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What is the best opertive system gfor your pc in order to preserve bitcoins ?? BTC

The one you understand best and can maintain the best. No OS is secure if you do not know how to handle it properly. If you spend the first 26[1] years of your life with Windows it makes no sense to suggest you switch to OpenBSD just because its safer.


[1] random.org provided that number dont think to much about it.

It can be anything as long as you know what you're doing.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=970164.0

If you're going to use windows, you should have an effective Anti-virus installed and a strong firewall active.
I personally like linux(Ubuntu) much more than windows as I find it more efficient and safe.


If you're a technically advanced user- go for linux.
If you're an average joe - Windows is for you.
If you're computer illiterate - OSX will do the job.

The best way to keep your bitcoins safe is by using an offline wallet.

If you want a decent operating system, I'll advise you to use a free open-source one, check a few GNU/Linux distributions and see which one you like best.

What about Win XP? I hear that many people use xp

Seeing that it is no longer supported by Microsoft you should know what you are doing if you wanted to use WinXP. There are no more patches in case of a bug or security problem. You might also run into problems because new software is no longer wirtten with WinXP in mind.

XP was very good. Since it isn't supported, I'd say windows 7 took it's place. Vista and 8/8.1 aren't making the cut.

That's obsolete software, sadly many people still use it, they cannot buy new hardware and aren't aware there are better free alternatives.

operating system don't really matter, the best protection is actually yourself

backup your wallet in a cold storage and , leave some btc(a very small amount) in your pc as a trap and you are done

It does matter, I would suggest Linux since you can compile the bitcoin core however you want, you can use a persistent usb with tails to use bitcoins with electrum client.

https://tails.boum.org/download/ <- more information about tails.

debian stable.

THe odds of your OS crashing are small if you don't do mistakes

The linux systems are very fine and secure if you know how to use them. Windows is to close and OSx of apple is not very good system (maybe only for graphic things).

If you are paranoid get on Linux, Cinnamon Mint is very close to Windows in terms of looks, pretty cool for newbies.

Also get a paper wallet and save it somewhere offline for long ass periods of hodling.

When using any bitcoin programs I would use a virtual desktop. If theres any malicious program on your personal computer the bitcoins WILL be stolen, and stolen very easily. You will not get it back. Run a seperate instance of your OS in virtual, just using the bitcoin wallet on it, nothing else.

If you switch to a linux system, please try to understand everything before risking any coins on it!

I would say definetlly linux, since windows are bombed day in and day out by insane amounts of trojans and mallware.
If you can't handle linux, then atleast consider keeping your important files encrypted in VM widows atleast, it will add some security to you.

cheers

I recommend Linux (Debian or similar). Make sure to use Anti-Malware applications (you can buy Malwarebytes Premium with BTC) if you use Bitcoin on Windows.

I can suggest you obviously Linux, and not necessary a stable version like debian, because you will be need understood some things that are not necesary for a windows users, you can install a friendly distribution like Ubuntu with LTS(long term support) linux mint, and other distros, you can find some names and references here http://distrowatch.com/ (http://distrowatch.com/)

OSX doesn't give you enough control of your machine. It's too simple, but as I said, if you have a hard time with computers, osx is for you

it doesn't matter what operating system you have, the security of the OS and your bitcoin is up to you. if you don't know about other OS and want to secure your coin use paper wallet.

OSX has a terminal that pretty much allows you the same access and freedom as you would have on linux. Those I know and are typically labeled as "hackers" by others usually use a Mac if they can afford one. A Mac is a powerful machine with a tough casing. As I said above every OS can be secure if you know how to handle it, just because you personally have no extensive experience with a Mac does not make it "too simple" or "for noobs".

each OS has features for different people, just read up on them and find the one that best suits your needs.

No operative system : store them on a secured paper wallet.

Windows is fine as long as you keep everything updated with a decent AV, firewall.

Linux can be a bit complicated if you've not used it before, best to try out a few live versions to see which OS suits your needs.

I still use Windows 7. Tried Windows 8 and it slowed my PC down with a lot of gimmicks and useless animations.

People keep saying that Windows is vulnerable, but with basic precautions it works absolutely fine. There are some softwares which I use and are Windows only so I can't use Linux.

if you are taking enough careful steps to keep your coins secure, any OS is good. if you are not careful, no OS is good.

Learn about cold storage and offline wallets to protect your Bitcoins. Live Ubuntu CD  can help in creating a cold storage without formatting your hard drive.

Debian ! (and tails). the rest is garbage under the control of the nsa... if by mistake you put a picture of a nice girl who knows what they can do, never trust them, they are trust unworthy.

