DSF

As you will no doubt be aware, Microsoft announced support for Windows 7 will end in just a few days time. Theoretically this leaves users open to all sorts of nasties, malware, viruses and so on.

The obvious option is to upgrade to Win10 which can still be done FOC if you have a Win7/8 serial number. I like many others had settled with Win7. Whilst not the biggest Microsoft fan, Win7 on the whole has worked for me. I do have Win10 on another PC which is used very occasionally and I'm not keen. So I started to look at the alternatives, namely a Linux distribution.

I've played with Linux over the years but nothing too serious. This time I thought I'd really go for it. Having attempted the Win10 update on my main PC which failed I thought I'd have a good go at replacing Windows once and for all.

There are many Linux Distros out there but I'm working with Linux Mint which seems to get great reviews and has fantastic support. I've built a cheap PC solely for testing on so I don't mess up my main systems! Linux can be run on very limited, older systems.

I'm writing this message on my laptop which I've just upgraded to Linux Mint. I've installed Windows 7 on a VirtualBox so it has the protection of being inside Linux but can be run full screen should the need arise to run anything Linux struggles with.

I'm playing with the alternative software, Gimp, Krita etc. and also colour management which I see can be controlled in Gimp now.

I'm still a way off replacing Windows, Photoshop etc. but have made good progress with Linux this last couple of days and I'm finding my feet on the excellent platform.

Interested to start discussions with folk considering doing the same or already running Linux and also the possibility longer term of using it for printing sublimation etc. I'm still a Linux newbie but learning daily

I'm typing this from my laptop running linux ubuntu but the laptop was previously windows 7.

I have a pc with windows 10 but the one my big plotter runs from is windows 7 which I no longer have online so should be safe. There are no updated drivers for my plotter and the pc is old and cranky so expecting it to stop working soon. When this happens will try one of my silhouettes on ubuntu and use the other with windows 10

I quite like ubuntu except for installing programs and having to input code which has made me appreciate windows all the more. It's difficult to find programs similar to microsoft ones to run on linux although my lack of desire to learn new software isn't helping.

I have a small laptop/tablet which I also installed ubuntu on as windows took up the whole 32gb plus most of the SD card whereas ubuntu takes up 4gb.

I like ubuntu for coming online and browsing but doubt I could use it for business although as I can retire in 2 months I might not need that option lol

you can ruin win 7 as a 'virtual machine' within windows 10 etc
I still run XP that way for my dc12

Progressing well with Linux Mint, stability, boot times, shut down times, browsing etc. are like night and day when compared with Windows Setup is a breeze and takes no time at all to install. Updates are handled incredibly well.

I read that Win 10 continues to be a 'buggy mess' with latest updates causing issues where customers are unable to boot.

I upgraded one of my Win7 drives to Win10 successfully (2nd attempt). Having played with this it appears [pretty stable but somewhat slower in use than Win7

Libre-Office is a great alternative to MS Office and can be configured to look a little similar for familiarity. Of course, you can still use Office 365 and some versions of Office will run on Linux using the Wine Emulator.

Krita, Gimp & Photopea all have their place as an alternative to Photoshop. None of them give a direct replacement in my opinion but so far I believe I could live without Photoshop in favour of one or all of these free packages.

Setting up Win7 & Win 10 to run inside Linux using VirtualBox is very easy and you can run all 3 OS's at the same time.

The challenge now is setting up printers, RIPS etc. For the time being I can't see a way out of Windows but my intention is to continue with Linux as my main OS and use Windows as little as possible.

For all its faults, I still cannot convert from Windows as my main system. There's just an INCREDIBLE amount of software out there, free and otherwise, that tackles almost every problem I encounter.

I suppose, for business use, browsing, and basic dyesub work, Linux woud probably suffice, but I use my PC for a wide range of other activities and can't see anything even close to Windows at the moment.

I know most servers run on Linux, so it does have its place in the grand scheme of things, but I don't want to spend a lot of my precious time dealing with an alternative operating system that may, in the end, not meet my needs.

For those pondering trying Linux out, it's worth pointing out that Linux Mint (and other versions or'disto's') as well as being free feature the ability to boot from the usb/dvd drive so you can try it out without installing / touching your windoze install. - also good for accessing files on a harddrive when windoze won't boot:+)

Obviously it runs quicker once installed, but it gives you a feel of the system etc.

Good point Baldy, often runs quicker than Windoze that way anyway!

most of shop is Win 8 but have no issues with win 10 on admin type machines, - thou am still running XP on 3 (virtual) and NT on a server.
All good if set up properly.

Its more about driver availability and what you key software will run on than the OS

imho, newer OS generally more reliable than older ones