Introduction
If you are not a programmer, you might say Windows is a better OS. Now, what if I say that you know nothing about the power of Linux?
Everything in Linux is superior from the viewpoint of a programmer. The vast library support makes everything a lot easier. The main reason why a programmer should prefer Linux is the ability of Bash Scripting.
If you love programming and have still not tried a Linux based operating system. It’s my recommendation to you to download and install a Linux distro. But before, if you are unclear about what is good in Linux, continue reading this article.
Listed below are some Linux armors for you as a developer.
Also Read: Will Linux be good for Daily Use?
Why Linux is best for programming purposes?
Inbuilt compilers
Compilers are very important to develop efficient software. Their defined work is to change the code that we write into the computer’s understandable language. Thus, it is highly important for a development system to have normal as well as some advanced compilers. Linux does a good job in this regard. Linux supports some great compilers such as GCC, which is no doubt a powerful compiler for C, C++, Objective C, Fortran, and many more.
Other compilers available for Linux are AOCC for C/C++, Intel C++, Netwide assembler, GFortran, GHC, Tiny C, and so on. There are built-in compilers for widely-used programming languages such as Python, Perl, R, and Java, etc.
However, modern Linux distros focus on injecting more and more built-in compilers to the system.
So, Linux, especially modern distros are preferable and even recommended for developers.
Web hosting on Linux Server
At the end of writing code, when you think your program is ready to be deployed on the internet, you will need to switch from local development server to web server. So that you can see the actual performance of your site. It can be done very easily with Linux. You can develop your own web server and run your program or website over that. Distros like Ubuntu flavors provide support to Apache MySQL and PHP commonly referred to as LAMP, which helps in the quick web server installation on the Linux machine.
Cyber Security tools
Linux distros Like Parrot OS, and Kali, comes with a stack used in cybersecurity. Learning Linux will feed you with the knowledge of majority malware and cyber-attacks. Having a good knowledge or Linux being your default programming environment will give you the ability to prevent this malware, taking care of user account, file system, and OS-level configurations.
It can help you avoid major attacks such as port scanning, Zombie, and privilege escalation. There are cybersecurity experts who prefer nothing than Kali. This particular OS plays a vital role as a Linux distro in the field of cybersecurity. However, Mac OS and Windows can also be used for the same, but not with the same efficiency as with Linux’s power-packed tools.
Security
Cyber Security is the consequence of Linux being the most secure and safe operating system. Everything that a programmer needs is just their program not being subjected to any thievery. They invest a lot of money to keep their system secure. They use the best antivirus tools. They spent the time monitoring their network.
But a good choice of Operating system can give you freedom from all of these. However, the OS isn’t a safeguard, but certainly, it makes a lot of difference to security instances.
Deploying a secure and anti-theft operating system should be your priority. Linux here picks up the string of safety and sustains the strong firewalls and constant vigilance through major security updates on priority. Just keep with the basics which are not to use root and grant root access to even older and trusted servers.
Better terminal than windows (Ubuntu’s Bash)
Those who are not familiar with the topic, Windows terminal or PowerShell is a command shell scripting language for the Windows system while Linux is a command-line and scripting language for the Linux system. Windows terminal is not as sophisticated and talkative as Linux. However, Windows developers seem to be developing an all-new Windows Terminal to compete with Linux Terminal in the area of programming and development. Let it come.
But currently, the truth is the GNU/Linux has the best terminal so far. Windows terminal has good file navigation and management functionality. The few switches can also be applied for granular controls.
You can set up the environment through basic SET command, you can do many more things. But, Linux and Mac OS terminal apart from the basic functionalities that DOS can do, does a whole lot more. Hands Down! It’s altogether a beast.
Lightweight
Even the heaviest Linux Distro is lighter than Windows and Mac OS. Some of the distros even require as little as 1GB of storage for installation. Talking about Distros like Ubuntu, Manjaro, and Fedora, which are perhaps best in the list of Linux distros, at the same time packed with bundles of all necessary utility and development tools, are lighter than Windows or Mac OS.
They also tend to consume less RAM and memory while in use. The latest release of Ubuntu and others generates the recommended requirement of not more than 4 GB of RAM and 20 GB of hard-drive space for installation. However, they can also run via a live USB of size as little as 8 GB.
Desktop Environment
The desktop environment is the look and feel of your Linux. Having a good user experience for programming is important.
You must be able to do some tasks quickly. These tasks can be as simple as switching two terminals.
There are scores of desktop environments like Gnome, KDE, Mate, XFCE, and so on. These are also known as flavors of a particular Linux distribution.
It’s time to choose the desktop environment that suits you.
Also Read: Is Ubuntu The Best OS For Java Development?
Inbuilt support for SSH
For a programmer, it’s important to keep their data secure. SSH helps in the case if your computer is connected to an unsecured or open network.
Also known as Secure Shell Socket, SSH is a protocol that gives users or administrators secure access to a computer over an unsecured network. SSH encrypts data communication among computers on the same network.
It also provides a strong password authentication for the same.
SSH is mainly used by administrators to remote and handle the applications and move it to one computer to another by executing commands. Linux in replacement to insecure terminal emulation supports SSH.
Community Support
There are a hundred Linux distros currently in development. They are developed by a giant open-source community. A new programmer who is not professional with development can find more than thousands of articles if they are stuck somewhere. A big plus point for newcomers. The community of Linux is immense and is growing day by day.
Conclusion
If you are a programmer, the certain thing is you will need a programming and development focused operating system and user-interface. Linux is a great operating system for this purpose. It’s fast, efficient, user-friendly, less distracting, programming focused, feature-packed, and powerful.