Ubuntu
- Thread starter dee4life
- Start date
Anything is better than Vista. :lol:
Well it really depends on what you need out of your laptop. I do a lot of resource intensive work and most of the software on my computer is Windows-only so it would be hard to find alternative so Windows 7 is perfect for me 🙂
Well it really depends on what you need out of your laptop. I do a lot of resource intensive work and most of the software on my computer is Windows-only so it would be hard to find alternative so Windows 7 is perfect for me 🙂
froggyboy604
Seasoned Veteran
Ubuntu is good if you enjoy fast computer start ups and shutdowns. I mostly use Ubuntu for checking e-mail, web browsing, some office work with open office, watching videos and listening to songs.
But, Ubuntu is not very good at playing most Windows games which can't be emulated with WineHQ.
But, Ubuntu is not very good at playing most Windows games which can't be emulated with WineHQ.
I add that Ubuntu is really user friendly, specially on the latest versions, and even if it does and configures pretty much everything out of the box, if you switch, be prepared to use some shell windows when you plan to do more advanced configurations or installations, like installing unusual (and unsupported) drivers, or getting your strange/rare scanner/printer/wi-fi card/bluetooth/webcam working.
Remember: Linux (including Ubuntu) is not, and will never be, Windows, Mac OS or FreeBSD. They are all different platforms and with little compatibility between them. Fortunately, everything that is exclusively needed for working (office) has compatibility with Windows (e.g., OpenOffice is able to save in MS Office 2003&2007 format).
Which one is better, depends on your taste and on the kind of things you want to do. I would suggest getting familiarized to Ubuntu with the LiveCD or LiveUSB (runs directly from the CD/USB without installing) before installing.
Remember: Linux (including Ubuntu) is not, and will never be, Windows, Mac OS or FreeBSD. They are all different platforms and with little compatibility between them. Fortunately, everything that is exclusively needed for working (office) has compatibility with Windows (e.g., OpenOffice is able to save in MS Office 2003&2007 format).
Which one is better, depends on your taste and on the kind of things you want to do. I would suggest getting familiarized to Ubuntu with the LiveCD or LiveUSB (runs directly from the CD/USB without installing) before installing.
froggyboy604
Seasoned Veteran
You can install Ubuntu with WUBI which is the Windows Ubuntu Installer .exe file found on the CD for Ubuntu.
Wubi does not make changes to your disk partitions, and if you do not like Ubuntu you can use Windows add/remove programs app to remove Ubuntu from your system.
Wubi install is a lot better then a livecd or using a virtual pc to test Ubuntu out since it is simple to use, and faster then running Ubuntu from a CD or a virtual machine.
Here is a tutorial on using Wubi to install Ubuntu on a computer within Windows to make a dual boot the safe way compared to messing with your drive partitions.
[youtube]wehzV4OtW-U[/youtube]
Wubi does not make changes to your disk partitions, and if you do not like Ubuntu you can use Windows add/remove programs app to remove Ubuntu from your system.
Wubi install is a lot better then a livecd or using a virtual pc to test Ubuntu out since it is simple to use, and faster then running Ubuntu from a CD or a virtual machine.
Here is a tutorial on using Wubi to install Ubuntu on a computer within Windows to make a dual boot the safe way compared to messing with your drive partitions.
[youtube]wehzV4OtW-U[/youtube]
froggyboy604
Seasoned Veteran
Indeed, Ubuntu usually work better on wired networks. Ubuntu recognized all wired ethernet network cards I tried on it in the past.
My wireless card was well recognized until version 10.04 of Ubuntu. It worked flawlessly, but since this version it simply acts like it has not been connected. Most likely they changed the wifi drivers on thiis version and that's why it doesn't work.
As suggested on Ubuntu forums, I tried ndiswrapper with Windows drivers, I also tried searching for the old drivers package with no results.
Apart from that, I use Ubuntu every day as my main OS with the only inconvenient that I can't use wifi. No problem though, since at my house we use wifi only to connect between computers, and connect to the internet using HDSPA&GPRS modems (which work well out of the box under Ubuntu, but not under its KDE version Kubuntu).
