If you've discounted ubuntu before, it is time to give it another try


Rajahal

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ubuntu

 

My Windows 7 laptop died the other day.  I don't blame Windows as much as the extremely flaky internet connection I'm currently on.  A Windows update was corrupted somehow, and the laptop went into a permanent restart/startup repair loop.  Rescuing my data off the SSD was simple, but since I had to reinstall the OS anyway, I figured I would give ubuntu a try.  I had a disk for ubuntu 11.04 all ready to go, so I installed it.  I've been using it for a couple of days now, and I am VERY impressed.  I originally tried Linux as a desktop OS a few years ago (I think I tried Debian, Suselinux and ubuntu, but I don't remember which versions).  At that time I found the OSes to be very counter-intuitive, and I couldn't get any of my important programs to run correctly.  After struggling for a few days, I would give up and go back to Windows or MacOS.  This time around, I think I'm going to stick with ubuntu as my primary OS for basic functions (internet, music, video, etc.), though I may still dual boot into Win7 for a few heavier apps.

 

My laptop is far from beefy, it is a lightweight browsing machine.  All my serious work I delegate to my desktop (which is still running Win7, though I think I'll throw ubuntu on there soon).  My laptop has a single core 1.3 GHz CPU, 3 GBs of RAM, crap Intel graphics, and a budget 64 GB Kingston SSD (one of the $64 deals).  ubuntu boots very quickly, under a minute, and it wakes from sleep almost instantly.  General browsing and clicking around does feel a tinge slower than it did with Win7, but still plenty fast enough.

 

The software bundled with ubuntu is, for the most part, excellent.  ubuntu comes with Firefox, which I found to be very sluggish, so the first thing I did was install Chromium (which is identical to Chrome as far as I can tell).  ubuntu's 'software center' app is a pleasure to use.  It feels a bit like the Droid Market - it lets you search for, install, and uninstall programs all in one place.  LibreOffice appears to be a nearly identical MS Office clone, and appears to be faster and more stable than OpenOffice for Windows or MacOS.  I'll admit that I haven't done any serious work in LibreOffice yet, but between it and Google Docs I believe I shouldn't have any trouble with cutting the MS Office umbilical cord.  The default music player (Banshee) has some odd restriction of not being able to support MP3s without third party codecs, so I quickly replaced it with the highest rated player, Amorak, which works well.  GIMP also loads far faster than it does on Windows.

 

Here's a screenshot of my desktop:

ib7I1l.jpg

Applications, from top to bottom, are Chromium (web browser), Home Folder (Ubuntu's version of Explorer/Finder), Amorak (music player), projectM (Milkdrop visualizer), GIMP (Photoshop-like program), LibreOffice Writer (Word Clone), LibreOffice Calc (Excel clone), Ubuntu Software Center (app store and uninstaller), Workspace Switcher (just like Spaces on MacOS), Applications (lists apps by frequency of use, alphabetically, and new apps available for download), Files & Folders (lists recent, downloads, and favorites)

 

The default theme/interface is quite nice.  Simple and clean in appearance (sort of like a grown-up version of MacOS), with all the Windows 7 features that I have come to depend on.  Notably, ubuntu has the Win7-like feature of dragging a window to the sides of the screen to automatically resize it as well as large and easy to use breadcrumbs.  2 finger and horizontal scrolling are also supported, but they aren't turned on by default, you have to enable them in the settings.  ubuntu also offers a few features and behaviors that Windows and MacOS both lack.  The taskbar behavior is probably the best example.  The taskbar is very Mac-like in appearance.  However, instead of the normal auto-hide behavior, the taskbar only auto-hides when a program is running full-screen.  At all other times, the taskbar is not hidden.  I really like this behavior, it makes a lot of sense and I got used to it very quickly.  Another great feature is 'shortcuts'.  Clicking the ubuntu icon in the top left corner of the screen or pressing a configurable keyboard shortcut (mine is set to the windows key) brings up this:

 

kDXAnl.jpg

 

Quick searching of both files and apps, and nice big buttons for often used programs.  A great feature.  General OS keyboard shortcuts will be familiar to both Windows and Mac users, as they are basically a combination of the two.  Ctrl+W to close a window, Ctrl+Q to quit, etc.  They are all very intuitive.

 

I've also had success running Windows applications in ubuntu using Wine (which is built-in).  Simply right click any .exe file, go to the 'Permissions' tab and check 'Allow executing file as program', and then run or install it as normal.  I installed Starcraft OG (not Starcraft II as this computer is too slow to run it) and Virtual DJ.  Starcraft runs great.  Virtual DJ runs far too slow and choppy to be usable.  There is a free basic Linux-native DJ program called Mixxx that does run well on the computer, but it is a bit limiting and it doesn't support my midi controller, so that's no good.  This is the only thing I've found so far that might force me to dual boot into Windows once in a while.

