Is it worth the trouble switching to a Linux platform for Web dev?

Question

I'm still in Windows XP using Corel Draw, Photoshop, ASP, VBScript... not sure if its worth the switch just yet.

I mainly use ASP and VBScript for serverside stuff. I refuse to learn .NET, but its time to upgrade my skillset. Maybe PHP, mySQL, Ajax, Gimp, Sodipodi and the like on a Linux box. Any thoughts?

Any comments on Gimp for photo editing and Sodipodi for vector graphics?

Answer 1

This is a subjective question, so I can just give my own thoughts as a programmer and web application developer.



While you can run a Windows environment and Windows applications under Linux (using WINE or VMWare), you will likely be more productive and definitely have less performance and compatibility issues doing Windows development (ASP, VB, .NET) under Windows.



If you are not tied to Windows, there are great tools available under Linux. Once you learn how to use it, GIMP is every bit as powerful as Photoshop, although the learning curve is higher -- to me it's like driving a stick over an automatic. I recommend setting up a second PC and working in the environment for awhile. If you find learning a whole new O/S and all new applications somewhat daunting, you might consider learning the tools first (GIMP, PHP, mySQL all have Windows versions), and when you are familiar with the tools you can migrate over to Linux.



Is it worth the trouble? If your goal is to learn new technologies and free yourself from non-free software, most definitely. If your goal is to get a specific job done as quickly and efficiently as possibly, using what you know will achieve that task.

Answer 2

It depends on what you mean by "worth". Learning anything new is "worth" it, in my book.



If you are speaking from an economic point of view, then yes it is worth it, as most of the Linux (Unix) world is freeware.



If you are thinking from a point of view of getting a career going, then I'd say no it wouldn't be worth it, at this point, as most major companies are MS heavy, and having a skill set based on MS is the way to go.



Though, the later is slowly changing, so I'd personally go with the former.



BTW, there is a Windows version of Gimp.

Answer 3

There's a very simple and easy installer for Apache / PHP / MySQL called XAMPP available at the link below. It makes getting started with those technologies no problem at all on a Windows box.



One caveat: PHP 5.1 has a new database-independent database called PDO which you should use, but XAMPP doesn't (yet) support PHP 5.1

Answer 4

If you're serious about developing and you plan to deploy your projects on a linux box then yes, it is probably worth it; if you're planning on using heavy database driven code then it's even better, as you can test your database manipulation on your locat iteration without messing about with your live copy.