Macintosh is the best OS till date as it is very difficult to create a virus for this OS or hack the PC. Many use it and it works faster than Windows and Linux.

I've tried many Linux distributions over the years, the one I like best is Debian, if you want stability and security go with Debian Stable, if you want a really fast OS and latest hardware go with unstable, it's the best OS you'll ever use.

Plus, it's free open-source software.

I have 2,
1. Ubuntu 14.04 on my laptop (works great)
2. Windows 8.1 on my PC (works great too)

But depends of what you need, some other systems are great too.

This is a pretty solid answer, and is something far too many people overlook. People think that Linux is the most secure by default, when it's not if you don't know what you're doing.

With that said, the best option is to LEARN Linux, including security practices, and then use that. It offers the most security for those with the knowledge of how to use it.

I have macbook pro (apple operating system), I think apple is best on laptops, I have windows 8.1 (I liked windows 7 much better) on pc, and linux for my vps. Windows is much better for desktop, and apple for laptop, in my opinion. Bitcoin works great on all of them.

Unix masterrace gui is for wimps. In all seriousness I think windows 10 is going to really good.

What platform though? I think newer windows OS are just becoming more for tablets and not desktops. I am not interested in any OS past windows 7 for desktop, I accidentally got windows 8 cause it was cheaper and I deeply regret this.

Windows 8.1 brings back the start menu, the ability to bypass the metro look, etc. (basically making it Windows 7 but more secure and faster).

The issue here is that desktops are also becoming more touchy (i.e., touch screen monitors), so they're trying to bridge the gap between desktop and tables I think.

I personally don't find windows 8 that bad. Don't understand the complaints of most people.

The whole metro design and no start menu by default is what probably sets it off. Its designe dfor touch screens, to be able to swipe between apps and windows, its just awkward with a keyboard and a mouse. Desktop mode is fine, but I had to install a laggy windows start menu thing.

Read my post up about 8.1. Also, the upgrade to 8.1 is free as far as I'm aware. Just upgrade it and you're good to go.

Upgrade from 8 to 8.1 was free for me I think if that is what you were talking about. 7 to 8 was not free, I paid my 80 dollars for windows 8, but I am regretting this cause people are now selling windows 8 keys for less than 2 dollars here... are those legitimate?

Nope they are not legit. I got mine for free as I have friend that works for microsoft.

If you read my post, I've only talked about 8->8.1, so yes, I was talking about 8->8.1, lol.

And the keys are usually legit. They come from MSDN, and are called VLKs (Volume License Keys). It's more of a moral question than anything. Basically, a company will buy keys for all their systems. This could be hundreds or thousands, so they pay tens of thousands for a VLK that they can install on every computer they have, rather than manually buying one key for each as it's needed. These are the keys people are selling.

Wow I would not think that those would have been real. Learn something everyday!

you are wrong my friend:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_operating_systems#Desktop_and_laptop_computers
besides windows XP is no longer supported by microsoft and also the newer versions are not just a new version, they have eliminated many security issues.

I use a mac, never had an issue, but I just feel unlike windows, I really don't have to worry about the security part much on the mac OS. So in some way, it does matter what OS you use

there is also windows 10 coming out, test version end in april, you could try it for your client, it's cleaner than 8

I think most people would agree that all things being equal, Windows is more prone to viruses and malware than either Linux or OS X. Not only because of architectural reasons, but also because there are many more Windows users than Linux or OS X users so obviously more malware will be written for it.


I happen to be in the minority of people who actually prefer Windows XP even after trying Windows 7 and 8. Security issues will definitely be a major concern in the coming years however since Microsoft has ended support for it.


From the reviews I've read, Windows 8 shouldn't be significantly slower than Windows 7.


The start button in Windows 8.1 isn't really a proper start button since it simply brings you back to the start screen with all the tiles.

I use Windows 8.1, it's a good one anyway
and it's got a really fast boot-up sequence just like 5 seconds(?)
but once you force shutdown it, it'll take longer than the usual.
but it's still worth a try :D

Hoping windows 10 is better than 8, if they keep that annoying metro screen I'll be switching over to Linux completely. The only reason I've stuck with windows for so long are games and adobe cs.

you can switch to mac, photo shop has specific version for it.
also you can always use virtual machines to run programs that only run on windows.
hope these topics help you:
https://forums.adobe.com/message/2882014
http://askubuntu.com/questions/319826/how-to-install-adobe-master-collection-cs6-in-ubuntu-12-10

It's called operating system, and i think the best one is linux because it's open source and doesnt have nasty code inside it that could compromize it's security.

Its a bit hypocrity since i use windows, but if you want 100% security then definitely use linux.

