I’ve been looking at the Ubuntu Linus operating system but I have questions. 1) Is it better than Windows to run? 2) Is it faster? 3) Will I lose Windows docs? 4) Can I run it along side with Windows?

4 Comments

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  By cornsnap, December 25, 2008 @ 11:39 pm

  The installation you will be able to work yes when installed can be able to get it to either boot to ubuntu or windows after the installation you will be runned.
  An option instead of windows after the installation you will be able to ubuntu or windows after the installation you will be runned as an.
  Ubuntu or windows after the installation you will be able to get it may take some tweaking to either boot to work yes when.
  The installation you will be runned as an option instead of windows after the installation you will be able to get it may take some tweaking to get it to ubuntu or windows after the installation you will be runned as an option instead of windows after the installation you will.

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  By greenman, December 26, 2008 @ 10:47 pm

  better than windows well no not for a beginner the reason ppl use linux is because once learned you can do much more on it than windows or just cuz its free. and you can dual boot ur hard drive to run windows and linux therefor saving all windows documents. and faster well probably if you know anything about software programming. you can download ubuntu on a disk and boot it from the disk and run it off that to see if u like it

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  By Do Santo File, December 29, 2008 @ 6:10 am

  it is safe that is how I have been running Mandrake /Mandriva and Knopix…
  it all depends on what you look for .
  let me tell you some thing IF YOU ARE EXPECTING WINDOWS.. well instlall windows.
  I tell you this because people some times expect exacly the same features and feel that they find in windows when using linux.
  you have to understand that they are 2 DIFFERENT environments. windows uses one partition Linux uses 3
  etc.
  I use lunux (not that flavor but Mandiva Linux) and I love it..
  it takes time to get used to it but is worth it.
  and remember IT IS FREE and the millions of lines of code that made linux are mainly there because of volunteers.
  so take that in mind when trying t ocompare it to windows.
  there are many great alternatives to windows software that you can run with ubuntu.
  actually lthe best computer security software and corporate tools are made for linux /unix.
  I hope this helps..
  =============================================

  Ubuntu (IPA pronunciation: /u’buntu/) is a widely used[4] Linux distribution predominantly targeted at personal computers. Based on Debian GNU/Linux, Ubuntu concentrates on usability, regular releases, ease of installation, and freedom from legal restrictions. Ubuntu is sponsored by Canonical Ltd., a private company founded by South African entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth.

  The name of the distribution comes from the Zulu and Xhosa concept of ubuntu, and can be roughly defined as, “the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity”.[5] Ubuntu’s slogan – “Linux for Human Beings”, encapsulates one of its main goals – making Linux more available and easy to use.

  The most recent version, Ubuntu 7.04 (Feisty Fawn), was released on April 19, 2007. Version 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon) is scheduled for release on October 18, 2007.
  History and development
  Originally referred to as no-name-yet.com,[7] Ubuntu’s first release on October 20, 2004 (version 4.10, following the “Y.MM” standard) began as a temporary fork of Debian GNU/Linux, with the aim of drawing from Debian’s code regularly in order to allow for a new version of Ubuntu to be released every six months,[8] in step with the six month GNOME release cycle. In contrast to other general-purpose forks of Debian such as Xandros, Linspire and Libranet, Canonical remains close to Debian’s philosophy with Ubuntu and uses predominantly free software rather than making the inclusion of proprietary applications part of their business model.[9]

  Ubuntu uses Debian’s Advanced Packaging Tool to manage installed packages. Ubuntu packages are generally based on packages from Debian’s unstable repository; however, they are not always compatible with each other. Several Ubuntu developers are also maintainers of packages within Debian’s repositories, and Ubuntu changes are contributed back to Debian as they are made, rather than being announced only at release time.[10] Ian Murdock, the founder of Debian, criticised Ubuntu in April 2005 for incompatibilities between its packages and those of Debian sarge, saying that Ubuntu had diverged too far to remain compatible

  Bugs in Ubuntu are tracked through the Launchpad web interface, which integrates with the Bazaar version control system in a similar way to SourceForge’s integration with CVS.

  Ubuntu is currently funded by Mark Shuttleworth through Canonical Ltd. On July 8, 2005, Canonical announced the creation of the Ubuntu Foundation and provided an initial funding of US$10 million. The purpose of the foundation is to ensure the support and development for all future versions of Ubuntu, but as of 2006, the foundation remains dormant. Shuttleworth describes the foundation as an emergency fund should Canonical’s involvement end.[12]

  On May 1, 2007 Dell announced it would sell desktops and laptops with Ubuntu pre-installed and on May 24, 2007 these computers went on sale.[13] It also stated that customers would be able to buy support for Ubuntu through Dell, the support coming from Canonical.

