The Time for Linux is now

Windows is the worlds most popular operating system

Linux is the world's most popular free operating system
The creators of Linux do not see the word free as in freebie but free as in freedom.Linux is built on the principle that if its your computer, you can do goddamn whatever you wish to do with it.

Linux started out as an alternative to UNIX(the dominant OS at that time) and initially found usage among computer savvy crowd. But Linux today is far from the geeky and difficult to fathom thing that you may imagine.

Linux Today

Today,Linux distributions look good and work great.They come with well designed interfaces that get the learning curve out of the way and even people who've used Windows all their life rarely have  much of a problem(Though software interfaces on Windows are still years ahead). Some Linux distributions are built  specifically with the purpose of working out of the box (Think LinuxMint) unlike Windows which requires you to install a hundred things before you safely start working.

There's way too much wicked shit to do to your PC in Linux

Some people have a difficulty coping with software installation process on Linux (Seriously,nothing beats exe's and press 'OK to Continue' ) but I've settled on Ubuntu after switching quite a few distributions and find that efforts like the 'Ubuntu Software Center' are a big step in the right direction.

Whats the problem?

Linux works faster,hangs less and has to deal with less viruses than Windows. So then why would anyone ever use Windows? Because  Windows just shows up on your computer uninvited and people just don't bother switching an OS.

Looking Ahead

But today there is an opportunity for Linux to change this scenario.
Slowly but surely computing is moving over to the cloud and more and more of our time is spent on network based applications.We can watch movies online,listen to songs online,draw pictures online and do many more things that were once restricted to the desktop.

The latest version of HTML(the internet's underlying language), HTML5 gives developers fascinating new opportunities to move traditional desktop based applications into a browser-based environment. Google (through Google Docs) has tried to implement a complete office suite within a browser and has done a fantastic job of it.
As more and more applications become browser/network-based, the role of the Operating System for most users will become secondary. Google tried a radical approach to this when it launched its Chrome WebOS.(I call it radical because you to be log in with your Google Account to use the OS).
But this demonstrates that there many people who believe the OS as we see it today is in for a change.And what better replacement than the OS that was and is being built by people sharing code over the Internet.

Also happening

Another trend that we may observe is the divergence of the computer market (triggered especially by the rise of netbooks and tablets).
Want a device to just read books along with some music, then tablets it is.
If your computer activity is restricted to simply browsing the web,coupled with some movie watching and office work, then go for a netbook.
If you're into gaming, then you'd choose a laptop with a decent graphic card
 . . .and so on.

Each of these market segments requires a different kind of OS and at least the first two are goldmines for Linux. All that is needed is a consolidated effort to convince device manufacturers into switching and then there'll be no looking back. Think this kind of an effort is too extreme, you couldn't be more wrong. Have you heard of Android !?
Device manufacturers had no shame in switching as long they were assured that the OS that were switching to was well supported and that there was loads of software to go around.And there was the added bonus of getting a completely-built modern OS for FREE.

Linux is already well-supported
Linux already has loads of software to go around.
In case you forgot, Linux is FREE.

Bottomline

So,summarizing I would like to say that the rise of internet-based applications and the amazing community support and software base that Linux enjoys havent made a more compelling argument for OEM's to switch to Linux as their default OS and Linux evangelists need to grab this opportunity.

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Nearly 100% of the world's supercomputers use Linux. All the really smart computers are using Linux they say. Why should your computer stay behind?

The Microsoft Nokia deal

Will it work?

Nokia was, is and for some time may still be the world's top selling phone manufacturer,though its position has been severely weakened in recent years.

Nokia was the leader of the pack in both spheres of the mobile world i.e. hardware and software .. Nokia was almost always ahead of the curve in terms of phone features and its Symbian OS worked well.Nokia phones were trendy and reliable .Also Nokia had no real competition as its phones were much better than those of others.

Then there was the emergence of smartphones which split the phone market into two parts : The High-end smartphone market and the low-end/feature phone market. While Nokia's success in its earlier years ensured that it continued to sell a huge number of low-end phones wherever phones networks expanded on earth, this did not ensure Nokia's success in the smart-phone market. Nokia's upgrades to Symbian were slow (and mostly iterative) and though there are a huge number of apps written for Symbian, a effort to form something like an App store didn't come until 2007 which was the year of the iPhone Launch.

