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LinuxMCE vs Windows 8.1

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When comparing LinuxMCE vs Windows 8.1, the Slant community recommends LinuxMCE for most people. In the question“What are the best operating systems for a Home Theatre PC?” LinuxMCE is ranked 15th while Windows 8.1 is ranked 18th. The most important reason people chose LinuxMCE is:

The installation wizard automatically finds and detects all your hardware details and adds the configurations accordingly. It also asks for your permission before each step and then carries on the next screen. Everything is completed in 5 minutes.

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Common Questions

What are the best operating systems for a Home Theatre PC?

Pros

Pro
Easy installation

Pro
Easy to use

Even with multiple features and options, LinuxMCE is still very easy to use; everything is very intuitive and dead simple to find your way around with everything being available through a point and click UI.

Pro
10 foot UI

Pro
Hardware Compatibility

Windows has excellent x86-based compatibility, and has recently announced ARM compatibility as well.

Pro
Familiar Windows Interface

As opposed to unfamiliar and purpose-built Linux distros, Windows still reigns supreme for sheer usability and ease of use.

Pro
Customizable UI

There are many that can be used to customize the MetroTile screen and add custom tiles. Then, by adding custom tiles you can configure them to open any application or web page that you need. For example: Netflix, HBOGo or Steam.

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Cons

Con
Lots of bugs

Unfortunately LinuxMCE has some very annoying bugs. For example there are some things that will not work with the default settings, and that's a real downside for beginners. It's also rather complicated to get a weborbiter working.

Con
Expensive

You will need to purchase a Windows license.

Con
Resource Intensive

In contrast to many dedicated solutions which can run on nearly anything, running a full Windows install requires decent hardware. This is not a lightweight solution.