Ubuntu

[mr endon]

Couple of years back was flirting with defecting from Windows. Chickened out because deterred by the prospect of too much under-the-bonnet time sweating at a command prompt: geek isn't my first language.
Has the situation changed of late?
Web browsing, e-mailing, Word and watching DVDs are pretty much all I use a PC for. Is any current free distro user-friendly and ready to go straight out of the box?

[plum]

Yes, any recent version comes with all that built in and is pretty much ready to go. Open Office, not Word obv, if you want that you'll have to go out and buy/steal it.

Once you try to get past what's already installed it starts to go darkside again though. If you're not a fan of consoles and line by line instructions it probably still isn't worth the change. I think its the nature of the beast, trying to do anything beyond the basic browsing/media/document stuff in a Linux environment will always mean work.

[Woofage]

If you are an experienced and competent computer user I would say go for it. Even if you are not that experienced I would say go for it but you may need help with installation. In any case, it's very unlikely you will have to type anything in a terminal window unless you are doing advanced stuff. For a standard installation and "normal" use everything is GUI just as it is in Mac or Windows etc.

That said, I do use the command line for some things (eg installing new packages and running backup scripts) as it is quicker. I can also do stuff like re-set the date and time on digital photos that the children have taken when they have put new batteries in the camera and forgotten to re-set the time and date . I have no idea how you would do stuff like that in Windows.

I went to Linux full-time when I bought my last computer just under 4 years ago. I occasionally use a couple of windows apps (MS Office* and a simple CAD prog) but these run perfectly under Wine. I don't recall ever having to do command-line tweaking for anything apart from more advanced stuff.

* mail-merge in OpenOffice sucks big time, unfortunately.

[SteveC]

I occasionally use a couple of windows apps (MS Office* and a simple CAD prog) but these run perfectly under Wine.

* mail-merge in OpenOffice sucks big time, unfortunately.

According to MrsC mail-merge sucks in newer versions of MS Word anyway

[tonycollinet]

A few years ago, win went belly up on my SIL's PC. No install disk available, and she couldn't be bothered to get one from supplier.

So I installed Ubuntu for her. It is now used basically as an internet machine, and it just works - for her and kids.

[Kim]

Ubuntu (or any other Linux distro) isn't perfect, but neither is Windows.  If it supports your hardware without problems (boot off the live CD for an easy test), and runs the apps you need, you should be fine.

[inc]

Web browsing, e-mailing, Word and watching DVDs are pretty much all I use a PC for. Is any current free distro user-friendly and ready to go straight out of the box?

Just about any current Linux distro will do what you want. If that is really all you want then a lightweight distro like Crunchbang statler will fit the bill. It is fast and based on the next Debian stable so no need to upgrade for two years. Most distros also have live cd's so you can try it first before installing

[fred the great]

I've now used three versions of Ubuntu successfully with little or no command line stuff. This includes all my basic needs, open office plus banking, architectural drawing, e-mails, browsing etc.

I like it because I have never had a problem, updates can be automatic, disk checking is automatic, I don't have to defrag and it just works

[ian]

Ubuntu is still the distro de jour, it seems. I use it occasionally and it works fine. I also have an ancient laptop running Mandriva. Also fine. When Linux works, it works - so try a live CD / USB just to make sure all your hardware works, especially wireless before taking the plunge. If there is a problem, sometimes a different distro sorts it out (which is why the ancient laptop runs Mandriva, the wireless card and Ubuntu couldn't come to an amicable agreement).

The downside of Linux is that the command line never seems that far away (to wit, as mentioned in another thread, to properly mount my NAS shares I have to go to the command line). And for some applications, you can't help but think that the GUI is a very thin veneer. I can't say I like OpenOffice either, I find it slow and ugly. It's like Office's poor twin, they one they kept locked up in the basement and fed on fish heads.

On the plus side, I don't regret stripping Windows XP off any of those machines and replacing them with Linux.

That said, I'm a disciple of the church of Mac, so your milage may vary. I just use Linux on the old machines as a more palatable alternative the slow, bloatiness that is Windows XP.

[MikeFromLFE]

How timely - let you tell you a story (it has a happy ending, honest)

I consider myself a confident software user. I am not a network geek. I'm not a Linux geek - Terminal? What?

