|
What are the advantages of using Unix? |
|
|
In terms of web hosting, Unix supporters will tell you that Unix offers a lower cost of development than Windows because most Unix hosting plans are cheaper than Windows hosting plans. Why? Because most web hosts use a free version of Unix (like Linux or FreeBSD) so they don't have to pay thousands of dollars to buy the operating system and associated tools to run the server or pay to upgrade their licenses every few years. Microsoft will tell you that the reverse is true however with the time and energy you spend supporting yourself offsetting any cost gains in the free OS.
Unix is an open source operating system so anyone who wants to look at the code and change it is free to do so. This means that when a problem is found such as a security flaw, anyone with the skills can fix it and send out the patch. With Microsoft, you have to wait for the company to fix it and you can't be sure just exactly what they've done to fix the problem since they don't let you look under the hood. The ability to have total control over what you are doing and its reputation for stability and security are a large part of what makes Unix such a popular choice. Unix is also features a command-line interface which doesn't waste a lot of system resources. Thus, with 32 or 64 MB of RAM a Unix machine can still run multiple programs with perfect stability.
|
