[GRLUG] value of time and why I run Linux

[Adam Tauno Williams]

On Sun, 2009-08-02 at 10:57 -0400, Michael Mol wrote:
> On Sun, Aug 2, 2009 at 10:25 AM, Adam Tauno
> Williams<awilliam at whitemice.org> wrote:
> >> your machine reboot because a bunch of patches got downloaded, or having
> >> something break because a "patch" was downloaded a control issue, but
> >> because I want something that works and doesn't freeze up because of a
> >> code picked up in passing from a google search.
> > I use an Vista VM quite a bit and other than things getting mucked up my
> > installers [and I am testing alpha/beta software] I don't really have
> > any stability issues.  Starting with XP I think most of the Windows
> > workstation stability issues were resolved,  the once a week reboot for
> > updates doesn't bother me.
> The kernel is rock solid from XPSP2 onward.  The changes they've made
> to their graphical shell in Vista weren't so well-thought-out, though,

I'd say that is putting it kindly.  I wonder if the UI changes would
have made more sense [had more of a context] if so many features hadn't
been yanked from the released version [WinFS and other features I can't
remember now - but remember reading about].

> and Explorer is now much more sensitive to badly-behaved shell
> extensions (and other things) causing system-wide UI hangs.

True.  But I cut them some slack for this;  writing a stable and
pluggable asyncronous system is *HARD*.  Somedays it seems like the
choices are (a) pluggable or (b) stable.

> Their official patch cycle is monthly, but they occasionally push out
> high-priority patches in response to urgent threats, and they
> occasionally push out patches that override your local "ask me before
> installing" settings.

Yep, but we [and most enterprises?] operate our own WSUS servers; so we
control the release of updates.  I usually dribble them out a few every
week verses the once month slam - especially during periods then they
come out fast-and-furious.  A WSUS server is pretty easy to setup.

> Additionally, my workspace grows as I use it, with a number of
> programs and tools running long-term and concurrently, text editors
> acting as temporary paste buffers--enough that I'll hibernate rather
> than log out.  Coming into the office and discovering Microsoft
> decided my computer was going to reboot, no ifs, ands or buts about
> it, means time wasted as things grow back to where I'm most
> productive.  More exciting is when I'm still at the office when the
> system decides it's going to reboot; I get a window saying the system
> is going to reboot to install system updates in N seconds.

If your network policy permits it can you just turn off automatic
updates?  I do that on both my Microsoft and LINUX boxes.  Then I
manually run updates when it is convenient for me - such as NOT running
any updates before I go on vacation.