You can get most of the same development software, and sources, for free in the Windows world too... Admittedly you can't get the source to the OS or the Win32 API but it generally isn't necessary. And if you're in the niche where it _is_ necessary then yes, Linux is a superior alternative. Those niche's are few and far between IMO.
And if you want to pay for development tools for some extra conveniences (Visual Studio, despite what many Linux advocates will have you believe, is a terrific development environment) then that is an option too. And in the grand scheme of things the development tools typically comprise only a small amount compared to the other development costs.
How about some real "mind-boggling" advantages?
PS I am playing devils advocate somewhat here - I _like_ Linux as a development platform. However, to claim that Windows is "infinitely worse" for programmers and hackers is far from what I've experienced...
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You can get most of the same development software, and sources, for free in the Windows world too...
Admittedly you can't get the source to the OS or the Win32 API but it generally isn't necessary. And if you're in the niche where it _is_ necessary then yes, Linux is a superior alternative. Those niche's are few and far between IMO.
And if you want to pay for development tools for some extra conveniences (Visual Studio, despite what many Linux advocates will have you believe, is a terrific development environment) then that is an option too. And in the grand scheme of things the development tools typically comprise only a small amount compared to the other development costs.
How about some real "mind-boggling" advantages?
PS I am playing devils advocate somewhat here - I _like_ Linux as a development platform. However, to claim that Windows is "infinitely worse" for programmers and hackers is far from what I've experienced...
OK, I'll bite. Why do you consider Linux to be a 'mind boggling' better platform for hackers?
What can't you do on a Windows platform that you can do on Linux?
I've developed on both platforms and find that they both have advantages and disadvantages...
No, it's just a steep learning curve if you never used the original Windows message model. Lots of us like it and use it.
Well, lots of us use it anyways...