Soliciting Input For a Linux Review
by Ryan Smith on February 6, 2008 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Ryan's Ramblings
One of the things we have been wanting to do for some time now is to do a proper review of Linux as an end-user operating system. We have done articles on Linux in the past relating to performance, but never a complete OS review.
A Month With a Mac, our article on the Mac experience was very well received and we would like to do this again for a Linux review. I, a Linux novice, will use Ubuntu Linux for a month as my primary OS in order to capture an idea of how the Linux experience stacks up, and how it compares to the Mac and Windows platforms.
Now the reason that we're soliciting advice first is due to a matter of timing. Ubuntu is on a six-month release schedule with the next version due in April. If we were to start our month-long experiment next week, our review would not be ready until the middle of March, only a month or so before the next Ubuntu release. On the other hand if we wait for the next version of Ubuntu, a review would not be done until at least the late-May/early-June time frame.
So we would like to hear back from our readers and Linux users. Would you rather see this kind of a review done sooner, or wait another 2-3 months for a review done with a newer version of Ubuntu? This isn't a straight-up vote, but we'd like to take your opinions under serious consideration, especially since we aren't intimately familiar with Ubuntu and what the next version may bring.
Please add your comments to this blog post, we'll get back to you next week to let you guys know if we're going ahead with our experiment or not.
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DanInPhilly - Saturday, February 9, 2008 - link
I tried Ubuntu on my new-build PC: burned it to disk and booted with it. It should have worked like a real OS, instead it froze. Maybe the next release will be able to handle moderately-new components.-------------------------------------------------------------
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-P335-DS3L || CPU: Intel Q6600
Video: XFX 8800GT 512mb || RAM: 2x2gb Corsair 6400 (800MHz)
wetwareinterface - Sunday, February 10, 2008 - link
yeah i had started to include in my comment too that ubuntu won't work on my x2 4800 with either a via 890 chipset or ati 3200 chipset with the ati x1900xtx installed. so much for 3d desktop, you have a modern 3d card and it fails all the time trying to acces the vid card for even 2d. suse 10.xx works at least, no 3d acceleration but it at least "works out of the box" after an install. ame with redhat's distros they at least assume to try 2d first and let you deal with immature 3d features at your own risk.seriously try a different distro or several and see which one is the real best desktop os instead of following the herd of other review sites praising ubuntu as "the best desktop distro".
Targon - Saturday, February 9, 2008 - link
You can't just review one distribution and leave it at that. There are several major Linux distributions, and each one deserves to be looked at. If it requires the input from those more familiar with Linux, then get it, because it would be like calling a review of Vista Home Basic a full review of Vista. It might apply to THAT version, but it doesn't cover all the features available, and won't touch on the features that many people need to know about.At the least, you should cover Redhat and Debian as two of the bigger distributions out there. Don't just focus on Linux as a replacement for Windows as a workstation, but look at using it for server functions as well. This is where Linux really shines.
MadBoris - Sunday, February 10, 2008 - link
I think you actually raise the problem issues with Linux in your post, it's too many distros and being mentioned mainly as a server because it can't do nearly as well as a desktop. There should be a single flavor that is easy to choose. I, as an end user, have no desire to become verbose and schooled in the nuances of the different distro's in their strengths and weakness. Should I have to be? Nor should being able to name the majority of them provide me some badge of Linux honor ;).As an example Vista basic, Home premium and Ultimate is already too many choices for people, although pretty easy to make comparatively to Linux. I surely don't want to run more than one distro so I don't 'want to need to know' about more than one. The OS should be about productivity with applications and ease of use, not the OS itself. The OS is a tool as a means to an end and people shouldn't have to think about the hammer, I just need to be able to use it to accomplish the job, while giving very little or no thought to it's construction. The more invisible the OS is, the less I have to think about it, the better it is.
Since Anandtech's focus for the review is as a desktop OS, it should be one distro, furthermore the value and quality of it in a server environment isn't in question here. that's a seperate subject entirely and realistically that would be a much more technically demanding article requiring greater time and depth of testing (in-depth security, quantitative performance analysis, stability, connectivity, server tools & software, ease of use, ease of support). Nobody is really interested in knowing if some tech guru can successfully use Linux in a closet somewhere, the question is can your girlfriend or wife (not both), nephews, nieces, parents, grandparents, etc. Is it a viable competition to the bloat that is Vista, or Mac OSX, and if not why? Well that's my look at it.
wetwareinterface - Sunday, February 10, 2008 - link
the whole point of the review is to see if linux is a viable replacement for windows or osx et al. the issue is linux isn't in reality one thing, it is split into several distros each doing slightly different things with different ease of use factors and included software. focusing on one distro is like saying windows is crap and is out of date after reviewing windows 95. or saying i don't like editing photos on a p.c. after reviewing paintshop pro and ignoring gimp and photoshop entirely. the sad fact is linux doistros include software with the install and each has a method of ditributing extra software and updates. suse uses a different system to redhat and neither use the same one as debian derrivitives like ubuntu. packages that are easily available for one distro using it's built in package manager aren't easily available in other distro's and need custom compiling and sometimes even after that simply won't work correctly or at all without an indepth knowledge of the linux kernal and distro's package system and gui api's, driver developement or programming in general. how do you recommend linux or not after sitting in the shallow end of the pool using only a limited set of tools? you need to dive in and if it's a mess for a review site writer on andtech it's gonna be a complete farce for any average "browser/email can't install a printer in windows" person to deal with what they need either. which sounds like the point of the article, is linux a capable desktop replacement os for the unwashed masses.mlau - Monday, February 11, 2008 - link
[QUOTE]the whole point of the review is to see if linux is a viable replacement for windows or osx et al[/QUOTE]If you are looking for a gratis windows-look-alike then you're out
of luck. It doesn't look like it and doesn't behave like it, and I
hope it never will. The sooner people realize this, the better.
deldorama - Saturday, February 9, 2008 - link
7.10 is the product of many major changes (that's the "gutsy" in Gutsy Gibbon) and even as a stable release it wouldn't represent "the real deal" you'll see with 8.04.As 8.04 will be a LTS release where stability is central I'd suggest to wait until it's released.
oldkawman - Saturday, February 9, 2008 - link
If you keep waiting for the next release of linux version, you'll be waiting forever. Fedora also has a pretty quick release cycle, but all in all, changes from one release to the next are minimal. If you perform a yearly review that should get pretty much everything.If you look back at the changes from RH8 all the way up to FC7 what all is there really that has changed. I cannot recall any bombshells, it's been a steady improvement in usability. It's the programs that make linux so advantageous. It's free, secure, and stable. The only missing program would be AutoCAD. That is the only program I need Windows for.
omfgenuffalrdy - Saturday, February 9, 2008 - link
for an idea of what to expect from the next Ubuntu release:Ubuntu 8.04 roadmap
https://blueprints.launchpad.net/sprints/uds-bosto...">https://blueprints.launchpad.net/sprints/uds-bosto...
gnome 2.22 roadmap
http://live.gnome.org/RoadMap">http://live.gnome.org/RoadMap
juntti - Saturday, February 9, 2008 - link
Personally, in my opinion, the release of KDE 4 is so important that it deserves to be included. Therefore, wait until Ubuntu/Kubuntu 8.04 is out.