[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

I have no idea what this means. Please someone elaborate before i buy 10 copies of XP home and realise they are useless for my office.

That means that you cannot by XP home for your office. You will be very limited on the XP home. You need to have a "office version".
Now it all depends quite a lot on how your office is configured, but in most cases, having XP home in office environment is crippling.

[moralfibre]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

I have no idea what this means. Please someone elaborate before i buy 10 copies of XP home and realise they are useless for my office.

Sam, I am not sure of What Adya means. There are two ways of going about buying licenses. One cheaper alternative is to opt for paper licenses (I think they are cheaper) . In this you do not get a CD but just a paper license that helps you to use an existing CD with the same key on a new computer. I would opt for Win XP Professional for office use.

There are two ways to run a network. One is a Domain based and other is a local based network. In a domain based network you have a single server with a super user (also called the domain admin) who has all access and control over each PC in the network (from the domain controller). This is a very efficient way of setting up your office network since you don't have to go to each computer to fix a problem and can remotely do so. Also check whether your Server came with some client licenses, if they did then you might save up on the 10 additional copies of XP that you intend to buy.

Hope that helps.

[Sam Kapasi]

Oh I see. We have a server and 25 computers. Thats all I know, lol. We have wired and wireless internet mixed. And restricted access.

This means no pornsites in the office. Beyond this everyone uses normal applications, tally, office and email. And we have 2 netwrok printers.

Now tell me - is it OK to use XP home?

[tsk1979]

Buddy, do not even think of XP home. You will run into issues.
Buy XP office or install linux on the laptops.
You will easily be able to restrict internet access(proxy server route I guess), do your printing and blah blah, but the users used to windows may be unhappy with linux.
For example you may have nervous breakdown issues because there is no bonzi buddy for linux, and for some people it may be like a forced divorce.
If you can afford it go for XP or Vista office, that is the cleanest and most hassle free migration path.
But that path is also fraught with future upgrade costs.
I suggest you get a network professional and ask the guy how much effort and money it will take to make your office linux ready. If its a few thousand rs+ a couple of days of setup, then go for it, if it means entire network overhaul, then its your call.
Let the cost justify the pain, its simple.

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

There are two ways to run a network. One is a Domain based and other is a local based network. In a domain based network you have a single server with a super user (also called the domain admin) who has all access and control over each PC in the network (from the domain controller). This is a very efficient way of setting up your office network since you don't have to go to each computer to fix a problem and can remotely do so. Also check whether your Server came with some client licenses, if they did then you might save up on the 10 additional copies of XP that you intend to buy.

Hope that helps.

OK, don't waste your time with me, this is flying all over my head, this is out of my league. I am going to call the systems engineer to take a look at this thread.
After all, he is a distinguished BHPian.

[phamilyman]

Doesnt sound like you need XP prof. Back in iima, we did all kinda thingies (office/email/websites/macros for excel) - XP home did the job just fine (esp since it came preloaded on the cheapest laptops).

Just checked http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase...p_home_pro.asp - you could choose a mix. Frankly, most people don't REALLY need the additional functionality. I presume you would anyways be hosting shared folders on a central server, so people logging onto each other's desktops is not needed, hence irrelevant for you. (do check on being able to disable logins from other PCs though - for virus safety angle).

And as for office - considered open office for the people who just have to check occasional excel and word documents? Esp the lower level clerks.
IBM Lotus Symphony is there as well

PS: Sorry, just re read your post and am sure this confuses you moooore

[adya33]

Umm you can get linux preinstalled machines from most vendors now, including dell.

Yup that is exactly what I was saying.
Since they can not sell PC's without OS many manufacturers sell with OS for which they mostly don't have to pay or have to pay very little.

As for OEM edition, it is supposed to be sold with hardware and should match the tag on that hardware. Many dealers sell OEM edition instead of normal edition because they want to save money. But thats illegal.

Like I was saying in such case you can buy any hardware and you are eligible for OEM. That includes Mouse, keyboard as well.

I have no idea what this means. Please someone elaborate before i buy 10 copies of XP home and realise they are useless for my office.

That means that you cannot by XP home for your office.

No No No.

Sam, put simply what I am saying can be explained very simply in very crude way
If all computers on your network share server hard disk to save data (not including OS on each computers and each computers hard disk) you can not access it via Home edition.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Ok; ok; I know you are dizzy already, but still thought you can take some more.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

Suppose you have a server running windows 2003 server edition. And about 25 computers. Of which 4 are macs already.

This means you have licences for X nos of some version of windows on the client PCs. Check the documentation of the server to find the value of X.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

Most users will use this computer for email (outlook type), office applications (Word, XL, PPT) and general non specialized work.

This is the ideal atmosphere to switch over to linux. First, install windows versions of Openoffice (office suite) and mozilla / firefox (net suite / browser). Your users will be using these applications most of the time once on linux, and these applications run on both windows and linux. Once they get used to openoffice and mozilla, the pain of switching over to linux will be lessened.

If you allow chatting, give them pigdin (an instant messaging client which works for most chats - MSN, yahoo, etc.). This too is available for both linux and windows.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

Some of them run Tally - the accounting software.

Last time I checked, tally v. 7.2 was available for linux. But then, I suspect you will have to use only Red Hat's version of linux. Ask your vendor / supplier of of tally for details.

