Here are 5 functions which you can find in Linux and not in Windows until now. However, it seems that Windows could be better if it had integrated them.
Windows enables to create different accounts. However, this does not make it a multi-user tool. That is to say, a tool which allows more than one user to be connected simultaneously. For this type of functionality on Windows, it is essential to install another software. Whereas, on Linux, the multi-user mode is by default.
Could Windows be free? No, this is not the subject of this item. We only want to question Microsoft's pricing policy. Would it not be more simple to propose one Windows edition instead of many ones, and thus to use a single price? Windows 7 is available in editions of family, professional, integral, company, and two special editions which are Windows 7 Starter and Home Basic. To each edition, correspond some features and a price. The customer is often lost and sometimes frustrated about this. Moreover, in this area, we can mention Apple which offers a single edition.
Even if with Windows 7, Microsoft has taken the problem head on, any user has been able to do anything in a session for a long time. It's one of the reasons why there were (and still are), some disseminations of malware on Windows: each user has got administrator rights.
On the contrary in Linux for many operations, especially those having an impact on the system, you have to type the root password. A malicious program can not begin without triggering a window and alert the user. On Windows XP, even with administrator rights, some applications will run even if in principle the rights of the account does not allow it. It depends on the application.
In Windows, some useful applications are not included by default. This must be due to issues about unfair competition given the monopoly of Microsoft, and also for economic advantages for Microsoft to sell the missing software.
On Linux, once the distribution is installed, the user has already got basic applications: an office suite, email client, tools, graphics and audio, calendar, remote control software, etc..
Cron concerns only some of the users. But, being able to define tasks and automate the execution may be a valuable service. Linux natively integrates a task scheduler. With Cron (please notice that this is in command line), job scheduling is flexible. For those who prefer, they can use graphical interfaces. Windows users can however argue that the planner tasks of the OS has nothing to envy to Cron. But, this is all about everyone's choice.
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