Linux vs Windows vs Mac Performance , Gaming Difference

You must have heard of Linux OS. After reading this article you will know everything about it. This will cover all the aspects of Linux operating system.

About Linux – History of Linux / Linux History Timeline

Linux is an unix based operating system. It was developed by Linus Torvalds. It is an open source operating system   which means it is not owned by anyone or any organisation. It is a very powerful operating system for any user who is searching an alternative to windows OS. Linux was developed in 1991. It was the period of hardware upgrade. At that time DOS & Mac were the only operating system for the computers. As DOS was economical for the PC users while Mac was lot more expensive than DOS. In same decade , Linus Torvalds who was studying in the Helsinki university created a new core operating system. After the development was completed , it was given away by him for free.

Linux Academy Linux Architecture Linux Kernel

Now linux is one of the mostly used operating system in the IT sector for the security reasons. It is the favorite OS for the servers as it can work for years without any reboot or maintenance.

Reasons of linux for becoming so popular

There are various reasons why linux has become the most popular operating system in the IT sector businesses. We are writing some of those features which will make you fall in love with linux OS.

  • The first most interesting part of linux is that nobody owns it’s source code. The source code is also given free with this operating system. The source code can be modified by the user if the user wants to customize the Linux core according to his needs. There are no complex license agreements as in the case of windows or Mac.
  • There is no cost for this operating system. The core of linux comes with general public license or GNU. It is a very robust OS used in very big organisations. It can handle any number of users irrelevant of their resource usage. It is also very helpful in networking applications. Sometimes when a network computer or a server having very low disk space , linux handles the users request very efficiently.
  • Linux is a very hardware independent OS which can work in any type of hardware. Because of this portability it runs on variety of machines like PCs, Macs, mainframes, supercomputers, some cell phones and industrial robots. It also works in dual boot like windows & linux OR Linux & Mac. A very popular Linux operating in laptop computer is Ubuntu.
  • As we are in the threatening world of Viruses, malware attacks & other malicious activities. Linux is safe from all types of such attacks. This is because the platform is very less & the people who are using this OS are mostly ethical users of It industry.
  • As we told you above that the linux is open source , that is why the application software which are used in this platform are also freeware to the linux users.

Limitations Of Linux

As anything in this world is not perfect. There are some disadvantages of the OS. We are going to describe them to you so that you can be well informed about the operating system.

Disadvantages of Linux OS

  • The programs that were used in windows will be longer useful for linux. The application of windows software are of .exe format while Linux does not support .exe. Linux supports .gz, .tgz ,.ps & .txt. But now from some previous years windows emulator has been developed by the companies to fill the gap between windows & Linux OS.
  • There are very less peripherals like printer, scanner etc which are compatible with linux OS. However there are some hardware available which are used with linux OS. But the number of such hardware is very less.For example HP has provided a variety of hardware that is compatible with linux platform.
  • If any windows user who has just switched to the linux platform , he must be too much dependent on the GUI. However there is much better GUI in Linux as compared to the windows , but there are variety of functions that are done by commands in linux, their function is much better than the graphical one.

Linux vs Windows – Difference between Linux and Windows Operating System

  1. Linux kernel & GNU utilities are free to use. There is no money required to use linux OS. While if you want to use a windows operating system than you have to pay around $99 or more to use the Windows operating system.
  2. If any person who wants to work in linux based environment than he must need the deeper understanding with the linux working environment while if we talk about windows, then it is the easiest OS to use because of its GUI & user friendly features.If a windows user has to switch directly to Linux Os then he must learn many other things in order to work in the linux environment.
  3. Linux is way too reliable in terms of usage & real time processing. In the years of improvement windows has become more reliable than ever but still the level of reliability is much higher in linux as compared to the windows OS.
  4. Software Availability :- If you the check the variety of software that windows support is very high as compared to the linux. There are very less software which are supported in linux based OS while in case of windows , windows has the highest number of applications that support it’s platform.
  5. Cost of software :- The software that are available for linux is free while the softwares that are used in windows are not free & need money to purchase them.
  6. Security : The level of security is much higher in Linux to windows. The source code of the linux is available to the users. This enables the user to check & analyze the attack in the system. The vulnerability of Linux OS is less than Windows OS.
  7. Applications :- The application of linux OS is mostly scientfic & organisational. Linux is used in Servers , businesses, NASA. It can work with old hardware as well. Windows are used in home, gaming & entertainment. The software need to be upgraded regularly & the OS do not work in older hardwares.

Also Read : How to remove virus without Anti-virus

Linux vs Macintosh – Mac Vs Linux For Programming

Mac PC runs on OSX. Mac is a product of Apple Inc. There are aspects on which we will compare both OS in the many aspects.