Well I doubt windows would steal anything, since they are already one of the richest corporations, I doubt they would steal your couple thousand dollars of btc, but I guess its better to be safe then sorry. Linux is open source so that would remove any worries of backdoors.

It's not windows itself, but the existing backdoors and vulnerabilities and all sorts of bugs (blue screen lol) that will make the system very vulnerable to theft from malicious hackers explointing them.

It's maybe not even intentional, but just so poorly designed that any very intelligent hacker can exploit it.

Linux is also not perfect, but atleast its 100% transparent, no backdoors and malware, plus most of the trojans are designed for windows and mac, the probability is even lesser that a specific bitcoin trojan will hunt in lixun systems.

So yeah, linux all the way. Or just use offline cold storage...

Linux.

It takes some time getting used to, but once you are comfortable you will never go back to Windows. Besides, with security being important since you are storing money on your computer, it is good practice to work in Linux.

still use win 7, I tried to upgrade to win 8 but sounds a lot of rumors saying that win 8 was flawed , its true ?

It is, because every Windows version is flawed. :D

haha but i think it depends on the person, like i'm comfortable using windows 7
so till windows launch a new version of windows i will keep using win 7 ;D

Linux is simply the best. :)

Thanks for the heads-up! I wasn't aware of this. I was under the impression it basically worked like Windows 7.

I still don't get why Microsoft wouldn't offer a dual-mode OS. Let the users pick how they want to use it. Or even go a step further and just set it up with Metro if you're using a touch screen monitor/device, and normal if you're not. Problem solved.

metro screen isn't there anymore, well it's there but it's attached to the classid sidebar of windows 7, and it's super customizable

i find it much better than both 7 and 8

Yeah, Windows 10 is great I've been using the technical preview for 2 months now. It's been running smoothly on my Laptop. :)

Best operating system depends on your needs and both windows and linux have their benefits. Personally I think linux or ubuntu is much safer but it's harder to find programs to run on it though ubuntu is linux made quite simple. I'd use it just for handling my coins though maybe a windows computer for everyday stuff.

windows 2000  ;D greatest operating system I have ever used xD
Honestly I think any os you are familiar with and can use is fine.

I say Ubuntu Linux is the best and most secure os for the technical guys

i think the best os is os that you already customize it
its mean if you use linux, you can customize your linux so nobody know the config that are you make
more custom more better

i think is the best operative system windows and linux
linux hard to use, but nice for system security.

C'mon, Ubuntu is the Windows of the linux distributions, at least say one of the top distributions, Debian for example, which Ubuntu is based on, or Fedora Core, or Gentoo!

If I had to choose one, it'd be Ubuntu, and I'd argue that it IS one of the top distributions. It has a massive community behind it, is user-friendly, and it gives (as far as I know?) all of the benefits Linux does in terms of security.

There have been a few strange things with Ubuntu. E.g. if you used the search for something locally it would also search on amazon and load pictures of products that are related to your search. The connection was not encrypted IIRC, but even if thats a very serious breach of privacy. I think it was disabled though and there are several easy guides to make sure its disabled. Besides these problems Ubuntu is fine as long as you mainly want to use your OS.
For those that want to breath linux, Arch is probably better. They have an awesome wiki and community and as long as you are willing to educate yourself you will have exactly the Linux you want and need.

That's with the new Ubuntu menus trying to mimic Windows and Metro. That can be disabled, and then it won't do that anymore. It was added as a "convenience" feature, though I agree with you: that's a big problem for me as well. But it's something you're not stuck with.

the best of the best for operative system WINDOWS 7-8.

I think Windows need to grow more when we consider 'security'.

+1, this is the best advice you can get

I downloaded that btc core or how its called and it sinchs for a few days already  ;D so I opened an blockchain account, the problem is that I have nothing in it  ;D

It's unsecure. I suggest you to download an SPV client such as Multibit and Electrum or use GreenAddress.

What is unsecure btc core or blockchain? I guess you ment blockchain? I thought  btc core was most safe because it is in my pc, but it sinchs sooo long.. so I opened in blockchain and it works instantly

Blockchain.info. That's why I said you to use one of these wallets:

• Multibit : https://multibit.org/
• Electrum : https://electrum.org/
• GreenAddress : https://greenaddress.it/

Out of these, I'd recommend Multibit for ease of use (it allows creating a lot of wallets without requiring you to keep swapping out wallet.dat files) and Electrum for security (in that you can use a word-based password to revive your wallet if your PC ever crashes.

you can use pc wallet to store your bitcoins and better yet use an offline wallet for that, and use an online wallet like bc.i for small amounts and day to day use.