 

My exploration of ubuntu has uncovered a few instances of crashed programs, temporary freezes, etc.  It hasn't been a completely smooth ride.  However, pretty much all of that was the result of using third party software, Windows apps under Wine, etc.  All the basic ubuntu software has been completely stable for me.  If you are like me and you discounted ubuntu (and all Linux desktop OSes) because of difficulty of use, clunky interfaces, and widespread software incompatibility, then I suggest you give ubuntu 11.04 a whirl and see if it doesn't change your mind.  I must say, I really like the thought of running a completely Windows and MacOS free household - Linux only on my unRAID server, my XBMC HTPC, and now finally my laptop and desktop computers.

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I've been using ubuntu for almost four years now.  The recent upgrade to 11.04, with its taskbar on the side, was a little bit of a culture shock, but I've quickly got used to most of the differences, and it didn't take me long to decide to upggrade all four main machines to the latest version.

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I don't want to hijack your ubuntu thread, but your Windows 7 installation was probably recoverable.  The "Windows 7 Recovery Disc" can work wonders.

 

Possibly, I didn't try it.  If I had created a restore point I could have recovered from that as well, but Windows Restore bogs down a computer so much that I never use it.

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I just stumbled upon another cool feature.  In the below screenshot I'm dragging a PNG image file onto the taskbar.

 

A0Jc5l.jpg

 

Only the two apps that can use the file (GIMP and the trash can) are highlighted.  Dropping the file into any of the gray space does nothing.  Very cool!

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The issue I found with the latest ubuntu is that the experience completely falls apart as soon as you start working on it seriously. It works great on a Netbook, but what else (besides email and internet) do you use it for?

 

I still prefer the Mac OS as the primary OS. It's consistent, stable and fast. It's a full unix OS too, which really helps. I'm running two hackintosh's though, stuff Apple's hardware prices!

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The issue I found with the latest ubuntu is that the experience completely falls apart as soon as you start working on it seriously.

 

It is worth persevering with the new desktop - new helpful features pop out as you continue using it (like Rajahal's post above).  Otherwise, you can still revert to the old desktop.

 

The only thing I have problems with still is that I sometimes have a lot of browser windows active, so I minimise them.  Getting an individual window back to the desktop is a bit hit and miss - depending on timing of the double click, I either get the window thumbnails displayed, or I get all the windows opened.

 

In the old desktop, all that was required was a single click on the appropriate item on the task bar.

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I did really like my ubuntu 11.04 when I was running it but as the devil's advocate I did switch back to windows 7 and this is the only reason why:

 

Some programs just don't run on linux.

 

I couldn't run my AnyDVD HD or Ember Media Manager.

 

I ran both through a virtualbox which is a way around it but I started getting freezes and crashes. It would freeze and become non-responsive and had to hard reset which sometimes still froze on bootup. I originally throught that it was hardware going wrong as sometimes it wouldn't even post but I tested so many permutations and now back on windows 7 I have no problems. I suspect (though I can't confirm) that it may have been to do with the AMD-V virtualisation on the bios for use of multiple cores in virtualbox that was causing the freezes.

 

Josh

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Ubuntu is the OS I put on family and friends computers that I support that come back to me multiple times for getting cluttered with spyware and viruses.

 

BTW, you can install the actual Google chrome version of the web browser on Ubuntu if you want although chromium is pretty much identical without the Google additions.

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I did really like my ubuntu 11.04 when I was running it but as the devil's advocate I did switch back to windows 7 and this is the only reason why:

 

Some programs just don't run on linux.

 

I couldn't run my AnyDVD HD or Ember Media Manager.

 

 

If you move to another OS, you have to accept that you won't have the range of software that you were used to. There are many open source solutions that may well do the job you wanted. Freshmeat.net is a good place to start.

 

Handbrake will do a great job at converting DVD's. I'm sure there are other DVD players available that will upscale as well.

 

Plex has been ported to linux, a great alternative to Ember Media Manager. Access your media via web interface from any computer, not just locally.

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Raj

 

I have thought long and hard about a reply to your post.

 

First to start, I do like Linux, and as of Ubuntu 10.10, I have switched my entire household to it.

 

I do not regret the move, in fact, I am mostly happy with it. The move to Ubuntu was for almost everyone, pretty painless. I guess it just depends on the individual usage, and the user expectations. I would heartily recommend it to anyone, with some caveats.