Despite the iPhone and the huge amount of buzz it generated, Nokia did not compete aggressively enough with Apple and continued a sluggish approach, probably because it did not expect data intensive smart phones could be so successful contrary to what had been true all along for Nokia.The company did make some efforts like first developing Maemo and then joining forces with Intel to build MeeGo.But Nokia's efforts lacked a definitive strategy. Slowly Nokia's position in the smartphone declined.

The other thing to hit Nokia hard was the emergence and success of a huge number of competitors in the low-end/feature phone market.This trend is especially visible in India where Nokia's market share fell from 74% to 51%.Once the default brand, Nokia position has been hurt by the emergence of many local players in the low-end market who have been much more aggressive in marketing their products and also whose products are more in tune with the local tastes.

These losses on both fronts left Nokia on a sticky wicket. This prompted Nokia into making some changes,the first was some management changes (including its first non-Finnish CEO Stephen Elop) followed by the announcement of deal with Microsoft

So how is teaming up with Microsoft going to help?

This is clearly an effort to regain a foothold in the smartphone market after silently being on the losing to Apple iPhone and Google's Android. Microsoft has recently launched the latest version of its Mobile Phone Operating system and it has received surprisingly good reviews.If you take a look at the UI, you will notice that 'Windows Phone 7' (as the OS has been christened) interface isnt merely an iterative improvement over previous versions of the OS but a rethinking of the OS for touch-screen phones. Many experts have appreciated the OS though it is yet to be seen whether it's going to be the much awaited iPhone killer or even and Android killer.

Nokia benefits from this deal because it gets a brand new and better OS for its smartphones while Microsoft gets to leverage Nokia's far-reaching brand in phone market to trigger a surge in the developement of Apps for the Windows Mobile 7 platform.

Shouldn't Nokia have adopted Android instead given the huge number of apps that have been written for it and the brand value associated with Android(Many handset makers tout Android as one of the key features because of the humongous no. of apps). It could have and there would have been some immediate benefits but joining with Microsoft instead gives Nokia the oppurtunity to kill two birds with one stone (or one phone :D). Also,the Android platform which is under rapid development and constant improvement isnt without its troubles.Since Android is Open source, handset manufacturers come up with their own versions of the OS creating a separate software ecosystem for their devices and virtually negating the advantage(or should say point) of the Android marketplace.

So overall,we may say that the deal is a smart move and both companies gain something but will this be enough for Nokia to regain its once-dominant position. Atleast, two things must necessarily happen for Nokia's success.First,Nokia (and even Microsoft) must market their phones more aggressively and create a buzz that was once associated with Nokia's (then)cutting-edge phones. Second,Microsoft (and Nokia) must convince developers to create apps for the Windows Phone 7 platform (which today has just above 3000 apps).Enticing Symbian developers to move to Windows Mobile 7 instead of iOS or Android may surely help.

PS:I'm a Nokia fan

I wanna do an MS but my CG..

 ....is low.

You wouldn't be mentioning your CG if you didn't see it as much of a problem.

You're about to graduate .You've got a great amount of interest in the subject.You have the desire to learn more.You feel like you should do your Masters to become an expert in the subject.You want to do your Masters at a good university.

Except that your marks aren't something that you could boast about.

Problem ...Not a problem

Sit down and think why you wanted to do the MS in the first place . How do you imagine yourself after completing that MS.

Working abroad , in a big company , working on new  projects that interest you and make work a pleasure.

Motivating work and doing what you like

These are THE reasons you wanted to do an MS for. It's not the MS that you're chasing but THIS. Sit down and think ,is the MS the ONLY way to achieving your dream.It does seem like a safe bet but Risk begets reward.

Different Roads

There will be more options ; Join a company ,many companies encourage (even sponsor ) higher education for their employees;can you work as a freelancer , why don't you join a start-up that's working on things that are more in tune with your interests or better (but riskier and maybe more rewarding) start something of your own.

The problem with Academia . .

is thats sometimes its just that : academic . Its a system that cherishes people who do well  WITHIN THE SYSTEM.