More Linux than Windows

Not for me. I definitely have more Windows running than Linux. Well, at least if you count minutes. If we're counting instances of kernels, there might be times I have more running with Linux kernels in containers. However, on most days I have 1 or 2 Linux systems running and 3-4 Windows ones.

That's not the case in Azure, where the majority of instances are on Linux, not Windows. Microsoft announced this recently, noting that the use of Linux is growing for them. If you follow their work in the development area, this isn't surprising. They are doing more and more OSS integration with their products or with other work. We have VS Code and Azure Data Studio, as well as .NET Core, running on Linux.

We've had PowerShell on the Windows platform for over a decade. In that time, it has improved and grown, and become a default way for many people to manage their systems at scale, or certainly, in a consistent way. I've been surprised with how pervasive PowerShell has become. That's why I've been surprised in the last year at //build/ and other conferences when I see Microsoft employees promoting bash as the new thing.

I have nothing against bash, though I was more a korn shell person in University. I do like working in it at times, and I find myself doing that more and more. What I don't like is a push away from PowerShell, especially as I've just started to get comfortable with -eq and -gt. I hope that as Microsoft moves towards more Linux versions of tools that they continue to keep PoSh as a first class citizen, on all platforms.

Linux lost the desktop war. I'm pretty sure that's the case, as I haven't seen a Linux laptop or desktop in years. I see lots of MacOS, but more Windows, especially with the amazing hardware advances manufacturers have made in the last 4 years with the 2-in-1 format. However, I start to wonder if Linux will win the server war, or at least, become a much larger percentage of the back ends in the next ten years. I think it might, handling .NET and SQL Server loads in many cases.

Steve Jones - SSC Editor

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