I bought an Acer Aspire One netbook a while back, but became increasingly frustrated with the supplied Linux, so I put Ubuntu Netbook Remix onto a USB drive to test how it worked, and the Aspire One played nicely - including wireless networking, and the webcam. Suitably encouraged I fully installed UNR onto the device, and haven't looked back - it picked up my Huwei (sp) 3G network dongle and printers perfectly - everyone's happy  

Next, my main laptop. I decided to do a dual boot with Ubunto 10.04 alongside Windows 7. Purrrfect. I even stopped using Windoes, except for Sporttracks. Efergy, and IE (for my work VPN). I even ditched a 1000 years worth of Microsoft Money to go with KMyMoney. I was a convert.

'cept I then got smart    and decided to upgrade to Ubuntu 10.10 (why do they use those bl**dy silly names?) as a dual boot ('cos I'm a chicken at heart). The upgrade started at about 8:30 in the evening, and everything was running hunky-dory at bed-time. So I went up the wooden hill to bedfordshire. In the morning the laptop was duly borked, the screen-saver had kicked in and now I had lots of wierd partitions that I couldn't understand.

Bugg'rit I thought, be brave, be a man - you are a cyclist after all. So I now have Ubuntu 10.10 as my only OS on my two main 'puters.  
Everything works perfectly so far, wireless, wired, printers, NAS, Dropbox. The only remaining issues are Sporttracks. Efergy, and IE (for my work VPN). I'm going to use Garmin Connect for my 705, transferring files one at a time, until I find a better solution. British Gas are giving me a Smart Meter, so the Efergy software won't be needed. The VPN - oh dear, the boss can't communicate with me at weekends, oh dear, oh dear! (I might have to admit my wife has an XP laptop    )
And the Ubuntu software even lets me watch stuff recorded on the external USB drive of my Fransat Satellite TV receiver - which I could never get working on Winoze.

The laptop boots quicker, everything works, just works. I am a happy Ubuntu user. I don't think I'm going to be loking back.  

[Kim]

Ubuntu 10.10 (why do they use those bl**dy silly names?)

Year and month of release.  Pretty sensible by the standards of such things.

In my experience, Ubuntu release upgrades are where things are most likely to go pear-shaped.  Clean installs generally go flawlessly.

[Tewdric]

How timely - let you tell you a story (it has a happy ending, honest)

I consider myself a confident software user. I am not a network geek. I'm not a Linux geek - Terminal? What?

I bought an Acer Aspire One netbook a while back, but became increasingly frustrated with the supplied Linux, so I put Ubuntu Netbook Remix onto a USB drive to test how it worked, and the Aspire One played nicely - including wireless networking, and the webcam. Suitably encouraged I fully installed UNR onto the device, and haven't looked back - it picked up my Huwei (sp) 3G network dongle and printers perfectly - everyone's happy  

Next, my main laptop. I decided to do a dual boot with Ubunto 10.04 alongside Windows 7. Purrrfect. I even stopped using Windoes, except for Sporttracks. Efergy, and IE (for my work VPN). I even ditched a 1000 years worth of Microsoft Money to go with KMyMoney. I was a convert.

'cept I then got smart    and decided to upgrade to Ubuntu 10.10 (why do they use those bl**dy silly names?) as a dual boot ('cos I'm a chicken at heart). The upgrade started at about 8:30 in the evening, and everything was running hunky-dory at bed-time. So I went up the wooden hill to bedfordshire. In the morning the laptop was duly borked, the screen-saver had kicked in and now I had lots of wierd partitions that I couldn't understand.

Bugg'rit I thought, be brave, be a man - you are a cyclist after all. So I now have Ubuntu 10.10 as my only OS on my two main 'puters.  
Everything works perfectly so far, wireless, wired, printers, NAS, Dropbox. The only remaining issues are Sporttracks. Efergy, and IE (for my work VPN). I'm going to use Garmin Connect for my 705, transferring files one at a time, until I find a better solution. British Gas are giving me a Smart Meter, so the Efergy software won't be needed. The VPN - oh dear, the boss can't communicate with me at weekends, oh dear, oh dear! (I might have to admit my wife has an XP laptop    )
And the Ubuntu software even lets me watch stuff recorded on the external USB drive of my Fransat Satellite TV receiver - which I could never get working on Winoze.

