Okay, so what, from Windows, DON'T you use? OS? Media Player? I'll start. I use WinAMP instead of Windows Media Player. I use Opera instead of IE.
Winamp for Mp3. BSPlayer for videos. I do use IE but have Mozilla Firefox installed aswell. I do use most Windows programs but then its my job to know them and develop stuff for them. However, I will reward myself with the Holy Grail one day. When the G5 hits the PowerBook I'll make the switch and there won't be ANY Microsoft stuff on it.
i use most of the great features from windows except two: linux and mac. these are the only useless things in windows
What're the advantages of using a different browser than IE. Protection from anything ala mac and linux? or merely just easier to use?
Alot of spyware/adware (small programs that direct you to certain sites or track your browsing habits) are written specifically for Internet Explorer because of its large market share. IE is a "shell", a program that has direct access to the core of the opertating system which makes your computer more vulnerable to attacks. Other browsers don't have this capability. There are also personal preferences aswell. Most Mozilla based browsers, Firefox, Netscape allow more customising as they are Open Source.
When I have to use Windows, I use Mozilla or FireFox instead of IE. Here are the reasons: 1) The aforementioned spyware and virus' that easily propogate on your PC due to IE/Win OS vulnerabilities (this is reason enough). 2) Mozilla/FireFox blocks pop-ups. Why $50-billion-in-the-bank-MS can't figure out how to block pop-ups while the free, programmed-much-by-volunteers, Mozilla does it so easily, is way beyond me. 3) Mozilla/FireFox is generally faster 4) Mozilla/FireFox is more configurable 5) Mozilla also includes an Email Client, an Address Book, and an HTML/JavaScript composer
1. Yes 2. Well....like the Spyware, pop-ups are written for IE. Although Javascript support is build into most browsers they interpret it a little differently. Alot of sites are made with Frontpage extentions that tell the browser (Frontpage assumes that every visitor to your website will use IE) how to read the script. 3. yes and no. It depends on a lot of things. IE is quicker to start up as its middleware, built into Windows. Firefox might be marginally quicker opening pages but I haven't noticed much difference. 4. Outlook Express? Frontpage Express? If you're a regular user Firefox provides a nice alternative to IE. If you're a web designer it is imperative to have both and if you're a power user you probably won't be using Windows at all.
Installing the programs I want to use is such a pain in the ass. I have a checklist of programs for when I reinstall windows. I can see why people use Window's default programs. Outside of work, I mainly use Windows for playing games, for financial software (Taxcut and Microsoft Money) and for using iTunes. I use a few 'substitute' programs, and I'll give you the reason: Firefox: secure and tabbed web browsing Eudora: using it since 1994 UltraEdit: full featured text editor and programming tool OpenOffice: I'm cheap and don't want to pay for MS Office LView: viewing and editting images iTunes: music manager and access to iTunes CDex: CD playing/ripping and freedb access Yahoo Messenger: using Yahoo since 1994 RealVNC: remote desktop access ...and Cygwin: for a Unix-like environment with all the goodies: Perl, GNU, ssh, etc. I mostly use Linux now, including games like Unreal 2004.
of course it doesn't offer as variouis built-in functions as ms office xp or 03, but openoffice is way too good to be free. it's also easy for ms office users to get used to it soon. nonetheless, since i pretty much enjoy my beautiful ms office 03 i just scraped the cheap crap openoffice to the recycle bin.