Got Drivers? Device Support for Windows XP and Linux
Perhaps one of the largest misconceptions about Linux made by devoted Microsoft Windows users is that Linux lacks support for hardware. This belief that Microsoft Windows supports more computer hardware devices, such as Ethernet, sound, and video cards, as compared to Linux, comes from lazy thinking. The truth is, Linux distributions today support more types of hardware, out of the box, than Microsoft Windows XP or any other version of Microsoft Windows available. It’s not a bold claim; consider the facts provided here to better understand the challenges and amazing achievements of the Linux developer community.
The Windows XP installation disc doesn’t come with the drivers for many of your devices. It may catch a few, but just about any device, such as an Ethernet, sound, or video card that was made after XP, will not be supported by XP out of the box. Those device drivers usually come from the “Installation CDs” that you get with the devices. So Microsoft Windows developers need not worry about supporting all of the different hardware out there, because the hardware manufacturers create the device drivers, not Microsoft.
Consider that most Linux distributions are able to detect your computer hardware and provide working drivers during installation, unlike Windows XP. Many manufacturers don’t make drivers for the Linux operating system. The Linux developer community has to take on the burden of creating most of those drivers themselves, for hardware they didn’t make, and by a process largely involving tedious study of the hardware.
Really, it is absolutely amazing when you think about it. Here you have a world of developers contributing to a free operating system, and among all of the other aspects involved with that development effort, they are creating drivers for the vast array of computer hardware available today. Microsoft, with its mega wealth and dominating resources, need only focus on the OS itself, and they can’t even provide a secure and stable version of Windows. They don’t even have to worry about creating the device drivers.
One Microsoft spokesman argued, “Microsoft Windows XP comes on a single installation disc. We would have to provide a dozen discs if Windows XP were to include drivers for so many devices.” He was quoted after being questioned by someone mentioning Linux during a Microsoft press conference.
Well, consider Linux distributions such as ubuntu (or kubuntu). One single cdrom disc provides drivers for a huge array of devices, nearly all of the common devices available today. Microsoft cannot begin to try to provide the Windows device drivers on a single CD! The Knoppix Linux live CD lets you boot to the Linux operating system and it almost always recognizes all of the hardware on modern computers.
Linux developers are able to create distributions with such a vast supply of device drivers supporting so many devices by using some creative ingenuity. They create a common base set of drivers that work with devices of the same type for most manufacturers. Then specific customization is provided to make the base driver work with specific manufacture devices of the same type. And in the case of very unique hardware, special drivers are created for that purpose.
It doesn’t always work for all known hardware. Your new motherboard may have an onboard Ethernet card not yet supported by the latest Linux distribution of your preference. Some Linux distributions receive more support and have more frequent releases than others. One specific distribution may support your device out of the box, while another doesn’t. But even in that case, you can still install the driver manually.
Finally, if your device is not yet supported, and the device is popular enough, rest assured that it soon will be. And due to the growing popularity of Linux, hardware manufacturers such as nVidia are now offering drivers for both Linux and Microsoft Windows. So you see, the Linux achievement of nearly universal device support is extraordinary. And you still get a powerful enterprise level operating system far more stable and secure than Microsoft Windows XP.
trc contributor: Derek Winterstien