Skip to main content
Engineering LibreTexts

01-A.8: Advantages and Disadvantages of Linux

  • Page ID
    26784
  • \( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \) \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)\(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)\(\newcommand{\AA}{\unicode[.8,0]{x212B}}\)

    Advantages of Using Linux

    Here are some of the major advantages of using Linux:

    • The FOSS essence promotes transparency.
    • Its design highlights its simplicity and modularity.
    • It is extremely customizable.
    • It is exceptionally reliable and stable.
    • It has a robust integration with the dominant programming languages, like C, C++, Python, Ruby, etc.
    • It places a priority on security and privacy.
    • It has a passionate community willing to provide support.

    Disadvantages of Using Linux

    • The main concern is there is no single, official version of Linux.
    • It is a bit more difficult to find distributions of Linux where you have vendor support.
    • Much of the commercial desktop software does not run on Linux.
    • It has gotten better, but there is still a pretty steep learning curve to move to Linux from Windows, or even MacOS.

    This page titled 01-A.8: Advantages and Disadvantages of Linux is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Patrick McClanahan.

    • Was this article helpful?