A Linux tale -- somebody tries to switch from XP and get real work done

I found my way to this great Computerworld article in which the magazine/Web site's Sharon Marchlis tries to go from Windows XP to SUSE Linux. It gets into everything from configuration to trying to either replace some apps with Linux equivalents or run them under emulation. It's a warts and all look at the challenges facing Linux on the desktop:

I expected to be a poster child for the next wave of Linux desktop adopters. I wanted to be. I like the whole idea of a technically macho, open-source operating system -- one that doesn't assume we all must be protected from an operating system's inner workings. I don't fear command lines, and enjoy fiddling around with programming.

It turns out that an intermediate-level power user may not be the ideal next desktop Linux demographic.

It was possible for me to do most, but not all, of my work on a Linux system. There are some applications I'd miss if I were to make the switch permanently, but I believe I could adequately replace them after sufficient research and time rewriting scripts.

To put it in perspective, she wants to run some crazy stuff, like Lotus Notes (turns out there is a Linux version out there), and a text editor called NoteTab Pro. While I like EditPad a lot (and there is a version for Linux, but development on that platform isn't slated to continue), there are plenty of text editors in the Linux world ... but Lotus Notes??? And she doesn't want to throw out all her Photoshop knowledge to learn The GIMP. For me, I probably spent a total of 10 minutes on Photoshop during my entire life, but now I use The GIMP daily in Windows, and I'm pretty happy with it.

Machlis tries to get her text editor running thorugh Crossover Linux's implementation of Wine, and it doesn't go well. I sure wish I heard more success stories with Wine than I do.

And she also gets it right when it comes to syncing her Palm T/X. I'm sure it's doable in Linux, but it's got to be made a whole lot easier. Palm Desktop for Windows and Mac has the look and feel of a program that hasn't been updated in years. At least it runs fast. If Palm could only port it to Linux ... that would be sweet.

What Machlis is saying is that there are workarounds for many of these problems, but nobody short of the precariously geeky wants to spend hours, days and weeks on trying to get basic functionality working.

I still maintain that there's a place for Linux on the desktop -- and we don't know where the OS will be five years from now.