Mac OS vs Linux Differences

  1. Flexibility :- If we use a OSX after using linux then we will see that there is not much independence for a user to do anything. For example if you want o change the desktop in a Mac PC then then you have to download Theme pack which will let you do this. In the case of linux this can be done in two or three clicks.Even linux can let you change the taskbar appearance by installing a different desktop manager.
  2. Open Source :- Apple took the BSD kernel to develop its own kernel known as darwin kernel. After that it was licensed under apple public source which is registered under Free Software Foundation. This Darwin kernel is still locked with Apple. Linux kernel is an open source to every user. Once Apple & open source has worked together to create OpenDarwin Kernel which is a hybrid of Linux & Mac OS.
  3. Command Line : OSX users don’t have much knowledge or need to work with command line. But every techy knows that the importance of command line is more when you need admin acess to the PC. In other words to have an administrative acess to a Mac PC, there are not enough commands in OSX.
  4. Hardware compatibility : In a PC who does not have much advance hardware in it, then OSX will not work better in that. But if we run a linux OS in it, the same PC will work better in terms of performance. Performance of OSX is very much dependant on hardware. Linux is not the same like Mac.
  5. Security : In terms of security , I witnessed a competition in which there were three platforms i.e. windows, linux & Mac. While both windows & linux were hacked & linux was not.The tools for the security are more advanced in linux as compared to Mac or Windows. Mac is also a secure OS but the level of securty that linux has can’t be compared.
  6. Portable:- Linux can be run on any machine unless its size or old hardware. Mac is not as portable in every computer. Linux data can be placed in either 64 bit or 32 bit. While in the Mac computer the files have restricted support in same architecture.
  7. Cost : The cost of using a Mac Machine is very higher. Th cheapest Mac I know is $ 1000. While linux can run on any old machine too. The cost of using the basic features of linux can be made by just an old computer & the Installation CD of Linux. While If you will use an old machine for running Mac OS you will suffer very slow response in Mac.
Linux OS


Now you know the various aspects of linux with other operating system. Linux is a freeware OS. Basically it is a kernel. Linux distributions take this kernel & combine with other software packages in order to provide different Linux distribution. If you will take the kernel & use it without any distribution than it will consume a lot of time in doing this.
You can use any of these Distribution in order to work in a linux environment.

Ubuntu Philosophy

Ubuntu is a very popular linux which is based on debian repositories. It works on GNOME 2 & Unity desktop environment.It updates Long term support(LTS) after every two years. In future there will be Ubuntu running on smartphones & tablet.

Ubuntu Linux
Ubuntu Linux

Linux Mint

Mint is based on Ubuntu Linux. Both ubuntu & mint uses same software repositories. Linuxmint is an loveable alternative to Ubuntu as it contains all the codecs & proprietary software which are not included in Ubuntu. It uses a traditional desktop called cinnamon desktop. It won’t let critical software updates which declared it as an insecure OS.

Linux Mint

Debian Wheezy OS

It composed of open source software.The project was started in 1993. From the last 24 years it is still releasing newer versions. They are releasing newer versions very slowly as compared to others. This long time of work make this distribution more secure than others. Their main aim is to provide an secure OS with more user-friendly features.

debian wheezy OS

Red Hat Enterprise Linux

It is a commercial linux distribution based on fedora linux. Now the latest version are coming with collaboration with centOS. All the newer versions will be made by CentOS & Red hat. Officially CentOS is a part of red hat now.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux

OpenSuse Linux Tumbleweed

OpenSuse is a bleeding edge version of linux. In 2003 Novell purchased the OpenSuse. Once Opensuse was the best Linux in terms of user friendly feature, now ubuntu has taken the crown from it.

Open Suse

Kali Linux – Hackers Paradise

Kali Linux is debian based OS designed specifically for forensics & Penetration testing.It  is developed & maintained by an organisation called Offensive Security Ltd.It consists of more than 300 penetration testing tools.

Kali linux

Arch Linux Beginners Guide

It is based on KISS (keep it simple , stupid) principle.It is designed for computers that are of i686 and x86-64 architectures.It is mostly works under binary packages.

Install Arch Linux 2017.05.01

Parrot linux / Parrot Linux 3.6 Parrot AIR

This is also a debian based Os. It is designed for specific tasks such as Vulnerability Assessment and Mitigation, Forensics and Anonymous Web Browsing. It is made by Frozen Team.The latest version of parrot linux is Parrot 3.4.1 named as CyberFrigate.

Parrot Linux


Also Read : Learn Ethical Hacking Online

These are some of the popular linux distribution which are used by me personally. If you are trying to select any of them for the learning you can download any of them from their official websites.
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