OpenBSD or a super thin linux client.
In reality the most secure is using something like TAILS or Whonix and then putting the wallet on a encrypted flash drive, but that is a huge effort.

Best in what terms? If u need newbie friendly GUI then probably windows or iOS, for me it's linux.

I like my Win 7, it's been pretty good for years :)

Isn't win 7 around just for like 3 years? :) but yep i own it too on other computer, bit it's nowhere safe as linux.

I`m using both windows and mac, but I prefer my bitcoin stuff on the mac side of things since there are known more virus towards pc setups.

Anyone can get bootcamp and dual side it, or like invest $20 for vmware and switch over not having to boot up each time and do both.

Again its personal preference.

windows 7 was released "Five" years ago on October 22, 2009 and the SP1 was released ~a year after that.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_7

i like win 7 more than 8 too. and currently using it for my main activities.

I like 8 more, both from a speed and an efficiency standpoint. While I somewhat hate the Metro UI, it makes finding things a lot faster. And the systems themselves run faster with 8 than 7 (based on tons of benchmarks done by major sites).

If I'm not mistaken about this part (correct me if I turn out to be wrong), Microsoft promised to supply critical security patches for Windows XP up until April 2019. In fact, It would be rather strange to drop support of the operating system that still takes over 20% (as of August, 2014) in total market share of the Windows operating systems family (despite it being 13 years old)...

Personally, I use Gentoo Linux

Oh sorry...time runs too fast then ;D.  I have 8 too and quite liked it but then my laptop broke..

Windows 8 is more reliable than 7, and it's much faster especially with ssd disks, if you don't like the new start menu, you can go back with software like classic shell.

yes maybe because people are comfort with the OS they use so I think whatever OS that is used, it is best for them even though Windows has launched a better OS

It is more a question how well do you know security because obviously windows has its floors but someone highly knowledgeable will be able to store their coins and have them safer than someone who barley knows what they are doing but is using a safer system like linux, i guess more than operating system it is who is using it, read learn about all os's and then you will be equipped to keep your coins safe with any system.

Good luck

The choice of OS shouldn't be just by security but by usability. If you are familiar with windows, then go for it. Many people don't recommend windows due to the viruses that exist. However, it is worth noting that linux also has their own vulnerabilities and if you take security precautions, no matter what OS you use, you will be safe.

i was thinking that too, until i started to love win 10, i think it's a very solid OS, and will replace win 7 with no problem, also will come with a new kernel, which sound great

Really should be in OffTopic, but Mac is the safest to use with BTC applications on it. I use linux sometimes though.

What makes you think Mac is the safest? It has viruses just like any other OS. But it's proprietary, like Windows, so I'd say it's less secure than Linux still.

The reason many people think "macs dont get viruses" is because the market share is much lower. If your gonna try and scam someone why email a single person when you can email 10 people. Its less secure than linux but I think the system itself is pretty safe.

I have windows 8.1, I prefer windows 7 much better since windows 8.1 is NOT at all optimized for desktops. The new desktop mode makes it useable but the whole metro thing is trash. I should have just bought windows 7 instead, much better for desktops.

all supports, licensing, and releasing updates for windows xp that we use has ended. they started supporting after the initial stop for the purpose of not losing market but stopped that after a while too.
now the only support that is going on (like what you said up to year 2019) is for embedded systems only.

you can read about it in details here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_XP#Support_lifecycle

So they resort to their old proven tactics of dropping support for a product (however popular) and pushing their user base to new systems and products not through innovation and their superiority over competition but through the exercise of market power. Linux 2.6 kernel branch is 10 years old already, but it is still actively supported, and most likely will be supported for another 10 years (actually, as long as there are enough active users of it)...

I still have an Athlon XP 2500+ computer, which is in perfect state despite being as old as 2004. If I hadn't been all in for Linux, what Windows could I install there?

that's a myth, mac is not less secure at all, they are all about the same, the secuirty of a desktop depend mostly on the person using it

But IMHO Windows is less secure. I have you used a few OS but in that Windows seems more vulnerable to attacks than others. I haven't tested Mac though.

depend on what windows, windows 8 is good in security and win 10 will be better for sure, since they said that the final release will come with a new kernel also(10.0)

Linux Ubuntu - free, nice, fast, secure - that's a choice I'd recommend to anyone.

Agreed. No operating system is invincible but from my experience its very very easy to get viruses and malware on windows even with an anti-virus but I've used ubuntu for a couple of years without an anti virus and had no problems at all and I spend a lot of time downloading warez from less than legit blogs and torrent sites etc which will kill your windows comp pretty fast with some sort of malware infection eventually.

