use most often, rather than those running now.

Start Menu

The Start button also doesn't have an exact equivalent in Leopard. Mossberg says "Its functions are divided between the Dock and the Apple menu at the upper left of the Mac screen."

Many Linux distributions have a Start menu/button exactly like Windows. For example, here's a a screen shot of Mandriva Linux. The yellow Mandriva button in the bottom left corner is exactly analogous to the XP Start button.

Rather than a single starting point, Ubuntu has three, and they're at the top of the screen instead of the bottom. This was visible in the top left corner of the prior screenshots. The starting points are: Applications, Places and System. The screen shot above shows an expansion of the Applications menu. Below you can see the expanded Places menu. The System menu is the next topic.

Control Panel

The area where all three operating systems seem the most similar is their self-configuration. Windows has a Control Panel, Macs have System Preferences and Ubuntu has the System menu, shown below. Apple offers a hidden path to System Preferences in the Apple menu and wastes real estate by including it in the Dock. Ubuntu makes system configuration always visible while using a minimum of screen real estate.

Keyboard Shortcuts

All three systems offer keyboard shortcuts for when you don't want to move your hands off the keyboard to the mouse. Windows and Linux use the Control key, typically abbreviated as "Ctrl". Macs use a Command key. According to Mossberg, the Command key isn't called that on the keyboard (that would be too easy), it either has "a cloverlike symbol or an Apple logo". He doesn't explain which Macs have which, let alone the inconsistency.

As you can see in the screen shot below of the Gedit text editor, Linux does many of the same keyboard shortcuts as Windows.

Quitting Programs

In both Windows and Ubuntu, when you're done with a program, just "X" out of it. That is, click the X in the top right corner of the application window. You can see in the Gedit screenshot above, that Ubuntu has the exact same three buttons in the top right corner as Windows. And, they do the same thing that they do in Windows.*

Macs will confuse Windows users. For one thing, the "X" is in a circle in the upper left corner. But most importantly, it doesn't shut down the program. In fact, as Mossberg described it, it's not clear to me just what it does. He says that it closes the window rather than quitting the program. Close the window? Could he mean that it minimizes the window? Maybe this is Mac terminology? When Windows and Linux users "close" a window, we're shutting down the program.

Maximizing Windows

Maximizing windows in Ubuntu works exactly the way it does in Windows, you click the middle box in the top right corner. Not so with Leopard, says Mossberg. Never mind that you start off with a green circle in the upper left corner, clicking it results in a window size "deemed optimal for its contents, which isn't always the whole screen." Apparently Apple knows best. Mossberg didn't explain how to force a window to occupy the entire screen.

Double-clicking on the title bar in Windows also maximizes a window. Same in Ubuntu (although you can configure this with a system preference). Other Linux distributions take a different approach. With Mandriva, for example, double-clicking on the title bar rolls up the window so that just the title bar is visible.

Switching Programs

Not much to say here. Both Windows XP and Ubuntu can use the Alt-Tab key combination to switch between running applications. On a Mac it's Command-Tab.

Right Clicking

The Mac legacy is a mouse with a single button. Apparently that's in the process of changing. According to Mossberg "Most desktop Macs now come with a mouse that allows right-clicking..." He didn't say which desktop models do and don't. And, I suspect he chose his words carefully. That is, "allowing" right clicking probably isn't the same as actually having two buttons on the mouse.

He goes on to note that "...you can use almost any two-button USB mouse with any modern Mac". But again, "modern Mac" is spelled out and he doesn't say why some two-button mice won't work. They all work in Windows. Then there a Mac laptops, which only have one button forcing users to fake things out to get right clicks.

Ubuntu, like all Linux distributions, fully supports two button mice and right clicking. Windows users will feel right at home.

Adjusting The Screen

Not a lot to say here. Macs configure the desktop background image, screen saver and screen resolution in System Preferences.

Ubuntu configures this in the System menu under Preferences. You can see this in the screenshot of the System menu above. The desktop background image is either configured using the "Appearance" System Preference or by right clicking on the desktop and opting to "Change Desktop Background".

