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Posts with tag ubuntu

Geek's Girlfriend Finds Linux Harder to Use Than Windows

by Tim Stevens, posted Apr 30th 2008 at 8:10AMBreaking News

http://www.pocketdaily.com/index.php/2006/10/06/download-tman-095/Linux, the free, open-source UNIX-based operating system used in trendy affordable computers such as the eeePC and the Zonbu, has been gaining huge ground over the past decade in terms of general usability, especially when compared to the competing (and decidedly not-free) products from Windows or Apple. Despite that, Linux is still lambasted as being unintuitive, overly complicated, and simply not ready for prime time.

To test this point, a Linux fan took a machine with a fresh install of Ubuntu, a popular type of Linux, and decided to challenge his girlfriend, a Windows user with no Linux experience, to see whether she could find her way around and do some generally simple tasks. Unfortunately for those hoping for Linux desktop adoption, she didn't fare too well.

The tasks ranged from simple ones, like looking up the capital of Bosnia online (she passed this one) and watching a YouTube video (failed this one), to more complex challenges, such as burning a CD (failed) and modifying an image using PhotoShop (passed). By our count she succeeded in only half of the challenges, meaning Ubuntu isn't quite ready for completely pain-free use by Windows users. So, if you were wondering why cheap, Linux-based computers, like the eeePC, are starting to offer Windows versions as well, now you know. [Source: Content Consumer]
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French Government Moving from Windows to Linux

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jan 30th 2008 at 3:11PM

French Government Organizaiton Moving to Linux
The popular Linux distribution Ubuntu is making gains in some pretty important places, namely the French military police force National Gendarmerie. The government-run organization is planing to migrate all of its desktop PCs to Ubuntu by 2014, leaving the world of Microsoft behind it. The French National Assembly already switched all its PCs to Ubuntu in 2007, but its 1,200 desktops pales in comparison to the scope of the Gendarmerie's conversion of 70,000 machines.

The Gendarmerie has been moving towards open source slowly over the past few years, first ditching Microsoft Office in favor of the free Open Office as a replacement for Powerpoint, Excel, and Word. Then the organization left Internet Explorer and Outlook for Mozilla's Firefox browser and its lesser known sister application the Thunderbird E-mail client.

According to the Gendarmerie, moving to Linux will have 3 major benefits. One, it will allow it to diversify its suppliers instead of relying on one company. Two, the nature of open source puts the operating system in complete control of the police force, allowing it to tailor the software to its needs. And three, the cost. Ubuntu is free, as are most other Linux distributions. And that should make the tax payers happy.

From Yahoo! News

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Wal-Mart Gets $200 "Green" PC

by Tim Stevens, posted Nov 1st 2007 at 7:17PM

Wal-Mart Gets $200

Of all the retailers out there, Wal-Mart probably wouldn't rate high on environmentalists' lists of green retailers. But,that's where you're going to have to go if you want to get your hands on a new self-titled "green" PC that will cost just $199.

The Everex TC2502 gPC is a low-powered and limited-spec desktop computer that runs a version of Linux called Ubuntu rather than the much more popular Windows or Mac operating system. Ubuntu is a free operating system that looks and feels much like the competition, but doesn't offer the compatibility that even a Macintosh can offer to the ubiquitous Windows PC.

Linux has gained a lot of popularity over the past few years, finding itself installed in all sorts of devices. And, there are software applications out there for the operating system that will do everything you can do on a PC, including opening and reading files from most of the applications in Microsoft's Office suite. However, Office itself is not available, nor are most games. But given the seriously lightweight nature of the specs for this machine, you'd be hard-pressed to get any modern games to run anyway.

Those lightweight specs lead to reduced power consumption -- hence the "g" in the gPC name -- which is obviously aimed at the eco-mindful consumer.

As Engadget points out, however, this computer is rather wasteful in other regards. Internally, the system uses miniaturized components to help reduce power consumption and cost, but ironically the manufacturer throws them all into a big, plastic, non-biodegradeable full-sized case. Apparently this is due to Wal-Mart research that indicates its customers consider a larger PC to be a more powerful one, a notion that will make smart shoppers everywhere shake their heads.

From Wired and Engadget

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Are You Ready to Ditch Windows?

