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Last March we asked readers for feedback about what they wanted to see happen with Linux. We got responses from all over the world---Israel, Italy, Belgium, UK, Netherlands, Japan, Thailand, Austria, Germany, and the US. Although our survey wasn't entirely scientific, this response hints at the wide-spread implementation of Linux.
Responses showed that the first priority for Linux users is the porting of a WYSIWYG word processor. Microsoft Word was the number one choice, followed by WordPerfect, AMIPro, and FrameMaker. The second category on the wish list was a good database program, with the number one choice Microsoft Excel. Requests for other ports included CAD programs, Motif, fax software, and Lotus 1[hy]2[hy]3. See ``Stop the Presses'', this issue, for an update on WordPerfect for Linux, and ``Moo-tiff Development Environment'', this issue, and ``Motif for Linux'', July, 1995, for reviews of Motif ports for Linux.
Emacs was the most frequently-listed application used by readers. Maybe it has a built-in command for filling in ``emacs'' on any questionnaire. Netscape was the next most frequently-listed application. Many other Net and Web tools were included in the 63 different applications people listed. Text processing tools, e-mail tools, graphics tools, and databases were also popular. Only four readers listed vi variants, maybe because vi users think of it as a utility rather than an application. This will probably provide plenty of fuel for Emacs versus vi discussions.
Readers used a montage of operating systems---Linux was the most popular, of course, with other flavors of Unix (SunOs, Solaris, Ultrix, Dynix, etc.) and DOS also showing up frequently. OS/2, VMS, Mac/OS, Windows NT, and NeXT were also listed. Twenty-six different operating systems, including all the Unix variants, were listed.
Linux Journal readers program in a variety of languages. C was most popular, followed by C++, Tk/Tcl, perl, and FORTRAN. FORTRAN? Twenty-five different languages were listed.
If nothing else, these results show that Linux Journal readers, and by extension Linux users in general, are a diverse bunch.
