Basic tools...

At first look it may seem that computing is expensive and that the retail software world has taken over, but believe me cats & kittens, it has not. I use an almost cost free tool-set that I have developed over the years, which I am here to share with you. This toolset builds my typical Windows workstation, most of which can apply to sever groups as well, so let's get down to business and dive into what we need to do.

The first choice we all have to make is what OS or Operating System we're going to use. Now, remember our core philosophy; Low Cost! Which means that we need to embrace the Open-source /Freeware /Shareware communities. Although I given wikipedia links, let me take a minute to describe what those terms mean to me:

Open-source This primarily means that the software is freely available for your use, which can be used in your system builds, Kickstarts, or Slipstreams, as long as you give credit where credit is due and do not try sell the software. For the more ambitious, software development driven of us, the software is available to be worked upon and hopefully improved. In this, there is little direct support for the software, although there tends to be a variety of support options on the internet if you look around.
*Sourceforge.net is a very nice place to find open-source applications.

Freeware: Means that you can freely use the software, although you are not able to sell or modify it. Typically it's fully functional software, where the developers work for tips. Technical support is limited much like open-source software, but the developers tend to provide a more in depth web-site including FAQs & contact information.

Shareware: Is typically freely available, although limited in function or in license options. There is laways a fully functioning retail version that can easily be purchased. There is a wider range of support options, even for the trial versions, but to really capture the power of the software you typically have to pay for it. Typically but always...

*CNetDownloads is my favorite site for quick & safe downloads for Freeware & Sharewaere, although there are many others, this one has been around for years and has a some wonderful reviews for almost every technology available.

Now that you understand a little more about what it is that I am talking about, we will move onto the primary decision, and that is the choice of what OS you want to use.

Although we are borrowing a philosophy from the Linux community, the OS of our choice will be the one we are all most likely to have, Windows. I know what your thinking, how is Windows a low cost solution? Well let's face it, unless you are building your own computer the cost of Windows is built into your system from the manufacturer.

There are other options available to us, such as Mac's OSX or a Linux distribution. The sheer cost of a Mac disqualifies it from this list (although beyond a slightly elevated cost, there is no other reason not to go Mac, but that is for another blog)
Linux distribution like Ubuntu or CentOS, both have excellent community support available. CentOS is an open-source redistribution of the retail packaged Red Hat Enterprise or RHEL Support posts tend to point you towards command-line interfaces and applications.
Ubuntu is a 100% community developed and supported operating system which embraces the GUI interface.

In truth, we can run our Windows based systems using the same philosophy as a Linux system and minimize our overall computing costs.

Here is what we need to put on our system :

1. Productivity: text, spreadsheet & presentation
2. Communication: email, chat, video & voice
   
3. Maintenance & security: backup, system clean up, anti-virus & anti-spy/malware
4. Entertainment: watch movies, online videos & listen to music

Posts will follow breaking down the specifics of what I use and why I use it.