As froggyboy604 Wubi is a good way to install Ubuntu if you just want to try it but need persistence (on a LiveCD every modification, installation and created documents are lost on reboot), or if you just want to make sporadic use of Linux (e.g. when you need to format something with fdisk, like when hacking devices). However, Wubi installations aren't recommended for everyday usage as they slow down disk performance (disk is being emulated over a disk image like in a VM and not in its own real partition).
As suggested on Ubuntu forums, I tried ndiswrapper with Windows drivers, I also tried searching for the old drivers package with no results.
Apart from that, I use Ubuntu every day as my main OS with the only inconvenient that I can't use wifi. No problem though, since at my house we use wifi only to connect between computers, and connect to the internet using HDSPA&GPRS modems (which work well out of the box under Ubuntu, but not under its KDE version Kubuntu).
As froggyboy604 Wubi is a good way to install Ubuntu if you just want to try it but need persistence (on a LiveCD every modification, installation and created documents are lost on reboot), or if you just want to make sporadic use of Linux (e.g. when you need to format something with fdisk, like when hacking devices). However, Wubi installations aren't recommended for everyday usage as they slow down disk performance (disk is being emulated over a disk image like in a VM and not in its own real partition).
froggyboy604
Seasoned Veteran
gbl08ma said:
I don't notice a huge performance lost using Ubuntu installed with Wubi, but I don't do much disk intensive tasks. WUBI is way faster then running Ubuntu in a Virtual machine like VMware, and Virtual Box. I get to use all of the available RAM and CPU resources with Ubuntu installed Wubi.
I just mainly use Ubuntu for browsing the net, playing flash games, and word processing. WUBI is still way faster then a virtual machine. But, I read online that you should still defrag your hard drive and check for errors in Windows since the WUBI ubuntu installed is installed on a file in a Windows drive. Ubuntu still starts up and shut downs quicker for me on my Windows 7 computer with a 1.9 GHz CPU and only 1GB of RAM. Ubuntu also seems more stable. I experience less crashes with Firefox then Windows 7.
Gimp also seems to load a little faster in Ubuntu then Windows 7 on my older desktop.
Yes, the slow down caused by WUBI is small. It is most noticeable on old computers when you copy/move/create files and directories - this I can tell by myself, I have Ubuntu installed with WUBI on an old PC.
It's true that you need to defrag the disk from Windows, a fragmented disk image is one of the causes of fail of a WUBI install.
The fact that Firefox and GIMP run better in Linux is due to the fact that both were designed for Linux and then for Windows (however most of their users use Windows), leading to more errors in Windows than on Linux. GIMP has also another thing, in Windows it has to load a lot of Linux libraries ported to Windows (like GTK) in order to make it work, and on Linux they are already loaded if using Gnome.
I switched to Linux because I noticed most of the programs I used on Windows were Linux based: GIMP, Inkscape, Thunderbird (although now I use Evolution 🙂), etc. Furthermore, I needed to compile some things (more specifically Rockbox for my iPod) which were difficult to do on Windows. So I switched to Ubuntu on September this year (I already used it before) and I'm happy so far 🙂
It's true that you need to defrag the disk from Windows, a fragmented disk image is one of the causes of fail of a WUBI install.
The fact that Firefox and GIMP run better in Linux is due to the fact that both were designed for Linux and then for Windows (however most of their users use Windows), leading to more errors in Windows than on Linux. GIMP has also another thing, in Windows it has to load a lot of Linux libraries ported to Windows (like GTK) in order to make it work, and on Linux they are already loaded if using Gnome.
I switched to Linux because I noticed most of the programs I used on Windows were Linux based: GIMP, Inkscape, Thunderbird (although now I use Evolution 🙂), etc. Furthermore, I needed to compile some things (more specifically Rockbox for my iPod) which were difficult to do on Windows. So I switched to Ubuntu on September this year (I already used it before) and I'm happy so far 🙂
Haha I agree, anything is better than vista. I run Windows 7 Ultimate, and I love it. Ubuntu is a good peice of software, but like he said, most programs I use are windows based as well. But I think there is a program for Ubuntu to give compatibility on windows programs.Santa said:
@Terrorz yes, WINE is a compatibility layer (not an emulator!) between Windows apps and Linux (any Linux with a X display server, not only Ubuntu - this means all of the modern distributions currently available). It allows you to run Windows apps on Linux to some extent, but things are not perfect and don't expect more complex apps to work (e.g. Photoshop latest version). But, for these apps there're 80% of probabilities of existing a Linux equivalent (e.g. Evolution for Outlook, OpenOffice for MS Office, GIMP for Photoshop, etc.).
