Group educates about Linux at Installfest

Windows, MacOS, Linux?

When the word “Linux” is thrown around campus, students may not recognize it as a computer operating system. But the UCLA Linux Users Group wants to educate students about it at its quarterly LUG Installfest on Saturday.

The event, which will be held in Boelter 4760 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., hopes to teach students about Linux, an open-source operating system that is freely available online. The event will also offer free installations for attendees.

“Linux is generally a more secure operating system. It’s smaller and more efficient and runs much better on older hardware,” said Jameel Al-Aziz, the group’s president.

But the LUG, which runs completely on donations, is not trying to convert any Mac OS or Windows enthusiasts. They are simply trying to introduce Linux as an alternative operating system to give people more options, Al-Aziz said.

“We will be installing the system non-destructively, meaning that it doesn’t erase anything on your computer, you now just have the option to use Linux instead of Mac OS or Windows,” he added.

The advantage of Linux is that it is an open-source operating system, so a user can re-configure and modify it to customize their computer to their needs, Al-Aziz said.

“I like using Linux because it lets me do what I want. I like being able to write my own scripts and accessing free software without having to look for it online,” said Jonathan Chu, a member of the group. He said it makes his job as a computer science graduate student a lot easier since it facilitates programming.

Al-Aziz said Linux is most helpful to people who want to configure their computer and use it for more than just browsing.

Because of the convenience with which Linux can be modified, many professors and researchers use it for their projects, Al-Aziz said.

Besides Saturday’s event, which will include free food and video games, the group has other quarterly events to help people with their technology problems.

“We have Installfest every quarter, but we also have Tech Talks, where professors come in and talk about their research,” Al-Aziz said. “We also have tutorials on different types of software and hardware, and we’re pretty much just a free tech support all the time.”

The term “all the time” may not be an exaggeration. Al-Aziz said that some days, they have members in their office 24 hours a day.

The group even has a web camera set up with a live feed so visitors to the website can see if anyone is in the office.

Although it may seem like strictly a computer science group, there are people from different majors including history, said Nathan McCoy a fourth-year linguistics and computer science student who has been involved with the group for a year.

“The group is loosely organized, but everyone’s welcome here whether you have questions about computers or just want to hang out,” McCoy said.

People who are interested in joining the group can attend the event, or walk into its office in Boelter 3820, which is fittingly decorated with posters of Linux’s mascot, Tux the penguin.

“We want to emphasize that we’re here to help with any computer questions and encourage everyone to stop by. People find Linux intimidating and think it’s a computer nerd thing, but we want to show we’re actually here to help people,” Al-Aziz said.

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