So What Is Ubuntu And Why Should I Try It?

2008-05-11T04:20:00.000-07:00

For starters, Ubuntu is an operating system just like Windows XP or Mac OS. To be more precise, Ubuntu is a Linux based operating system. Now you would ask what's Linux? When some one says that he is using Linux, he means that he is using a Linux distribution or distro. There are many Linux distribution available. Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, PCLinxOS are some of the most popular You can know about various Linux distribution here. The reason for me to choose Ubuntu is that it has a great graphical user interface(GUI), its easy to use and has great community support.

Why should you try it?

1. Stable

All Linux distributions have been found to be reliable. It's not uncommon for Linux systems to run for months or years without a single reboot.

2. No Viruses

Although it is possible to create a virus to target Linux systems, the design of the system itself makes it very difficult to become infected.

3. Free And Open Source

Yup! Ubuntu is totally free and open source.

4. Virtually Hardware Dependent

Ubuntu is compatible with different hardwares. And yes, you don't have to search all over the net for drivers after you install Ubuntu. They already come with Ubuntu in most of the cases.

5. No Dearth Of Applications

There is a misconception that there are not enough softwares for Linux which is of course not true. You can have a look at this page to know what I'm talking of.

6. Community Driven

Ubuntu is community developed and the community support is amazing. You can put up your problems in the Ubuntu Forums and get quick answers. You also have the options of IRC channels and mailing lists.

7. Live CD

The Ubuntu CD can be used as a Live CD. That means, you don't have to reformat your hard drive to give Ubuntu a try. There's a live CD that won't affect your Windows installation. You can just put in the CD and boot without affecting Windows installation.

(PS: A Live CD is much slower than the fully installed Ubuntu system, but allows you to test Ubuntu without affecting your existing software). You can also set up a dual-boot whereby you can choose whether to boot into Windows or Ubuntu.

So, that's about it. In my next post I'll describe how I set-up a dual boot with an option to boot into Windows or Ubuntu.

Meanwhile, you can subscribe to my RSS feeds or you can Subscribe via Email to receive updates about my new posts via Email.

Further Reading On Ubuntu:

Welcome To Ubuntu Noobie!

2008-05-10T21:21:00.000-07:00

Hi guys, this is my new blog hosted on Blogger. The idea came to my mind when I got a free Ubuntu CD from here last week(If you can't wait that long for the CD to ship in , you can download the image from here and burn it into a CD). I installed it on my system and I'm really loving the Ubuntu experience. So I thought of sharing my experience with everyone there who're willing to try out a free, safe and robust non-Windows operating system.

I would like to welcome one and all to this blog. In my coming posts I would tell you how to install Ubuntu(along with Windows), installing softwares, customizing Ubuntu to look the way you like it and a whole lot of tips and tricks which I've learnt in the course of using this operating system.

Meanwhile, you can subscribe to my RSS feeds( if you're still clueless about it, here is a good article on what is RSS) or you can Subscribe via Email to receive updates about my new posts via Email.