Ubuntu’s “Dash Home”[/caption]
Essentially this is a smart menu system that easily groups together all your “apps” in one easy place, allows instant app search, and can even suggest downloads from the Software Center if you are missing an app that fits what you are searching for.
Today’s Linux, at least as far as Ubuntu is concerned, actually feels a bit like Android (or rather Android feels a bit like Ubuntu?). This is good because it might be easier for Android users to make the switch from Windows to this platform, of course that wouldn’t be good for Windows users.
There has been an active interest in some parts of the Ubuntu community of late to come up with a native way to easily run Android apps, if this eventually happens, the switch would be even easier.
One of my favorite things about Windows 8 Consumer Preview is that it boots quickly, about 8-12 seconds. How does Ubuntu compare? Quite well, at about 12-14 seconds, which I thought was pretty impressive too. One complaint I do have is that some parts of the Ubuntu UI do feel a little sluggish from time to time, but it isn’t always that noticeable and could have to do with hardware issues (though everything seems to be working).
One turn off for me on Linux has always been that many drivers ESPECIALLY for wifi, have never seemed to work. This wasn’t a problem and my wireless network was picked up immediately.
So is Ubuntu better than Windows 8 Consumer Preview (or even older versions)? This probably would depend on who you ask. I enjoyed playing with it, but to fully adopt it? I’d have to drop all my Windows games and many 3rd party productivity apps that just don’t exist in Ubuntu. I will say I’m impressed by the store-like nature of “Software Center” and the ease at which apps install in Linux these days though.
My advice to those that haven’t tried Ubuntu or any Linux distro before, do it. You can easily create a LIVE CD (or LIVE USB jump drive) and won’t have to worry about messing up your Windows install. Linux and Ubuntu have come a long way in the last few years, though ironically many traditional Ubuntu fans have been less than pleased with the recent change to the more casual-feeling Unity interface.
It isn’t for everyone, but it certainly could (finally) become a true competitor to Windows, especially if Windows 8 Consumer Preview isn’t well received or if Google eventually considers a desktop OS based on Linux to match its Android strategy.
What do you think about Linux, Ubuntu, and how it compares to Microsoft Windows?
Share your thoughts below.]]>
Ubuntu is good
Three of my old home desktop PCs are running Ubuntu 11.10 and they all run well. I was surprised to see my boys (17 yo and 12 yo) use it for online gaming, e.g. Minecraft. I also thought it was difficult to setup Ubuntu (and other distros) for PC gaming… but it seems that this is changing. I myself use Ubuntu occasionally to surf the net and it works well doing this basic function. The only reason my main computer, laptop, and tablet run Win8CP is because I am a heavy user of Microsoft Apps especially Word, Powerpoint, and Outlook. LibreOffice has some compatibility issues with old Office files. I’m currently subscribing to the Office365 plan, which I find very convenient. I also use a Win7.5 phone so I can access my files with my phone via Office365 or Skydrive (hope someone will compare and contrast these two cloud services someday). My only gripe about Win7.5 phone is the absence of a Citrix Receiver. I can’t access our networks at work. Everybody else can using their iPhones and Androids. Oops… back to Ubuntu. I agree that more and more people will use Ubuntu if they can integrate it Android. This is a no brainer since it is open source and runs well on the old hardware we accumulated by upgrading year after year after year. That’s my 2 cents.
Yeah, I downloaded it the other night for the same reason – just for the heck of it.
However as has always been an issue with any Linux distro for me – drivers!Graphics – This is the first Linux distro that has actually given me the native resolution of 1920×1080 that my monitor is capable of – Impressive!
Sound – Hmm as usual – silence for this part.
WiFi Modem – Finds it, cool – but won’t connect to it, not so cool.
So nice little play around – but Linux is still not ready for main stream use. And IMO Windows7 is far more professional – but Metro I am not so sure……
By the way the editor used for posting on this site needs to be fixed – it doesn’t render the text the way it is written.