Recently a guy reached out to me on telegram and asked me “Why most of the programmers and developers prefer Linux operating systems instead of windows?” So this is a bit talk about that.
Linux is a very popular operating system. Even Android is built on top of the Linux kernel, so you could say that Linux Kernel is the foundation on which Android is built. but Linux also powers up many other internet and business servers, Linux is almost everywhere.
Linux is widely considered one of the most reliable, stable, and secure operating systems too. In fact, many software developers choose Linux as their preferred OS for their projects. It is important, however, to point out that the term “Linux” only really applies to the core kernel of the OS. One of the most important aspects of Linux is the fact that it is Open Source. This means that the code used to create it is free and available to the public to view, edit, even contribute to its development if you are skilled enough to do so.
Linux is similar to other operating systems you might be used to, like Windows and macOS, etc. It comes with a graphical interface, and even has versions of common software you are probably accustomed to like word processors, photo editors, video editors, etc. But as the core pieces of it are generally open-source, Linux differs from other operating systems. There are also many distros of Linux available that include different software options. What this means in practice, is that the operating system, unlike many of its competitors, is incredibly customizable. Many different aspects of it, not just applications, can be swapped out and experimented with to suit your specific needs and tastes. Linux users can also choose core components, for example, which system displays graphics and whatnot. It is important to note, however, that the term “Linux” is a little misleading. Technically speaking, any Linux operating system consists of a combination of the GNU software with a Linux kernel. The former is actually a standalone operating system that was originally designed to be a replacement for Unix.
Now coming to the main topic. Is Linux Good For Developers?
Now as we already know that Linux is widely considered one of the best operating systems around. This is especially true for software programmers. Your choice of the operating system, as we described in a previous article, will ultimately depend on your personal taste, software development environmental needs, etc. However, there is a vast swathe of programmers who swear by the benefits of Linux over its competitors. This is for various reasons, but arguments tend to praise its open-sourced nature and its overall user-friendly ecosystem.
Some reasons why programmers and even I love about linux :-
Linux is compatible to almost all kind of hardware. linux can even work with 1GB of RAM.
Easy to install. Linux is easy to install unless you wanna install arch gentoo other cli based installations. even they are easy to install if you know what you have to do.
Very customizable. If you love customization then linux is for you. linux is customizable to an extent.
Linxu has great support for most of the programming languages. C, C++, JAVA, Javascript, PHP, Perl, HTML, Ruby any many other languages, Linux supports all of them.
Linxu has tons of apps and software to use. VScode, Pycharm, WebStrom, IntellijIdea, most of the text editors and IDEs works on Linux.
Linux has bash. If you don’t know about bash. it is a very powerful scripting language for programmers it can be a savior.
Learning linux can get a great job. Linux is a great option if you simply live and breathe programming
Final Words.
The operating system is actually fairly simple to learn. But this comes with a caveat – it helps if you have some experience with technology as well as learning syntax and basic commands of an operating system. One of the best ways to get to grips with Linux is to develop some projects using it. This will help accelerate your grasp of Linux.
As previously discussed, learning the syntax is key. You will also need to develop a knowledge of the basic commands. Simply put, start using it and practice, practice, practice. If you are confused with which linux distro will be best for programming and software development. Here are their name you can google more about them.
Debian, Ubuntu, CentOS, OpenSUSE, PopOS, Fedora