Why linux is liberating …
Tux
There was a time not very long ago when, the first thing I did after buying a computer was to stuff the latest Windows on it. But now, and for some time before now – I have been totally enthralled by linux. It was never a sudden fascination. No one can be fascinated by the command line ! It grew on me till I could appreciate what the linux movement really implied. Therefore, as a little advice and as an exercise in reminiscence – I will reiterate why linux changed me in more than ways than one.
At heart we are all creative. Yes ! You , your aunt , your mom, dad , sister, friend, girlfriend – everyone is built to be creative. Our language skills develop because we continuously improvise with it. Our physical self develops because we push ourselves in various ways to do many different things. We are alive and in the position to rule this planet because of one very important reason – we were creative enough to understand, adapt and then control the multitude of situations that time has thrown at us. For our long term survival, it is this trait that will be our guiding light.
Linux gives you the freedom to be unique ! It liberates you from the necessity to pay for running code on your hardware to create your unique ideas. Because this freedom comes right from the level of the operating system in your computer – it permeates all that you load and run on it (well almost !). Linux is not a product or a device or an algorithm. It is a confluence of ideas of many unique individuals, ideas built to empower the new computer user to create more unique ideas.
But not everyone wants you to be unique and creative. For the business of selling software, you are a better customer if your needs are predictable and your usage of your hardware is in the “standard” range of customer behavior. So it makes great sense for a software selling company to drive consumer behavior to an average line on their demographic map. The line that leads to the pile of money ! And so you are “encouraged” to buy the “propriety” software so that you can be the “power user”. If only you knew what that really means, you would think twice about being a “power user” !
Propriety and paid for software encourages talents no doubt. The money they can generate can fuel the aspirations of vast numbers of capable humans. There are many brilliant people in Adobe making the “best” photo-editing software. There are many talented folk at Microsoft making the next Windows ! But they are all driven to the same goals, their unique ideas snubbed by the same market forces that are providing their living. Amazingly this money flow generates conformist behavior at both ends !
Linux made me realize the joy of being in a position to exercise the full worth my ideas. From a harmless user who could make photos look cool on a screen, I can now write and deliver code that will do any number manipulations real time on any number of photos and serve them from an Internet domain name ! From a lame one trick pony listening to mp3′s and playing games, I have been transformed to a game maker – creating unique playing fields with sights and sounds which draw interested stares from other human beings ! I have been given the freedom to be unique.
There was a time when linux was that thing you put on your computer and typed endlessly on a black screen with white and yellow characters. Linux used to be for the nerds ! Mainly because it was made by some rebellious nerds. The average Joe cannot be expected to make an operating system can he ? But he can be expected to be unique and creative. And that was what made the average Joe the usability expert in the linux community ! To direct the tide toward a more user friendly and beautiful interface. There was KDE, Gnome, Enlightenment, OpenBox, ICEwm and many more gui interfaces for your favorite desktop. These were the reflections of many unique individuals and groups who strove to make the most “suitable” window manager for your system. Some were nerds, some graphic artists, some usability experts and some plain old grannies and granpas who used it and gave the most valuable thing – feedback. They cared to give feedback because they felt empowered by the system !
Today linux is a powerhouse of variety, usability, security and stability. There is a version for everyone. For those who have 20:20 vision to those who can barely see at all ! For those who want to play 3d games on their home PC to those who want to simulate hundreds of molecules interacting in 3d in virtual reality ! For those who want to write remote procedure calls on far away servers to those who just want to use Internet telephony to talk to their children studying in distant countries ! Linux has put many a helpless man back in the driving seat of his survival story.
If evolution can teach us one important lesson it is this – those who can adapt will survive. Linux enables us to be adaptive – to be what the situation demands and not what the software seller wants you to be. To be your own unique self – so that you can add to the creative pool of human endeavor. Linux is what will redeem us in the end from the monotonous zombie like existence that all of us fall prey to. Linux will liberate you not because linux wants to, but because you will never feel comfortable in those software chains again !
