Project: Bye-bye Windows, Hello Linux!

For some reason I’ve been itching to get rid of Windows and start using Linux. There are a multitude of reasons why this is important to me, here are a few highlights:

• Why I gotta ditch Windows:
  • The only reason I’ve been able to keep up with Windows is MSDN. I haven’t bought a Windows license, ever, except with a PC.
  • I’m certainly not going to upgrade to Vista (which is a different story on its own).
  • Windows is slow and bloated. A fresh install of XP seems to run OK, but with any service packs and patches, performance turns to sludge.
  • Microsoft (and vendors) have made Windows XP x64 a PITA as a desktop OS. Printer drivers, scanner drivers, everything is missing or incompatible.

• Why (I think) Linux is the way to go
  • I’ve been running my websites on LAMP (Linux, Apache, mySql, PHP) for over a year now, using only open-source software, and I love it.
    • (As a side note, at this point I’ve easily donated more to the software I use than I’ve actually spent buying software in more than 10 years.
  • No licensing fees, no crap-tacular activation “features”.
  • Most of the Linux distros have spent a lot of time on their UI and driver support to make sure Linux can be used a desktop OS.
  • I can still run Windows in a VM if I need particular Windows functions or applications.
  • I’m a geek - and geeks use Linux.

My biggest issue with this transition has been my extensive use of Quicken for the past five years. I’ve explored a few possibilities, which I will be blogging more about as I try, learn, and evaluate over the next few days, weeks, and months:

• KMyMoney - Free, open source, money management software for Linux.
• GNUCash - Free, open source, money management software for Linux.
• Mvelopes - Online budget management software (requires Flash 9)
• MoneyDance - Commercial money management software for Linux, Windows, and <ugh!> Mac.

Due to my experience with Quicken, the following applications were deemed not good enough for me, for various reasons:

• jGnash - Free software, no bank integration (QIF import only)
• Buddi - Free software, no bank integration (QIF import only)
• Yodlee! - Online bank & bill aggregator. Doesn’t help me budget and predict income & outflows.

I’d love to hear anyone else’s suggestions of what I can use to replace Quicken.

For now I’ve settled on Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy) 32-bit. I can run 64 bit with my CPU, but there are a few things that don’t seem to work well, like the Flash plugin for Firefox.

Enough for now. I’ll publish more when I have more to say.