  [edit] Usability
  Ubuntu uses GNOME as its default desktop environment, intended to provide a free, simple and intuitive interface.[14] While offering a full range of desktop applications including OpenOffice.org, Mozilla Firefox and GIMP, it aims to avoid overlap by not offering applications that accomplish the same tasks.

  After installing Ubuntu, the user is greeted by the default desktop (which has no desktop icons) and the default orange-brown coloring scheme, unusual as other operating systems use blue as their default color. This Human user interface theme in Ubuntu employs art intended to mimic African tribal imagery. Illustrations of human beings in global communities feature prominently in Ubuntu promotional artwork. Applications are located under the ‘Applications menu’ in the top-left corner. Open windows can be viewed on the taskbar on the bottom of the screen. Ubuntu is available in over 40 languages, and provides Rosetta Translation tool for users to submit additional translations.[15]

  Ubuntu’s focus on usability includes the widespread use of the sudo tool, which allows users to carry out administrative tasks without entering a superuser session.[16]

  Distribution
  Ubuntu ships as an ISO image that fits on a single CD or alternatively, in the case of the older version, Dapper Drake 6.06 LTS, and just released Feisty Fawn 7.04,[17] mailed free to anyone requesting them via Canonical’s ShipIt service.[18] This is intended to reduce the amount of time it takes to download Ubuntu and the possibility of losing part of the installation software and/or to aid those users who are not comfortable/able to burn an ISO image to CD. Many Linux distributions necessitate the downloading of multiple ISO images and hours of installation process, while Ubuntu is one of the few distributions that can be installed quickly, and from a single CD. Additionally, all Ubuntu versions since 4.10 can be downloaded for free.

  Since version 6.06 LTS, Ubuntu’s disc has served both as a live CD and an install disc. This disc boots into a fully featured desktop, allowing the user to see whether his hardware is compatible and experiment with the applications available. The CD also allows the user to install Ubuntu to the hard disk using the Ubiquity application, and preserves documents created on the live desktop. An alternate install disc using the text-mode debian-installer is also available, aimed towards those with lower system specifications, towards administrators installing Ubuntu on many systems, and for complex disk partitioning.

  The live CD also contains a collection of free and open source applications for Windows including Mozilla Firefox, Mozilla Thunderbird, AbiWord, Blender and ClamAV, prepared in collaboration with the OpenCD project.[19]

  There are two types of releases: one for desktop and laptop computers and one for servers. The desktop and laptop version is available for x86 and x86-64 computers. The server edition is available for both platforms in addition to SPARC and does not ship as a Live CD (using the text-mode installer exclusively).

  [edit] Accessibility
  Ubuntu emphasizes accessibility and internationalisation, to reach as many people as possible. Since version 5.04, UTF-8 has been the default character encoding. High-visibility themes, screen-reading software, and an on-screen keyboard all come with Ubuntu.

  [edit] Ease of Installation
  Ubuntu is installed using a live CD (or LiveDistro). Users may boot their computer from the CD instead of the hard disk. When they are ready to install, they launch an installer on the desktop which guides them through the process.

  Details of the installation process can be found on the main Ubuntu site and at Easy Ubuntu Linux. After installation, Ubuntu also offers an automatic updating feature. With user’s permission, the system will find, retrieve, install, and configure software updates.

  [edit] Community
  Ubuntu places particular emphasis on community involvement with the development process. There are many official web forums where discussion of the operating system is encouraged. Canonical host several mailing lists for the developers as well as developer conferences. These are all open to the general public. Users are also encouraged to visit The Fridge, a community weblog intended to keep users informed with Ubuntu-related news.

• 

  By The Master, December 31, 2008 @ 8:33 am

  1) Depends, it is linux so you won’t be able to run windows programs in it unless you have wine. Wine isn’t nearly as reliable as running a windows program natively in windows. It is more stable and will not give you a BSOD. Most of the thousands of viruses for windows will not affect the linux system.

  2) The design of of the kernel is faster because it is monolithic meaning that all system services are in the kernel. Windows uses a Hybrid Kernel which some of the systems services are in user space. As far as the GUIs KDE seems a lot faster than gnome. You need to be the judge of the GUI.

  3) If you set up you computer right you will not lose any thing if you set it up wrong you will.

  4) No, your hard drive needs to be partitioned to a linux Filesystem. The most common is ext3 and you also need swap space for linux too. If you install windows first and then ubuntu you will be able to have access to both. But only one at a time. I would read up, do some google about how to install ubuntu before you try anything.

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