Final Thoughts

Not to paint too rosy a picture, Linux has more than it's share of annoyances. Firefox running on Ubuntu, for example, wants to open audio .PLS files in the Movie Player program. And, to chose another program, you have to browse the file system rather than a list of installed applications. Even saving the PLS file locally and opening it with the Rhythmbox Music Player didn't produce any sound. Ubuntu knows that PLS files are "MP3 ShoutCast playlists" yet, it can't play them.

But, on the subjects that Mossberg chose to focus on, Ubuntu offers a more familiar environment for people switching from Windows. And, it's cheaper.

For more on Linux, see my previous posting Is Linux right for your mother?, a comparison of Linux vs. Windows at my personal website and Why you want a Linux Live CD.

Update July 9, 2008: As luck would have it, I spent some time with a Mac laptop today running OS X 10.4.11. As a Mac newbie, it gave me a chance to add something to Walter Mossberg's points. One of the first things I noticed was the lack of a backspace key. On Windows and Ubuntu, the delete key deletes whatever is to the right of the cursor. On this Mac at least, the Delete key deletes what is to the left of the cursor, thus, it's the backspace key, at least to me. I didn't bother experimenting to find the Mac way to delete stuff on the right.

The three circles in the top left corner all look the same, they're circles. Sure, they're color coded but I didn't get the memo on what the colors mean and I shouldn't need a memo. Windows and Ubuntu offer better visual clues for their window handling icons. Hovering the mouse over the circles does not produce a tooltip explaining what the circle does. It does produce a symbol in the circle, but it was too small for my aging eyes to decipher.

Finally, the lack of a task bar was a major annoyance. Other than Cmd-Tab is there is a visual way for Mac users to track the currently running applications?

* I have to vent. The gOS Linux distribution has three circles in the top right corner and they all look exactly the same. What were they thinking? If you hover the mouse over a circle a tooltip pops up that tells you what it does. But, the mouse pointer blocks almost the entire tooltip making it impossible to read.

See a summary of all my Defensive Computing postings.

I was gladdened yesterday when techbargains.com reported a sale on a new Lenovo ThinkPad R61 running SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop ($552, see below). It's not everyday that you run into a major PC vendor selling machines pre-loaded with Linux (excluding servers).

Perhaps pre-installing Linux will become more popular, in part, due to a Vista backlash. Or, the popularity of Linux of ultra-cheap laptops (where Vista doesn't belong) such as the Asus EEE PC, will lay a foundation for its expansion. Once people see and touch and smell recent editions of Linux, they'll realize it is no more different from Windows XP than is the Mac OSX. And, as Lenovo says, Linux "Eliminates virus and spyware downtime".

I found it interesting though, that on the very page where you order this Linux laptop, Lenovo is in your face about recommending Vista Business and Vista Home Premium.

Theoretically, Linux computers should be cheaper than those running Windows since the manufacturer gets the operating system for free. Indeed, $552 was cheaper than all the other R series ThinkPads at Lenovo.com yesterday, except one. Lenovo was selling an R61e with Windows Vista Home Basic for $536. Both machines have 1GB of RAM, an 80GB hard disk, a CD burner/DVD reader, a one-year warranty and wide screens. The Linux ThinkPad has a 14.1 inch screen, the Vista machine comes with a 15.4 inch screen.

The big issue, to me, with pre-installed copies of Linux is technical support. If Linux support could be offered at a quality level as high as Apple, and at a reasonable cost, then Linux usage would take off. In this case, Lenovo provides Level 1 support. If you don't know what Level 1 means, then perhaps this computer is not for you. At least that's what Lenovo seems to be saying - they don't explain the term and say nothing about Level 2 or 3 support.

If you haven't purchased a computer from Lenovo recently, be aware that their return policy has changed. It used to be great, if you didn't like the machine, simply send it back for a full refund, no questions asked. No more. Their current return policy is:

"Lenovo will accept the return or exchange of a product in its original, sealed package for a full refund in cases of Lenovo error. Returns allowed for any other reason will be subject to a restocking fee equal to 15% of the purchase amount."

