Freedom
You can use Ubuntu Linux for both home and commercial use completely free of charge.
But there is even more to freedom than not paying for your software. Ubuntu Linux comes with complete source code. If you are unfamiliar with advanced computing, you should think of source code as a recipe.
Most probably right now you are using operating system that gives you no access to its source code. You have no way of knowing how exactly your system works, actually no one except producer knows how and what exactly your system does.
Open access to source code gives you possibility to know exactly how your software works, it gives you also possibility to modify any part of the system. Even if you are not a programmer, you should know that there are many of them that would improve your operating system for no additional cost if they only had that option - Open Source makes it possible. This is the main reason for such rapid development of Ubuntu Linux system and it's increasing popularity.
Who is using Ubuntu?
Check out who and why is using Ubuntu Linux. Read the stories below.
Mike W, Corporate Developer Drone
Write Your story Having messed around with Ubuntu since 7.04 (dual booting with XP) I finally made the jump and went Linux-native with 8.04.
Main reasons?
I loathe the necessity to install (and pay for) so-called 'anti-virus' software which only seems to nag and leech performance.
I admire the community ethos of the whole 'nix thing (especially Ubuntu, natch).
As a professional Windows developer I have absolutely nothing against Microsoft but I feel they totally dropped the ball with Vista - An OS whose design seems to have been totally driven by the type of gross corporate ineptitude I have to deal with at work every day.
Vista was the last straw for me (at home, at least).
There are, of course, more reasons...
I've a few work related XP VMs running under VirtualBox on my Ubuntu system and they run faster than Windows natively.
My one gripe?
Please, please someone create a friendly, capable UI to deal with the demonic xorg.conf
Tim K, Computer Work/Media Archiving
I love Ubuntu, fast, and non-demanding, but when you have a fairly good desktop as i do, Ubuntu really flies, still have to use WinXP for many Windows specific things, Windows it good at some thins, but nothing Ubuntu cant meet with some work.
When i use it i have many fewer prolbems, not knowing a lot about Bash, and the terminal makes it a little complicating, but in the best, most educational, and useful way that i know of. nothings perfect, not Windows or Ubuntu. but i know which one i prefer.
Leslie, IT System Management
IBM Thinkpad 770E - ReBorn
Old machine will start only with choke...
One of my colleagues gave me a prehistoric IBM Thinkpad 770E notebook - the very first "notebook" of my life. It is really arrived from prehistoric times, the BIOS date is from 1999, the hardware specs are the following:
- PII 266 MHz
- 160 MB RAM (it is the official maximum limit)
- DVD-ROM reader (instead of floppy drive)
- 20 GB HDD (it is also a newer part)
- 56 Kbps modem
- PCMCIA ethernet
- supposedly there are 2 USB connections available, althoug I saw only one.
Pic: http://www.thinkwiki.org/images/b/ba/ThinkPad770z.jpg
Recently I spend more and more times with Linux, so I've decided to use an Ubuntu-spawn. I have Windows on my desktop machine and I didn't want to spend a day with installing XP...
Ubuntu's basic window manager is GNOME but I thought that the available amount of memory can be too less and this is the reason, why I also dropped Kubuntu because it requires more amount of memory than GNOME. The possible alternatives were Fluxbuntu and Xubuntu. Flux was not so nice for me (I believe that it can be so customized) and I translated an article from Full Circle Issue 3, so I've decided to install Xubuntu 7.04 with alternate install (I've omitted 7.10 because there are a lot of bad experience with this version). Of course - because I was the translator of that article - I made awful mistakes with great success.
I remembered that I have some Xubuntu iso-s on DVD; fine, I have a Desktop and an Alternative also... of course for x86-64 platform, so I went to Xubuntu's homepage. First I've downloaded the Desktop iso and burnt onto a rewritable CD because the CD is required only for installing, after then I will download everything from the Internet. The machine is booting from the CD... Khmmhmm... where is the text-mode install??? I opened the Full Circle - of course I've downloaded the wrong iso. Ok, let's go with the LiveCD. I had a coffee and a smoke while I have the desktop. Ok, now there is the Install icon, doubleclick... I did a doubleclick... Achso, so have U received the signal? Nice :) I went through until the partitioning. The previous system was a TinyMe Linux with 2 pieces of 8 GB partitions; I do not need these, so use the whole disk. After killing of the first partition, I had an error message, that the partition table is not readable... Ahha, understand... or don't because the previous system worked properly. Well, I couldn't bypass this, so I've tried a different one.
I've burnt the Alternate iso to the CD, the machine have booted and more, I could step over the partitioning screen. The base system installation began... and it stopped around 82% with the message that the base kernel image couldn't be installed... Thanks, it's nice. After the reboot I was asked about which kernel image should be installed. I've choosen the latest one and the installation goes on... until the installation of applications, where there was another defective file. Fascinating, now it is around 22:00 CET and I didn't make any progress. Reboot, I've selected the Checksum of the CD, error at 99%. Okay, continue on tomorrow.
On the next day I've downloaded a PCLinuxOS2007HU system, because the TinyMe is a PCLinux-clone; I assume that if TinyMe had worked, then it will also. That's too bad that the theory and the pragmatics are not the same - as I experienced. Booting from CD, LiveCD selected, the screen went black... It was a long-time black, so it became doubtful; I pressed the DVD's door opening button and after some noise, it has been opened. Nice, so the system didn't do anything otherwise I couldn't open the door... Ok, let's have a closer look of the CD. At the edge of the disc, I have seen a lot of scratches. I replaced the CD, burnt Xubuntu 7.04 Alternate iso, CD-checksum ok, installation goes over without error. At the end of the setup, the DVD door had been opened to don’t let the disc in - although there is an option on the CD's menu to boot from harddisk.
I don't have experience with the newer Thinkpads but I explicitly dare to say that these kind of old machines are not desultory nerve-patient... The machine starting leisurely and then the Xubuntu bootsplash is shown. Little red joystick is working perfectly without any magic, I've logged on and the Ubuntu + Xfce combo is shown to me as Xubuntu. I have four virtual desktop, filesystem and home icon on the desktop, menu is upper left, thrash is lower right - as I like :)
Ok, let's have some customizing: Mailchecker to the tray, Weather forecast isn't work, Gaim icon went also to the tray with a CPU-load display. Ok, but it is not the whole system monitoring, let's have a search. On a hungarian forum it was recommended to install Conky. Nice, good and fully customizable... but the Conky's display is flashing. There is an option in the configfile but it didn't help.
Before I've deinstalled Conky, I've checked the values: 92.5/160 MB of RAM used with 50/455 MB of swap with Conky, 2 terminals and a FF window. Very good...
At the booting stage, the system is a little bit slow but after the desktop is shown, the usage of it is smooth. Of course, the speed is not comperable to a modern system because if CPU and memory limitations... but I use it gladly and it is available for translations and for blogging.
Pic: http://viszlat.extra.hu/desktop_res2.png
Old machine will start only with choke... but it can please to anybody, who knows how to play on.
(Hungarian versions are available at
http://logout.hu/iras/ibm_thinkpad_770e_reborn.html
http://ubuntu.hu/blog/sh4d0w/ibm-thinkpad-770e-reborn)
Share Your story
Please tell us why are You using Ubuntu. Share Your story!