Windows 7 - What kinds of software will run on Linux OS?

I have read various news feeds saying that the Linux OS is good and very stable OS.

What kind of software will run on Linux? I am assuming that "Windows" programs such as Microsoft Office, Adobe PhotoShop, etc. won't run on Linux.

Thanks - Bill

Some Windows software can run on Linux within Windows emulators such as Wine and PlayOnLinux (free) or CrossOver (commercial). My experience with the emulating software has been somewhat hit and miss. Some times the software works, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes there is a lot of futzing to get things to work.

My suggestion would be to find the open source alternatives to the popular, commercial software. For Photoshop, there is the GIMP. For Microsoft Office there is Libre Office. Most popular Linux distros come with all the software substitutions you need and try to make the learning curve as painless as possible. Keep in mind though that Linux is NOT Windows. It does things fairly differently.

Thanks for your great answer.

Bill

The first line of your post is not necessarily true. There a many, many different Linux distros some more stable than others. There are also several different desktop environments. Gnome and KDE are the most popular, there is also Debian, XFCE, Enlightenment and one or two others so the choice is almost endless.

My advice to you if you wish to give Linux a go would be to go for one of the most popular distros such as Ubuntu or Linux Mint. Both of them can be installed within Windows, eliminating the need to have a separate partition, and can be removed in a matter of seconds if you decide it's not for you. Once installed you get the option of booting into Windows or Linux at start up. I run Linux Mint in this way.

As bug67 said emulating software can be a little problematic and it's something I now steer clear of. It's not really something you need if you're running Windows aswell any how.

You mentioned Photoshop in your question. You could give GIMP a try. It can run on Windows also.

If you have any more questions please don't hesitate to ask.