Note the word "allowed" in the second sentence. Makes a skeptic wonder what returns they don't allow.

Update May 19, 2008: The day I wrote this, I contacted Lenovo for clarification on the tech support situation. It is now 9 days later and there has been no response from Lenovo.

See a summary of all my Defensive Computing postings.

Mike Ricciuti of CNET says Windows XP is "doomed" and that "most of us will likely be using Vista sometime in the near future" (see Microsoft: All roads lead to Vista). In contrast, Ina Fried of CNET writes that Windows XP may get another reprieve, the title referring to the fact that major computer manufacturers are slated to stop selling Windows XP in June. Who's right?

One reason Mike cites for the Vista assimilation is that "Dell launched a Vista migration program to nudge big companies toward the OS. The PC maker's 'client migration solution' will cut migration costs..." I see this as evidence of Vista resistance. If there was value to Vista, the cost of migrating would not be an issue.

Mike also writes that "Microsoft is greasing the skids for Vista acceptance by offering free telephone support for Vista Service Pack 1 through March 2009".*   Microsoft never did this with XP service packs, so why are they doing it for Vista? They are trying to get people to go where they don't want to go.

Let's not forget the price cuts to shrink-wrapped versions of Vista which were to take effect at the same time Service Pack 1 was released. As Don Reisinger wrote (see Vista price cuts show how much trouble Microsoft is in), those price cuts were really a publicity stunt.

I don't think Don's article went far enough though. To me, the price cuts were intended to break out of computer industry news vehicles (like CNET and ComputerWorld) and be reported to the general public. No techie is going to decide to go with Vista because its a few dollars cheaper today than yesterday. No, the audience for the price cut announcement was non-techies.

And the message wasn't the price cuts (hardly anyone buys Vista in a box on the shelf of a retailer). The real message was that Service Pack 1 was about to be released, news that normally stays within the IT industry. The subliminal point being that while Vista may have been bad initially, now it's OK. An unusually well done bit of PR.

As for Mike's point that "XP may work, but it's not pretty", that's damning the OS with faint praise. The four regulars on the Personal Computer Show agree on only two things: making backups and avoiding Vista. After Hank Kee kicked the tires on Vista he was challenged to provide reasons to migrate from XP. All he could come up with was a comment from his wife, "it's pretty".

Back in November, I wrote about a dog and pony show where Microsoft tried to scare people about how insecure Windows XP was. That they have to use FUD (Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt) to sell Vista says a lot. Think of a politician trashing their opponent rather than touting themselves.

I wrote a trio of postings here on why I think XP is the better choice for Windows users (just comparing XP and Vista, not considering Macs and Linux)
-- I pity the fool (Windows XP good, Vista bad)
-- When to convert from Windows XP to Vista, Part 2
-- Putting Windows Vista on trial

In short, until Vista is at Service Pack 2 or has been around for at least another year and a half, it shouldn't be on your radar screen.

In large part, Mike's argument comes down to this: "I've been running Vista on three machines for well over a year. Compatibility issues are beginning to disappear, my wireless network connection no longer mysteriously vanishes, and other random glitches appear to have been fixed."

In other words, Vista works for me, so it's ready for the world. Many of the reader comments here at CNET make the same point. Vista, no doubt, runs fine for many people. That doesn't make it the right choice for you.

My perspective is defensive computing. To that end, I want mature software, and Windows XP, with 7 years of bug fixes applied to it, is the more mature option. I also want the one with the best chance of working with assorted peripheral devices. Score another for XP.

Cheap Laptops Running Linux

The personal computer field is maturing to the point that people will soon be cognizant of two hardware categories: full-blown personal computers, typified by Windows and Macs, and stripped down ones for children, senior citizens or traveling. Linux is perfect for people with simple computing needs (see Is Linux right for your mother?).

Ina thinks Windows XP will continue to be sold on what are now cheap laptops running Linux. Quoting: "The biggest area where XP is likely to stick around is in the nascent but growing market of low-cost, flash memory-based notebook computers, such as the Asus Eee PC".

