Raymond.CC Blog

Under Windows, we’ve grown used to the same-stuff-different-day mantra, that to work with the computer, we have to use our favourite browser for browsing, that we’ll use Windows Media Player (for the most part, the most popular) for media playback, and Windows as the backbone of the shell. But for those use us that use Linux, it’s not like we’re all dropping into the same shell. (At least, I’m hoping for our own sakes as geeks and learners that we aren’t…)

Yes we all have the same basic needs as a Windows user, but we certainly can tackle those needs a multitude of different ways. In terms of office programs, most of us run OpenOffice.org or KOffice. Some of us run IBM Symphony, while others cobble together with Abiword, Gnumeric, and an online Powerpoint replacement. But you see, there’s far more then that out there, and not I and not Raymond, and I’m pretty sure even if you (perish the thought) asked Richard Stallman, he wouldn’t be able to list them all off to you. And he’s considered one of the (god)fathers of modern Linux. I’ve been asked recently by a lot of people to help out in the finding of program to work in Linux, from iTunes to AutoCAD and MS Office. So I’ll share today what I have used in the past to help others. Keep in mind these sites will also recommend apps for Windows too, so this works for Windows users too!

OSAlt.com

OSAlt, shorthand for Operating Systems Alternatives, is one of the best sites in a long time and I highly recommend it as a first stop for your needs. They have a very complete list the last I checked, but I presently can’t say that now. They at present don’t include some of the newer projects on the market for Linux that I’ve seen on Lifehacker or on other sites that cover Linux. I’d still recommend it highly for the clean interface, and when you can just simply look up examples of apps on a whim on the side, it’s just one of those that stays in your mind for a while.

Alternativesto.net

Other then wishing for the fact they had bought the perfect domain name of Alternatives.to, there is nothing wrong with this site either. It covers the three major operating systems as well as offering website alternatives as well. So if you’re sick of looking at Google.com, for example, it can offer Bing and Yahoo as solutions as well. But it’s true strength lies in the voting system that they have on their site. As someone who loves looking up reviews before trying something out, it’s better then OSAlt in that I won’t need to go far to see what’s recommended by people. If you’re like me and need a review on everything before you try it, I suppose Alternativesto.net will be your favourite. Considering it’s got a flashy interface that surpasses the other two, you might just want to stick this one in your favourites for keeping.

Linux App Finder

While Linux App Finder is nowhere near as nice looking as OSAlt or Alternativesto.net, I was captivated right away by the use of Tux (the penguin, official logo of Linux) as a pirate. Now I know that seems odd to be captivated by something so trivial, but when you scroll down the side and look at the categories, you realize it’s suiting as you feel like you’re at a tad classier site then OSAlt. While it doesn’t list the comparative Windows application next to it when you’re looking though, it does give you a single sentence summery for a quick look, that can be expanded to a full review if you open up the next page.

So there you have it. Hopefully there will be no questions on “what should I use to replace XYZ program?” anymore, but if you’d like a one-on-one answer, I’ll be more then willing to provide you with one as well. And if you just need one app working in your operating system that has no alternative, you could always run Wine and VirtualBox, but I’ll talk more about them later in a different article.