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Aug 8th 2007 at 11:45AM


While Windows is king, and Apple is the media darling, it's time we all started to take Linux operating system (OS) a little more seriously. The often free and always open-source OS is either completely unknown to the mainstream, or thought of as something employed only by the super geek elite. But,there's nothing to be afraid of: If you've ever used a Mac or Windows computer before, you would find Linux to be very familiar (all windows and drop down menus and the like). Linux now runs on roughly the same number of PCs as Apple's OSX, and even as Apple has seen its share of the operating system market grow, Linux has kept pace.

Now Lenovo, the Chinese computer manufacturer that purchased IBM's popular Thinkpad division, is preparing to offer several of its laptops pre-loaded with Linux. Lenovo has partnered with Novell to offer the company's SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 (SLED) distribution of Linux on Lenovo's T-series business notebooks.

The Lenovo announcement is hot on the heels of computer maker ASUS's recent statement that it was looking into introducing laptops with Linux pre-installed. And, of course, Dell, the world's biggest computer manufacturer, very recently began offering some of its PCs with Ubuntu Linux installed on them.

Could this finally be the year that Linux goes mainstream?

From BBC

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Dell Shakes Itself Up

by Terrence O'Brien, posted May 29th 2007 at 2:32PM


Dell is continuing to shake up its business model by announcing it will start selling two yet to be determined Dimension desktops through Wal-Mart and its wholesale outlet Sam's Club. Dell's market share has been in steady decline, and it was recently overtaken by Hewlett-Packard as the top PC maker.

The sales through Wal-Mart will likely only make up a small portion of Dell's total sales, but it's part of a broader strategy to expand the company's market reach. The strategy was jump-started, no doubt, by founder Michael Dell, whose recent return as CEO of Dell promises to turn around the company's fortunes in the same way that Steve Jobs rescued Apple when he returned after many years away. (Interestingly, Dell is overhauling its computers' designs so it can compete with Apple on the aesthetic front, according to Wired.)

Dell has already placed kiosks with sample products in malls across the country, where potential buyers can test and order equipment. And late last week, Dell's new Ubuntu Linux based PC's were finally made available on Dell's Web site.

Dell, unfortunately, has not made its Linux PCs easy to find. If you don't know to go directly to www.Dell.com/open, you're forced to dig through the site to find them. After pointing your browser to Dell.com, you have to select "Home and Home Office Solutions" from the right hand side. Then, from under the Desktops or Notebooks drop-down menus, you select Open-Source PCs.

If Dell is serious about Ubuntu and open-source computers, it will either place a link to the Open-Source page prominently on its home page, or simply make Ubuntu an operating system choice alongside Vista when building a PC. Still, the open-source offering is gutsy and welcome.

Dell may have once been known for value, but new designs, funky open-source offerings, and wider availability make it increasingly a company that will be known for innovation.

From USA Today

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Dell Selling Linux-Based Computers

by Terrence O'Brien, posted May 1st 2007 at 3:06PM

Dell + Ubuntu = Love
Dell announced in February that they will soon offer computers preloaded with Linux. Dell officially announced today that it has chosen the popular Ubuntu distribution (which this post is being written under) for its first foray into consumer-oriented Linux PCs.

Linux is an operating system like Windows or OSX, but it's free and tends to have a lot of open-source, free software available for it. Linux distributions are distinguished by the software included with them – for example, Ubuntu comes packaged with Open Office (an alternative to Microsoft Office), Firefox (a web browser) and the Gnome desktop environment (the graphical user interface that you interact with like Aero in Vista or Aqua in OS X).

Linux advocates argue that it is more stable than Windows and is also relatively virus and spyware-free. While it has historically required a good amount of computer knowledge to install, Dell's foray into offering it pre-installed could be the beginning of a soft shift to this alternative OS.

There are currently no details of pricing, what models will be available or how support will be handled, but Dell claims that the computers will be available by month's end via a dedicated Linux page on Dell.com. The PCs will be loaded with Ubuntu 7.04, Feisty Fawn, which was released just a few weeks ago.

Dell is the first major manufacturer to partner with Ubuntu to pre-load its operating system (OS) on computers. Dell is also the first large manufacturer in the US to offer a consumer-oriented Linux PC.

From Computer World

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