 

In my experience, for the casual computer user (in my definition: browser, email, word processing, spreadsheets, etc.) the move was easy, and almost transparent. The Linux world has hit that dead on. Everyone can work with MSWord files etc without blinking, email is. well, email, and browsing is the same, I imported everyone's bookmarks, email, and away we go.

 

I think *I* was the worst impacted by the move, which was not unexpected. I had to find new ways, and new tools to do the same old things I have been doing for years. Not a big deal, but there was a learning curve. There are still some functions that I have not replicated, and still revert back to my trusty old Mac for. Once I figure out the last few items, I will be retiring the Mac, and my house will be all Linux (note: this excludes my work PC, I have tried but they will not allow me to convert to Linux on that, too bad).

 

The area that I had the most trouble, and spent hours upon hours on was integrating my hardware. If you purchase Windows or MacOS, the vendors have ready made drivers with the hardware, or on their websites, all ready for you to install and use with your OS. Most of the time you install and never think of it again. This is not necessarily true with Ubuntu (or any Linux).

 

Linux and Odd hardware:

If you have an odd or unusual piece of hardware, there may not be a driver for it, now or ever.

 

Linux and new hardware:

Some hardware may be too new, and the Linux developers may have not had time to get a driver ready for it. Vendors provide drivers for the commercial OS'es, but many delay or even ignore material for Linux. With Linux you may have to wait for support.

 

Linux and hardware vendor relations:

Some vendors embrace Linux, they love users using their stuff. HP comes to mind, with great support for even the newest hardware on their website just waiting for the Linux user to download. Wonderful. The downside is they sometimes release 'goofy' software drivers, HPCUPS?!?!?, are you kidding me? CUPS just works! HP, just use CUPS!!. *sigh*

 

Other vendors are even somewhat hostile, or unaware that Linux exists! Canon is a great one for that. At my last effort I was led to believe that they have no plans, now or ever to provide drivers or even information to developers on how to make drivers for their products. I found this very disappointing. As a Linux user I had to wait for support to be developed for my Canon hardware. In the end, the Linux support came through from the community, and it was great, no thanks to Canon.

 

I can only hope that this will change in the future.

 

Linux and older hardware:

This is where Linux shines (as far as HW). If it is common, and been out for a while, there is a driver for that. Most of the time it is as good as, or better than the original vendor supplied driver.

 

Linux OS:

I love the OS. It is solid, and fast. 'Nough said

 

Linux Software:

Programs? Well, take your pick. Don't like this word-processor, fine, choose another, download and there you are, all free!! Almost anything you want, there are several iterations to choose from. At times the trouble is which to choose! I have been able to replace all my software needs in Linux. Sometimes the software is not obvious (in the repositories), and has to be located, but it is out there somewhere. Some options did require me to 'bone-up' on it, but that's OK, I can do a little learning.

 

Like I said, I would recommend it to anyone, but with the above caveats.

 

The one thing I didn't like on Ubuntu 11.4??

 

Unity!

 

But hey, to each his own. Linux is like that. Don't like Unity? Don't use it. There are other options.

 

Bruce

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Great reply, Bruce.  Since I started this thread I've been using Ubuntu on my laptop.  I've been doing light work - email, word, spreadsheets, browsing, photo management, image editing.  All of that has been fine, and I haven't missed Windows one bit.  I think I actually prefer image editing on Ubuntu, because GIMP loads so much faster than it does on Windows.  All of my laptop's hardware has been supported from square one, I didn't have to do any searching for drivers.

 

My desktop is another story.  I wanted to dual boot Ubuntu and Win7.  I first tried Ubuntu's option to install alongside Windows.  I knew from the '30 Days with Ubuntu' article that it would be installed on the same partition as Windows, which I do find somewhat odd, but I figured that the Ubuntu programmers must have decided to do that for a reason, so I went ahead.  Didn't work - when I tried to boot into Ubuntu, nothing would happen.  At least Windows still worked normally.  I then tried making my own partition for Ubuntu, but that proved to be very complicated.  I know from past experience that Linux requires several partitions, but I don't know how to set them up myself.  Windows 7 now uses two partitions as well, but it handles them for you.  I eventually found a configuration that I thought was correct (a 60 GB EXT4 partition for the OS, then 3.5 GB of swap space), but the install would just freeze midway through.  I even tried making the partitions in Windows and letting Ubuntu overwrite them, but that didn't work either.  I'm booting from a 120 GB OCZ RevoDrive.  While Ubuntu does recognize it (so there must be some sort of driver in place), it only sees it as a full 120 GB drive, it doesn't recognize any partitions on it.  Finally, I gave up and tried to just install Ubuntu and clearing out my Windows install.  Still doesn't work.  So it appears that there's some sort of driver issue with the RevoDrive and Ubuntu, and it just isn't possible to get them to play nice at the moment.  This isn't too surprising as OCZ won't even release a Mac driver for the RevoDrive...the device is truly Windows-only, as therefore is my desktop.  I assume that I might be able to install some other SSD or HDD and install Ubuntu to that, but I don't really want to dedicate two SSDs to one machine.  I'll just stick with Windows for now.  I am going to start using LibreOffice on Windows though...

