computers-R-stupid

Libre Music Production discusses and promotes Linux audio with interviews, plug-in reviews and tutorials.

Musician Scott Peterson, in a LMP interview, makes a case (pro and con) for using Linux:

And of course, my maker leanings are the same that inspired me to learn Linux and begin moving away from proprietary computer hardware and software. Once you buy into, say, the Apple ecosystem you are trapped. Yes it works, yes it’s stable, yes in many ways it’s great. However, once Apple starts removing ports, removing the ability to install after-market upgrades, or control what applications are installed on your computer/iPhone, there’s nothing you can do about it: you have already bought into a (very expensive) hardware/software system (a Technosystem if you will) and extricating oneself from it can be difficult as it requires the learning of new tools, new software, a new OS, etc.

In a society increasingly bound together by "tech" it's becoming easier for banks, businesses and governments to own you because of this learning curve issue. (See, e.g., Munich's attempt to wean itself from Microsoft). Even without maker leanings (the urge to solder parts and/or assemble your own motherboard) you might simply want to avoid owing your soul to the company store, as the song goes, by switching to a software realm based on principles of openness, collaboration, and intellectual freedom. Sounds corny but Apple, Google, and Microsoft are not the place for "hope and change" any more than Obama was.

The city government of Munich, Germany switched from Windows to Linux in 2004 but appears to be on verge of returning to the Borg. Tech Republic gives some background:

At the time Munich began the move to LiMux in 2004 it was one of the largest organizations to reject Windows, and Microsoft took the city's leaving so seriously that then CEO Steve Ballmer flew to Munich to meet the mayor. More recently, Microsoft last year moved its German company headquarters to Munich.

Microsoft's tactics seem to have paid off, as Munich's politicos are "poised" to vote next week for a move to Windows 10. It's ironic that as Linux has improved over the last ten years, Microsoft has gotten worse, and the most compelling argument for a business or government to use it is still "everyone else does." Meanwhile, ordinary consumers overwhelmingly reside in Apple-or-Google-land, because they are all using "devices."