2. Comparison between Wintel and
Unix
Wintel Unix
Price Microsoft Windows can cost a The majority of Linux variants
considerable amount per each are available for free or at a
licensed copy. much lower price than
Microsoft Windows.
Ease of Use Microsoft has made several Although the majority Linux
advancements and changes that variants have improved
have made it a much easier to dramatically in ease of
use operating system, and use, Windows is still much
although arguably it may not be easier to use for new computer
the easiest operating system, it is users.
still Easier than Linux.
Microsoft Windows is not open Many of the Linux variants and
Open source source and the majority of many Linux programs are open
Windows programs are not open source and enable users to
source. customize or modify the code
however they wish to.
3. Comparison between Wintel and
Unix(cont…)
Wintel Unix
Reliability Although Microsoft Windows has The majority of Linux variants
made great improvements in and versions are notoriously
reliability over the last few reliable and can often run for
versions of Windows, it still months and years without
cannot match the reliability of needing to be rebooted.
Linux.
Software Because of the large amount of Linux has a large variety of
Microsoft Windows users, there is available software programs and
a much larger selection of utilities. However, Windows has
available software programs, a much larger selection of
utilities, and games for Windows. available software.
4. Comparison between Wintel and
Unix(con…)
Wintel Unix
Software cost Although Windows does have Many of the available software
software programs, utilities, and programs and utilities available on
games for free, the majority of Linux are freeware and/or open
the software the costs can be source. Even such complex
considerable programs such as Gimp, Open
Office, Star Office, and wine are
available for free or at a low cost.
Hardware Because of the amount of Linux companies and hardware
Microsoft Windows users and manufacturers have made great
the broader driver support, advancements in hardware support
Windows has a much larger for Linux and today Linux will
support for hardware devices support most hardware devices.
and a good majority of hardware However, many companies still do
manufacturers will support their not offer drivers or support for
products in Microsoft Windows. their hardware in Linux.
5. Comparison between Wintel and
Unix(con…)
Wintel Unix
Security Although Microsoft has made Linux is and has always been a
great improvements over the years very secure operating system.
with security on their operating Although it still can be attacked
system, their operating system when compared to Windows, it
continues to be the most much more secure.
vulnerable to viruses and other
attacks.
Support Microsoft Windows includes its Although it may be more
own help section, has vast amount difficult to find users familiar
of available online documentation with all Linux variants, there
and help, as well as books on each are vast amounts of available
of the versions of Windows. online documentation and help,
available books, and support
available for Linux.
6. Advantage of Wintel and Unix
Wintel Unix
Lots of software and games are developed for more control and flexibility.
windows.
Unix has greater built-in security and
Windows is user friendly. permissions features than Windows.
The main difference is Windows uses a GUI Unix possesses much greater processing
(Graphical User Interface) and UNIX does not. power than Windows.
In Windows one uses the click of a mouse to
execute a command where as in UNIX one less administration and maintenance.
must type in a command.
Unix is more flexible and can be installed on
Windows can often more easily be installed many different types of machines, including
and configured to run on cheaper hardware to main-frame computers, supercomputers and
run a desired 3rd party product. micro-computers.
Windows hosting is more easily made
compatible with UNIX-based programming
features like PHP and MySQL.
7. Disadvantage of Wintel and Unix
Wintel Unix
Very bloated with many features most Front Page Extensions
people don't use, thus slowing down the If you are using Microsoft Front Page to develop
computer and takes excessive hard drive your website, you will need to make sure that your
space. However this shouldn't be much of a Unix host offers Front Page extensions. If you don’t
problem with newer computers. have these extensions, you will not be able to use
Front Page to its complete abilities. Most Unix
There are many viruses programmed for based hosts are now offering these extensions, but
windows. there are still several that do not.
No .ASP
Can get a little pricey. If you plan to use Active Server Pages or .ASP for
your website, you will not be able to use this
Wintel has lower built-in security and language on a Unix server. Since this scripting
permissions features than Unix language is gaining in popularity, this can be a
tremendous downside if you select a Unix based
host.
No Visual Basic
Like .ASP, Visual Basic is not supported on Unix
based hosting, so again, if you plan to use this, or
8. Conclusion
The best way to choose between UNIX and windows is
to determine organizational needs. If an organization
uses mostly Microsoft products, such as access, front
page, or vbscripts, it's probably better to stick with
windows.