True.
Many people tend to believe that Mac OS is more secure than Windows because you hardly see any viruses for Mac.

The truth is malware developers want to target the largest user base to make their 'hard work' worthwhile, so they target the Windows ecosystem.
You hardly see viruses for Mac, because bad guys target it less than they target Windows.

+1 You see less MAC viruses because there are less MAC users around ;)
On mobile side, Android is the most targeted OS. Nobody is 100% safe.

The safest computer is the one that doesn't exist

Safest computer is human itself. Highly customizable features ever found. Best antivirus ever built. No known attacks by humans till now. ;)

Use a brain wallet. That's it.

That's good. But there's a risk associated with brain wallets: You can forget!

On a lighter note:

https://i.imgur.com/tTvfNSH.png

no doubt about that, but to be fair windows 7 in comparison with xp had a lot of changes in performance, security and cool features.

in my experience 7 and 8 are most suitable for laptops, in performance and battery usage. and they work much better with SSD hard drives.

and about your computer,i am not sure but i think you can't install any x64 version of windows and you would have a better experience with XP.

That was exactly my point. There are a lot of computers about 10 years old that could be used for office and things like that. But now, when the Windows XP support is over, you either have to install some flavor of Linux there, or just dispose of these boxes as garbage... What would you choose?

I opt for Linux, but other people may indeed "think different"

Is this really true though? There might be considerably more windows users but Macs are very very popular and are getting much more so with the youth. Just go into your local starbucks and see how many people you can't see on a mac. I pretty much never see any other laptops.

No i would also opt for linux because to me it is the easiest to maintain security and i like being in communication with the computer to do things i want it to do. Windows i just have never liked for all reasons above plus only ever time my computer has been compromised was using that OS. 90% of the worlds super computers are linux based for a reason even if it is a tiny % of casual users use it. Safest.

Having an Apple device is more of a status thing with the youth and teens. Mac is generally less prone to Malware because it has a smaller user base and partly because it's a bit more secure than Windows. Still, in my honest opinion, Linux is king of security - as long as you know what you're doing.

i am personally too lazy to start learning linux (as much as i like it) so i don't see myself going towards linux anytime soon.

on the other hand, many users like me can never migrate to linux completely because there are a lot of applications that we use which can not be run in linux or running them in linux would be a pain in the ass.

so it really is the user's choice with regards to their needs. for example someone who uses windows for working with MS Office can use win xp and never have any problem with it.

The main reason why the total majority of super computers out there run Linux consists in the availability of the kernel source code. Proprietary Unices (to say nothing of Windows) are primarily closed-source software, so the super computer vendors cannot adjust the system to their rather specific needs. Although, this in no case can detract from outstanding technological advantages and breakthroughs of the Linux operating system...

No list of alternative PC operating systems could be complete without Linux.  It’s the alternative PC operating system.
Some alternative, If you want to play with them and give them a whirl.
SteamOS
Android
Mac OS X
Haiku
eComStation
ReactOS
Syllable
SkyOS
FreeDOS

How is steamOS meant to do anything?  All it does is house your steamOS compatible steam games. I don't think it can perform other tasks.

I wouldn't be so sure about that. Now that Microsoft has irrevocably terminated its support for Windows XP, any newly discovered security vulnerability would be fatal to a computer running this operating system, unless it is never connected to the net. In fact, any net, for that matter...

And, I guess, there are many yet to be found (and others already known)

You should generally use Linux if you're looking for security. It's operating system, btw.

Some of you may want to look at this
http://cointelegraph.com/news/113562/the-worlds-most-secure-operating-system-adds-a-bitcoin-wallet
Tails OS, supposedly the most secure systems out there adds a Bitcoin wallet option.

I havent tried SteamOS yet, I downloaded it and its just sitting there. Maybe this weekend I will install it to play with it.

I'd use it just for handling my coins though maybe a windows computer for everyday stuff.but even if thats a very serious breach of privacy. I think it was disabled though and there are several easy guides to make sure its disabled

from a professional standpoint, linux is the only one. (webdev here.)

on the other side, from a normal user standpoint, I really like using OSX.

I was looking in to getting a mac and trying osx but I didn't because I didn't think I would get used to it fast enough coming from windows.

Linux for web servers or vps or pretty much any bitcoin applications is the way to go. I had to use it and learn it for a couple projects but I had to use the SSH command line to access it and it was very very hard. I just have to figure out how to use remote desktop and I will be able to do this much quicker. I wish someone made bitcoind hosted servers where there is no hassle of setting up your server and configuring it, it is just ready to go out of the box.