I don't know that Microsoft is smart enough to see the threat from these machines. Way back, it was IBM that didn't take PCs seriously. Now, perhaps, it will be Microsoft that doesn't take simple, cheap machines seriously. Every new version of Windows is bigger and more complex. I doubt they can do simple. Large companies usually can't.

Linux does simple.**   It can be stripped down as needed. In 2004 I reviewed a product called NASLite that converted an old computer into a Linux-based file server. It was a useful product, but amazing for its size - it fit on a floppy disk. A single floppy contained the operating system, networking software, an internal website used for reporting and a telnet based administrative utility.

On top of this, the Linux GUI is flexible, extremely so. No doubt this will result in some horrible user interfaces, the XO from OLPC comes to mind. But, it will also result in some that are more appropriate for children or senior citizens than a full-blown copy of Windows or a Mac. And people comfortable with Windows XP can find versions of Linux that mimic XP. One of the cheap laptops running Linux ships with a simple interface but it can be reset to the normal user interface of the underlying Xandros Linux.

Linux benefits out of the box from being immune to the vast majority of malicious software being spread online. Thus, children, senior citizens and anyone else craving simplicity doesn't have to deal with anti-virus and anti-spyware software.

The Cloudbook has a normal hard disk, but that won't last. The future for ultra-cheap laptops is flash (a.k.a. SSDs or solid state devices) and flash ram is expensive. All laptops benefit from flash ram because it's rugged, consumes less power (no moving parts) and creates less heat. Cheap small Linux machines especially need the faster read time offered by flash ram, it helps offset their relatively slow processors.

But, to keep the machines cheap, flash ram needs to be minimized. Linux is a perfect fit because it needs relatively little hard disk space. The $300 version of the Asus Eee PC has a 2 gigabyte "hard drive" that fits the operating system, applications and still leaves room for some of your data files. Try that with Vista or XP.

Microsoft may be able to brow-beat the world into using Vista on fully functional PCs, but if they walk away from XP on simple, cheap computers and cede the market to Linux, they are a dead man walking.

*How many of us believe that the free tech support from Microsoft will be useful? For example, see this item from Leo Notenboom about how Microsoft was unable to help him install a legal copy of Windows XP. They didn't know what their own error message meant. Incompetent being the applicable word.

**See my Linux vs. Windows page

Software can be made pretty reliable, lots of people and companies know how to do so. The auto-pilot on an airplane comes to mind, as do the computers that run financial markets. Then there's mainframe computers, perhaps the classic example of reliability (I spent many years working in a mainframe environment). But chances are that the computer you are reading this on is not as reliable as it could be.

Impolite Waiter

Let's start with an analogy. How would you feel if you were in a restaurant, in the middle of your meal, and the waiter takes your food away? It's a breach of the rules; food isn't supposed to be removed while the customer is eating.

Windows XP is that waiter. It lets you delete a file while an application is using it.

I ran into this recently while viewing an image with the popular IrfanView program. I was cleaning up files and deleted some pictures only to realize later that IrfanView was still running, minimized in the taskbar, and viewing one of the just deleted pictures.

This should never be allowed to happen, and it doesn't on a mainframe.

Windows knows full well what picture IrfanView is using. IrfanView didn't scan the sectors on the hard disk by itself to figure out which ones constitute the picture. It asked Windows to grant it access to the file. But when it comes time to delete a file, Windows has amnesia.

IrfanView is only one example. Windows XP will delete pictures while they are being used by a running copy of both Paint and the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer too.

Adding insult to injury is that Windows makes the opposite mistake too. Many times when I'm finished using the files on a USB flash drive, the Windows "Safely remove hardware" function won't let go because it thinks one or more of the files are still in use.

Multiple Updaters

Open a file in WordPad. Then open the same file in Open Office. Now both programs updating the same file at the same time. How come no one at Microsoft ever saw this as a problem?

To be clear, the gripe here is about Windows XP, not WordPad or Open Office. The operating system is in charge of the files. It has the responsibility for integrity, so it should not allow two programs, any two programs, to update the same file at the same time. Anyone with a database background knows what comes next.