The laptop boots quicker, everything works, just works. I am a happy Ubuntu user. I don't think I'm going to be loking back.  

I'm with you.  It's only Photoshop and Bibble  that keep Windoze in the house now.  If I can ever get the Gimp to play with my Colourvision Spyder and convince me that it has mastered colour management, I'll be gone.

[border-rider]

I set up an old Thinkpad with Ubuntu for Mrs MV's mum and she loves it.  Dead easy to use, does all she needs and is nowhere near as clunky as her husband's Win machine. 

I use it almost exclusively; there are some things that I still have to use Win for though.

[DrMekon]

If you are using an old machine, you may find Xubuntu runs better. For example, my Aspire one is much happier (freezes less often, starts up quicker, fewer browser crashes) with Xubuntu than Ubuntu Netbook Remix.

Live CDs can be a bit grim - if you have a decent size memory key, the universal installer from Pendrive linux is a thing of wonder (to me, at least).

Universal USB Installer – Easy as 1 2 3 | USB Pen Drive Linux

Makes it so easy.

[andygates]

What are those names up to now? Masturbating Meerkat?

[ScumOfTheRoad]

Next, my main laptop. I decided to do a dual boot with Ubunto 10.04 alongside Windows 7. Purrrfect. I even stopped using Windoes, except for Sporttracks. Efergy, and IE (for my work VPN).

If that is a Cisco Anyconnect VPN, then install Openconnect. Works like a charm.

OpenConnect

[Adrian]

What are those names up to now? Masturbating Meerkat?

To be followed by Nurfing Narwhal

[Tewdric]

If you are using an old machine, you may find Xubuntu runs better. For example, my Aspire one is much happier (freezes less often, starts up quicker, fewer browser crashes) with Xubuntu than Ubuntu Netbook Remix.

Live CDs can be a bit grim - if you have a decent size memory key, the universal installer from Pendrive linux is a thing of wonder (to me, at least).

Universal USB Installer – Easy as 1 2 3 | USB Pen Drive Linux

Makes it so easy.

Unetbootin is also good.

[itsbruce]

Ubuntu (or any other Linux distro) isn't perfect, but neither is Windows.  If it supports your hardware without problems (boot off the live CD for an easy test), and runs the apps you need, you should be fine.

One big plus for Linux on the desktop is that a) you have a wide choice of GUIs, may of which are tweakable to the nth degree and b) once you have achieved your perfect visual interface, you never have to change it again if you don't want to.  You certainly aren't forced to accept a bunch of useless changes to it just because the underlying OS has been upgraded.

In my experience, Ubuntu release upgrades are where things are most likely to go pear-shaped.  Clean installs generally go flawlessly.

Which is disappointing, considering how well Debian, on which it is based, manages upgrades.  There's a certain amount of impatience and sloppiness at Canonical.

[pcolbeck]

Well Debian manage a new release about once very three years and Ubuntu for one every six months.. That might be why.

[Woofage]

There's a new version of Mint (normally a Ubuntu re-spin) that is based on Debian but only Debian Testing, not Debian Stable. I am hoping they will have a stable version out soon.

[pcolbeck]

The problem for a desktop distro is that Debian stable is always well out of date with the latest desktop developments.

[itsbruce]

The problem for a desktop distro is that Debian stable is always well out of date with the latest desktop developments.

You can use backports or compile from the source packages.  I don't care much about the latest desktop "developments" - they are usually unstable and poorly thought out.  Gnome development in particular is just a mess.

[pcolbeck]

You might not but lots of people do. They like shiny. I love Debian and for a server it's what I would use but for desktop I don't mind the occasional glitch.

[Kim]

AOL.  Debian on the server, Ubuntu LTS on the Mythtv box, current (for small values of current, I've had better things to do than upgrade my OS recently) Ubuntu on the desktop.

Reasonably up-to-date packages are needed for webby media-y type stuff, and Ubuntu is for the most part less faff than compiling from scratch.  Keeping actual data stored on the desktop boxes to a minimum makes staying up to date (with clean installs as necessary) reasonably painless.