I burned Ubuntu 7.04 onto a CD a few days ago. Every couple of years I get the "itch" to try Linux out. Most of the time I play for a few minutes, get frustrated and give up. Ubuntu has a feature that allows you to run Linux directly from a CD without installing any files on your computer, which they call Ubuntu Live. If you like Ubuntu you can install a permanent copy to your computer directly from the Live CD.
Impressions: Linux has come a very long way in the past 1-2 years. For the average user who wants to surf the net and use email Ubuntu is a viable option. It has a clean user interface and the programs are easy to locate and run. I was able to set up a network and use the internet in less than 10 minutes. It only takes Ubuntu about 40 seconds to boot up and the low hardware requirements make bringing an old computer out of retirement extremely doable.
My next computer will most likely be devoid of any Microsoft products. Ubuntu comes with Open Office, which is almost identical to Microsoft Office and it's free! There are free photo editing and multimedia applications that install with Ubuntu, so you really don't need to go out and buy any extra software. There are sites that have thousands upon thousands of Linux apps available for free download, so there is plenty of software out there.
Ubuntu has a lot of themes available, so don't let the default user interface turn you off. The desktop can be customized to look like a work of art if you want to change it up.
I found this link for cheap Linux based computers. I don't know if there service is any good, but how can you go wrong with a computer for as low as $139? Granted, you will probably want to add more memory, a larger hdd and a CD or DVD drive. I am sure that there are other sites out there selling preloaded Linux systems. I know that Dell sells computers loaded with Linux as well.
http://store.madtux.org/product_info.php?cPath=57&products_id=311
Impressions: Linux has come a very long way in the past 1-2 years. For the average user who wants to surf the net and use email Ubuntu is a viable option. It has a clean user interface and the programs are easy to locate and run. I was able to set up a network and use the internet in less than 10 minutes. It only takes Ubuntu about 40 seconds to boot up and the low hardware requirements make bringing an old computer out of retirement extremely doable.
My next computer will most likely be devoid of any Microsoft products. Ubuntu comes with Open Office, which is almost identical to Microsoft Office and it's free! There are free photo editing and multimedia applications that install with Ubuntu, so you really don't need to go out and buy any extra software. There are sites that have thousands upon thousands of Linux apps available for free download, so there is plenty of software out there.
Ubuntu has a lot of themes available, so don't let the default user interface turn you off. The desktop can be customized to look like a work of art if you want to change it up.
I found this link for cheap Linux based computers. I don't know if there service is any good, but how can you go wrong with a computer for as low as $139? Granted, you will probably want to add more memory, a larger hdd and a CD or DVD drive. I am sure that there are other sites out there selling preloaded Linux systems. I know that Dell sells computers loaded with Linux as well.
http://store.madtux.org/product_info.php?cPath=57&products_id=311