Open a plain text file with Notepad and then open the same file with AbiWord (again the specific applications are not the issue). Make a change to the file with Notepad, save it and close Notepad. Open Notepad again and you will see the change that it just made. Now make a change with AbiWord and save the file. The change that Notepad made is gone. Disgraceful.

Ubuntu Linux

There's no gloating in Linux land either.

In a virtual machine running Ubuntu 7.04, I double-clicked on an image and opened it in the default application, Eye of Gnome. Here too, I was able to delete the image while viewing it. I also tried opening an rtf file in Open Office v2.2. Again, I could delete the file while an application was using it.

Ubuntu fared no better with multiple editors. I was able to open a file in both gedit and Open Office v2.2 at the same time. Changes made in gedit and saved, were wiped out by later changes made in Open Office. Just like Windows XP.

Java

This brings to mind my initial experience with the Java programming language back in February of 2001. The first thing I did was to write a simple program that added two numbers and printed the result.

To explain why I chose this as my first Java program, let's suppose that all numbers are limited to a single decimal digit. Then, if you add 1 and 1 you get 2. But, if you add 4 and 8, you should get an error since the result is larger than a single digit.

Along these lines, Java has a numeric data type called "integer" which is used for integer numbers up to 2,147,483,647 (let's call it 2.1 billion for the sake of argument). In my first Java program, I added two integer numbers and stored the result in a third integer - the code is below:

int var1, var2, var3;
var1 = 2111000333;
var2 = 1000222333;
var3 = var1 + var2;
System.out.println("var3=" + var3);

This adds 2,111,000,333 and 1,000,222,333. The result--roughly 3.1 billion--is too large to fit in an "integer" variable. I wanted to see how Java handled this. The result was:

var3=-1183744630

Not only is the answer wrong, but Java didn't crash, as I expected it would. Mainframe programs crash when they encounter this type of error - better to fail than produce wrong results.

Java didn't even issue an error message.

Update: October 22, 2007. I was asked by CNET if the above Java issue still exists. It does. Using Sun's JDK version 1.6.0_03 on Windows XP, I was able to re-create the problem. A screen shot is below.

One of the advantages of Apple Macintosh computers is that simply by not being Windows, they are immune to the plague of malware (malicious software) that constantly strikes at Windows based machines. Linux has this advantage too, plus it's cheaper. A computer running Linux can cost around a fifth as much as a Mac (more on this later).

The classic knock on Linux, when compared to Windows and Macs, has always been that it was harder to use, and indeed it was. But release after release it kept getting easier. How easy is it, now, for a Windows user to move to Linux? According to one blogger, it's easy enough for his mother. See Why My Mom Can Use Ubuntu.

My consulting practice puts me in contact with people with little computer experience, some who struggle just to use Windows, let alone deal with the care and feeding of anti-virus and anti-spyware software. Linux offers the opportunity to use an operating system where the user doesn't need to to deal with anti-anything software.

Another advantage that Linux has over a Macintosh is that many versions ("distro" is the nerd term) can run from a bootable CD. That is, you can run Linux on a computer that doesn't even have a hard drive. For one of my clients, a couple of senior citizens, this was just what the doctor ordered.

I was called because their copy of Windows 2000 was terribly infected with malware. But the machine was old, and since removing malware can be a time consuming and ultimately fruitless endeavor, we opted not to bother. Buying a new computer however, takes time and they really needed email. Linux to the resue.

Like any good computer nerd, I travel with a Linux Live CD (a copy of Linux on a bootable CD) in my little black bag. After booting their machine using Knoppix all that was needed was a quick introduction to Firefox. They were familiar with webmail, so Firefox was all they needed. Knoppix never had a problem automatically detecting their broadband modem and connecting to the Internet. To my amazement, they chose to live with Knoppix for months before eventually buying a new Windows computer.

Installing

There is however a big difference between using Linux and it's initial setup, which can be much too difficult.

For example, I recently installed Ubuntu Linux on a computer connected to a KVM switch. The switch probably got in the way of Ubuntu detecting the monitor and the system booted using a 640x480 screen resolution. Making matters worse, the GUI interface wouldn't change the resolution. I searched around the Internet for solutions but found nothing simple enough for a non-Linux expert (me) to deal with.