If tally does not support linux, retain the machines which need to run tally on windows, and switch rest to linux.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

We want to go only legal. Some of our IBM machines come with XP preinstalled. Some laptops and PCs dont. This means I have about 12-13 computers with no operating system, or a pirated XPSP2.

See the above suggestion about switching over machines which do not require tally to linux.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

I have purchased XP home edition (since this is sufficient for our use) and a copy of MSoffice. But I realise these are single user applications so we're looking at spending about 12K (for office+windows) per computer.

Single user licenses are for only one computer. For teh time being, go in for windows version of openoffice.org. See download: Instructions for Downloading and Installing OpenOffice.org 2.0

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

> Can computers in a mixed environment (some windows, some Linux some MacOS) run in harmony from a single windows based server?

Actually, it is easier to manage with a linux server and windows clients.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

> Can they share files and printers?

Yes, install "samba" to do file sharing and "cupsys" to do printing on the server.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

> As an application, does tally run on Linux? (I know the answer is prolly no, but I want to hear it from the experts)

See above.

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

Of course based on your anwer I will call my dealer and order 10 more copies of XP home edition. (I am averse to Vista and XP business edition costs 2.5K more than home edition)

The trouble with licenses is that they bind you - when you modify your car, worst thing that can happen to you is a voided warranty, a totalled car and (god forbid!!) injuries. When you violate licenses terms, you are committing a crime; because once you violate the license, your copy (yes, the same copy of the OS which you paid with your hard earned money) becomes an illegal copy; thus you become a violator of the copyright law; thus you become liable to be prosecuted - not just sued for damages.

So, when you are told to use a copy of XP home edition at your home, you ARE bound to use it only in your home; not in your office.

[adya33]

The trouble with licenses is that they bind you - when you modify your car, worst thing that can happen to you is a voided warranty, a totalled car and (god forbid!!) injuries. When you violate licenses terms, you are committing a crime; because once you violate the license, your copy (yes, the same copy of the OS which you paid with your hard earned money) becomes an illegal copy; thus you become a violator of the copyright law; thus you become liable to be prosecuted - not just sued for damages.

So, when you are told to use a copy of XP home edition at your home, you ARE bound to use it only in your home; not in your office.

And could you explain after what doing against EULA it becomes crime?
I will give you some examples it includes reverse engineering, hacking into system, leasing or selling your copy.
Surely I don't think Sam is going to do this is he ?

As for worries about Windows not activating after changing hardware. Its a simple matter of one phone call (that too toll free) Microsoft Support.
Tsk has done it and he has had no problem with it.
I have done it after changing mother board and had no problem with it.

As for using XP home at office environment is completely fine.
The names Home and Professional signify that these editions are Optimised for those environment. Doesn't mean you can use them.

[msdivy]

Check out this page for detailed comparison between Windows XP Home & Professional Editions: Windows XP Home Edition Comparison Guide

IMO, applications that matter are:
1. Remote Desktop - Can't RD into XP Home from other PCs, but can RD from XP Home to other PCs.
2. No IIS support, so can't run your personal website.
3. No multi CPU support.

But these are unlikely to affect Sam.

PS: XP Home doesn't support Novell Netware. We learnt this hard way, when we wanted to print to a printer in Netware and couldn't install the driver

[aah78]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Umm you can get linux preinstalled machines from most vendors now, including dell.
In the US if you buy a windows preinstalled laptop, and then say "no" to the EULA, you are entitled to get a refund for windows. This is the law.
The freedos alternative was for such a system. Do not want an OS, get freedos and then you can wipe your hdd clean and install whatever you want.

Reminded me of something.
Check this out:
Guy is an old friend of mine and a total Linux buff - I think the last time he used Windows or any Microsoft product was somewhere in the mid '90s.

Here's a short excerpt of his from when he bought a new computer ->

Originally Posted by aragorn

On powering the machine on, we encountered the EULA screen which was quite cryptic. The screen said that we must press any key to continue, and by doing this, we would be agreeing to all the EULAs of the software that was installed. Since we found this disagreeable, we didn't strike any key. Instead, we shut it down and then installed Debian on it. That should show Dell. Note to Dell: We want Linux on our machines, so don't tell us that customers don't need Linux. Also, Dell has been known to install all sorts of rubbish on their new computers. So even if we were keeping the installation of Windows XP Home, we would be better off formatting the disk and doing a fresh installation. Atleast that way we know that the software is good. There are people who have got so fed up of this, that they have written Dell De-crapify-ers, to remove the stock junk. It is amazing how much faster the Windows installation becomes when it isn't bogged down by these constantly running processes.

Full picture gallery here -> Unpacking a new computer.
He has some how-to related software for any of you buffs on his website - check the "Computers" tab -> Vikram Aggarwal

[msdivy]

Interesting read: Mandriva Blog » An open letter to Steve Ballmer

[anandrs]

Get Linux if you have a resource who can attend to any small issues that can arise on a daily basis. If you want trouble free software, take windows xp. A mix of home (in greater percentages) and professional editions should be ok.

[msdivy]

Linux PC @ $199 on Walmart a sellout
Check this: Everex TC2502 Green gPC w/ Via C7-D Processor - Wal-Mart

The linux is: gOS
More news here: Google PC At Wal-Mart for $200

[msdivy]

Linux equivalents and alternatives to Windows software: The Linux Alternative Project - linuxalt.com