On this thread we're talking about Ubuntu, but don't forget to check other distros too. 😉 Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu, but has much more eye candy. Perfect for those who like having a shiny interface 🙂
On this thread we're talking about Ubuntu, but don't forget to check other distros too. 😉 Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu, but has much more eye candy. Perfect for those who like having a shiny interface 🙂
DiversitySolutions
Reputable
I have Windows 7 Home Premium and happy with it. I'd rather much prefer Win 7 because its easier with games etc. However Ubuntu is also great, don't get me wrong. I'd rather much use Ubuntu then Win 7 if only it had more compadability with PC games. But I mainly use it for Open Office Word.
froggyboy604
Seasoned Veteran
I been using Ubuntu 10.10 for a few weeks, and I like how fast it starts up and shut down compared to Windows 7 Home premium on my 1.86GHz Intel CPU and 1 GB of RAM.
Plus, I don't have the schedule virus scans, antispyware scans, anti-malware scans, and disk defrags which slow down my computer when I am browsing the web or doing other tasks while a scan is taking place.
Ubuntu has a few good games if you browse the Ubuntu Software Center App.
Like Torcs
[youtube]w1NRdVLa6Sw[/youtube]
Plus, I don't have the schedule virus scans, antispyware scans, anti-malware scans, and disk defrags which slow down my computer when I am browsing the web or doing other tasks while a scan is taking place.
Ubuntu has a few good games if you browse the Ubuntu Software Center App.
Like Torcs
[youtube]w1NRdVLa6Sw[/youtube]
The Visitors
Up-and-Coming Sensation
For a personal desktop, I seem to be having trouble with Linux. Ubuntu, SuSe, and many others seems to have collectively done some kind of update to which dislikes my wireless card.
But my personal favorite is still Ubuntu, SuSe, and Debain for a personal desktop. Lots of support and generally very friendly.
But my personal favorite is still Ubuntu, SuSe, and Debain for a personal desktop. Lots of support and generally very friendly.
I've used Ubuntu before. I had it as a dual boot with Vista. I wouldn't recommend changing from it straight away, make sure you test it as well. I had to use an external network card for it to work because it wasn't compatable. It is a big step from Windows to Linux - Make sure you do your homework for it. It is used a lot by 'geeks', just because they don't like how restricted Windows is.
froggyboy604
Seasoned Veteran
I don't find Ubuntu that big of a jump from Windows. There are tons of free software in the Ubuntu Software Center which UBC can install like FileZilla, Audacity, Google Chrome, VLC, Thunderbird, Gimp, Adobe Flash Player, and tons more.
I notice most of the programs like VLC which are also available for Windows has the same user interface in Ubuntu.
If you just need a free operating system to go online with Firefox to watch YouTube videos and browse the web. Plus, type out the occasional Essay with Open Office Writer. Ubuntu works good.
The one main problem with Ubuntu is finding a compatible printer and scanner for it. Plus, in the past, video cards did not work for me very well, but I notice Nvidia and Intel video cards work okay with Ubuntu.
Internet usually works after installing Ubuntu on a computer that access the internet/network with a wired network card.
The upside to Ubuntu is I don't have to do disk defrags, virus scans, and deal with registry errors like Windows.
I notice most of the programs like VLC which are also available for Windows has the same user interface in Ubuntu.
If you just need a free operating system to go online with Firefox to watch YouTube videos and browse the web. Plus, type out the occasional Essay with Open Office Writer. Ubuntu works good.
The one main problem with Ubuntu is finding a compatible printer and scanner for it. Plus, in the past, video cards did not work for me very well, but I notice Nvidia and Intel video cards work okay with Ubuntu.
Internet usually works after installing Ubuntu on a computer that access the internet/network with a wired network card.
The upside to Ubuntu is I don't have to do disk defrags, virus scans, and deal with registry errors like Windows.
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