The mom in the story got her computer with Ubuntu Linux pre-configured by someone expert enough in the matter who "... set up the few codecs, a proprietary video driver, a quick EasyUbuntu...". Not to mention installing mom's printer, software to replace Microsoft Publisher and, hopefully, a firewall.

But once it's installed, the learning curve going from Windows XP to Linux is probably about the same as going from Windows XP to Vista. Ironically, the time and effort Microsoft put into the Vista user interface just plays into the hands of Apple and Linux.

20 Percent

My earlier claim that Linux can cost 20% as much as a Macintosh, assumes not only getting the operating system for free, but also running it on an old computer. The ability to run on a wide variety of hardware is a big advantage of Linux compared to Macs.

At what passes for press time in the blogging world, CompGeeks.com was selling a refurbished IBM NetVista desktop computer with a Pentium 4 processor running at 1.8GHz, 512megabytes of ram, a 40 gigabyte hard drive and no operating system for $105 (plus tax and shipping). It can't read DVDs and the USB ports are probably version 1, but it's capable of running a current version of Linux. In all, CompGeeks is selling twenty seven Pentium 4 based machines for under $200. This is not an endorsement of CompGeeks. I'm just using them as an example of a retailer selling old, refurbished computers capable of running Linux.

If you feel more comfortable dealing with a major computer manufacturer, the clearance section of HP's website offers refurbished machines with a one year warranty. Today they offered a handful of HP DX2250 machines for under $300. For example, a machine with 512 megabytes of ram and an 80 gigabyte hard drive could have been had for $223 (plus tax and shipping).

Software

Finding software for a new operating system that is equivalent to the software you already use, is obviously critical to any changeover. Some obvious Linux choices are Firefox for web browsing, Thunderbird for email and Open Office for word processing, spreadsheets, drawing, presentations and database. Adobe has a version of their Acrobat Reader for Linux. They also offer Flash v9, but it is only supported on two versions of Linux. All this software is free.

For the more adventurous, some Windows applications can be run directly on Linux. The first time I tried this it seemed like magic. Just today I learned of the free IEs 4 Linux which lets you run Internet Explorer version 6 on Linux, for the few websites that require IE. Wine is a step up, it lets you run dozens of Windows applications on Linux. Wine is included in some versions of Linux, but it can always be downloaded and installed if need be. Wine is free, and forms the foundation for the commercial Crossover Office which specializes in running Microsoft Office under Linux.

But what if you (or your mother) needs to run a Windows program that is not supported by Wine or Crossover Office?

A big plus for the new Intel based Macs is that they can run both the Mac OS X and Windows side by side using virtual machine software from either Parallels or VMware. This lets you run any Windows application on a Macintosh. Linux can do this too.

Today, VMware sells Fusion for the Mac for $60, but a $20 mail-in rebate reduces that, eventually, to $40. Parallels sells their Mac based virtual machine program (Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac) for $80.

Linux users have two very different choices. They can get the free VMware player to run existing virtual machines, but, unlike the Mac products, the VMware player can not create new virtual machines. For this, VMware offers their full featured Workstation product. However, VMware Workstation is expensive ($190 to download, $210 in a box) and the intended audience is techies.

Running virtual machines under Linux requires additional horsepower and likely rules out the cheap computers mentioned above. VMware says their Workstation product only needs 512 megabytes of RAM, but doubling this is probably the better way to go.

Downside

If you're going to move your mother off Windows, be aware that the big downside to Linux is technical support. This is an area where Apple excels, their technical support is constantly rated the best in the industry. Free versions of Linux, like all free software, come without technical support.

If your mom doesn't know a computer nerd, she can opt for a commercial version of Linux (typically selling for $50 to $100) that includes tech support. Or, you can buy her a computer with Linux pre-installed.

If you want to learn more, there is a Linux vs. Windows comparison on my personal web site.

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Update: October 7, 2007. Major revision to the software topic.