Why use Linux?

New users are often put off by Linux particularly if they have been using Windows for a long time; Windows does everything for you if you are just an 'ordinary desktop user' with no particular interest in computing per se and this really does suit a lot of people. But others have a different approach to IT - rather than taking a passive role when using their PC, some users want to get involved, to explore, to innovate, to create, write their own software and to really do things with their PCs. These users are often frustrated when using Windows - there is this constant feeling you're being treated as a dummy, nannied by the operating system and unable to do what you really want to do. If you are one of these users, then Linux is for you.

Linux is about getting involved - you could draw parallels with entertainment and cars; it's easy to sit and watch a show on TV but think of how much more fun it would be to get off that sofa and join an amateur dramatics group or form a jazz quartet with friends? It's the same with cars - anyone (well almost) can drive a family Ford and it's a rather boring experience but think of driving a Ferrari, Aston Martin or a double decker bus; they are not as easy to drive and they demand a lot from you but in return they'll give you anything but a boring experience! It is probably true to say using Linux and UNIX does require a different mindset and is likely to appeal to some more than others - it isn't for everyone but it's certainly worth a try if you've never used it before. You might be in for a pleasant surprise.

Thanks to graphical desktop environments like KDE, gnome and Unity, Linux has made its way onto desktops as a mainstream PC operating system and many users in the department use Linux for its stability and very low cost of ownership. But digging deeper, the real power lies in the underlying operating system - based on the original UNIX philosophy of a user command interface (the shell) that is also a powerful programming language in its own right, lots of small programs that often do just one job (and do it well) and underpinned by a very stable kernel, the things you can do with Linux are limited only by your imagination.

Using Linux or UNIX is rather like having a really big box of Lego - it's very much a 'can do' environment. You can use the programs and utilities that are supplied with any Linux or UNIX installation in many different ways and while they have a range of options or parameters, there are no rigid rules for using them. Feel free to experiment! Imagine the fun you could have if you mix the Lego with a child's bathtime fun plumbing set, with its pipes, tees, taps and connectors - you really can do the same with Linux; programs can be interconnected in various ways, with data coming out of one program being fed into one or more other programs (this is called 'piping' and 'teeing') and being passed through a long chain of programs or commands, each of which will perform some operation on that data. You are in complete control as you have chosen the programs you are using and have made all the interconnections yourself. And it's free.

Contrast this with another well-known computing environment; there, it's often a case of "...which package should I buy that will enable me to do this, that and the other? And how much will it cost?"

But having now given you a glimpse of the sheer power & flexibility of Linux, you really don't have to use Linux in this way - you can still use your Linux computer just like any other Windows PC or Mac for email, surfing, office tasks, updating Facebook, Twitter, etc and an increasing number of organisations, companies and government departments are migrating office desktop systems to Linux for its stability, security and low cost. How you use your Linux computer is entirely up to you!

Why program?

As a computer user, learning a shell programming language such as bash or tcsh will be about the best investment you'll ever make - it will unleash the real power of your computer, open up a lot of possibilities that perhaps you never knew existed and you will have a lot of fun along the way. Guaranteed.

As a mathematician, learning C or Fortran or one of the newer languages such as Python will pay enormous dividends in your research. And maths-specific programming packages like Maple, Matlab and R are becoming more and more flexible and fully-featured and will allow you to integrate your Fortran and C code into your Maple or Matlab worksheets. for example.

Public health warning: programming can be addictive.

What's going on right now?

Unfortunately owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, some new initiatives that would otherwise have seen the light of day by now in Maths have been delayed; a new GPU compute server (nvidia4) fitted with eight nVidia RXT 2080Ti GPU cards was installed in May 2020 after electrical power works were completed in March just before the first UK lockdown began, followed by another one for the StatML CDT. Since then Maths research IT has mainly operated in maintenance-only mode with only repairs being carried out during infrequent visits to the premises but user support, upgrades and new package installations continued as before. 2022 saw the relaxation of most Covid-related restrictions and heralded a gradual return to normal operations although most users are still working from home or have adopted a hybrid on-campus/work-from-home working pattern.

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