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My desktop is another story.  I wanted to dual boot Ubuntu and Win7.  I first tried Ubuntu's option to install alongside Windows.  I knew from the '30 Days with Ubuntu' article that it would be installed on the same partition as Windows, which I do find somewhat odd, but I figured that the Ubuntu programmers must have decided to do that for a reason, so I went ahead.  Didn't work - when I tried to boot into Ubuntu, nothing would happen.  At least Windows still worked normally.  I then tried making my own partition for Ubuntu, but that proved to be very complicated.  I know from past experience that Linux requires several partitions, but I don't know how to set them up myself.

 

This all sounds very odd to me.  I have set up dual boot configurations (never with Win7, though) and never really had a problem.  Sometimes I have to fiddle with the grub configuration in order to set the default boot partition to the one I want and ensure that it persists through a kernel update.

 

I have never seen Win and Ubuntu reside in the same partition - I can't see how this would work.  The requisite partitions have always been set up automatically.  By default, ubuntu uses two partitions, system and swap, but I normally add a separate /home partition.

 

If you are adding ubuntu to an existing Win7 installation, I wonder whether the installation is being confused by the fact that Win7 already has two partitions.

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The one thing I didn't like on Ubuntu 11.4??

 

Unity!

 

But hey, to each his own. Linux is like that. Don't like Unity? Don't use it. There are other options.

 

This.. is why I decided to go back to using my 10.10 partition.  I think Unity is a cool idea, but it just wasn't customizable enough for me.  Granted I could've just uninstalled it but it was easier to point GRUB to the older version of 10.10 that I've customized heavily over the months.

 

I do miss the Aero Snap though....

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Since I jumped into unity straight away, I guess I have nothing to compare it to.  I like it - it seems a perfect mesh of the user-friendliness of MacOS and the advanced features of Windows 7.

 

Somewhat ironically, my biggest gripe with ubuntu at this point is that it is slow to connect to my unRAID server!  It will always work eventually, but sometimes it will time out once or twice when I first try to connect.  Not nearly as reliable as the shortcuts on my Win7 computers, but still far more reliable than MacOS's SMB implementation.  My wifi network is a bit weak in the old house I'm currently living in, so that might be a factor as well.

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Since I jumped into unity straight away, I guess I have nothing to compare it to.  I like it - it seems a perfect mesh of the user-friendliness of MacOS and the advanced features of Windows 7.

 

Somewhat ironically, my biggest gripe with ubuntu at this point is that it is slow to connect to my unRAID server!  It will always work eventually, but sometimes it will time out once or twice when I first try to connect.  Not nearly as reliable as the shortcuts on my Win7 computers, but still far more reliable than MacOS's SMB implementation.  My wifi network is a bit weak in the old house I'm currently living in, so that might be a factor as well.

 

For my Mac, I use SMB, but for My Ubuntu installs, I have them in my fstab, and mount NFS. Works perfect, except for the NFS 4 error (not recognised, but they mount any-ways). I find this to be very reliable, and you avoid the weirdness you describe with SMB/Ubuntu.

 

If you have not given NFS mounting a try, I would recommend it. I really works well for me.

 

By putting in the fstab, it is mounted on boot, which saves time, and you don't have the weird mount points (.gvfs). I am using my unRAID to backup my users folders. One the first pass, the backup was HUGE!! I stopped it and took a look at it, and it was backing up all the mounts in the gvfs mount point! Not what I had in mind.  :)

 

Bruce

 

Bruce

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It's still an energy pig though..  Netbook only gets 2 and a bit hours battery life.

 

I haven't noticed any difference in battery life on my laptop after switching from Win7 to Ubuntu.  I still get about 5 - 6 hours (battery used to get 8 hours when it was brand new, but it is a year or two older now).

 

Bruce, thanks for the tip on using NFS, I'll give that a try.

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